Mayor Bloomberg and Gretchen Dykstra, commissioner of the city’s Department of Consumer Affairs, have kicked off the city’s campaign to increase the number of New Yorkers who file for the Earned Income Tax Credit.

“There are 230,000 New Yorkers eligible for the EITC who didn’t claim it last year,” said Bloomberg. “If they did this year, the credits they would earn would pump more than $540 million into our neighborhoods. And now it’s even easier to find the nearest free tax assistance site — just dial 311. We hope all New Yorkers get the message loud and clear, ‘It’s your money, come and get it!’”

The Earned Income Tax Credit is a refundable credit for low-income working people. The credit reduces the amount of federal tax individuals and families may owe and can result in a refund check. Here’s how it works: When the EITC you claim (if you qualify) exceeds the amount of taxes you owe, you get a tax refund on your taxes.

To promote the program, the Department of Consumer Affairs is distributing informational materials in 10 languages. Advertisements featuring the tagline “It’s Your Money, Come and Get It!” will appear in the subways, bus shelters, on TV and radio as well as on your utility bills and pay stubs.

“When Congress created the EITC our goal was to lift ordinary workers out of poverty,” said Congressman Charles Rangel, a partner in the campaign, which includes non-profit organizations and businesses. “These are the workers building our city.”

The EITC returns federal and state dollars to filers either through tax credits or as cash refunds to working families. Full-time and part-time workers, including self-employed workers, who are legally authorized to work in the United States, are eligible for the tax credit.

Families with more than one child, and earning less than $34,692 annually, could receive up to $5,465; families with one child, earning less than $30,666 annually, could receive up to $3,311; and couples without children, aged 25-64, making less than $12,230 annually, could receive up to $496.

Those who think they may be eligible can either call 311 or go online at www.nyc.gov/html/dca.