Did your business suffer financial losses or face shutdowns or operations changes because of government orders? If so, you may still qualify for easily accessible help under the Employee Retention Tax Credit.
Throughout the country, many businesses and non-profit organizations are still struggling to recover from the financial effects of the COVID-19 pandemic. Even though most businesses are back open and people are more willing to visit, shop, and eat in-person, every day, companies that have been around for decades close their doors because they were never able to get their ledgers back in the black.
The good news for business owners is that there are still government relief programs available that they may not have considered or decided to skip applying for when they first became available. In particular, they may want to look at - or reconsider - the Employee Retention Tax Credit (ERTC). The federal government put this program in place to help reward businesses that kept paying their employees, despite falling income. It also is available to businesses that had to close their doors or reduce hours due to government orders.
It’s important to dispel a few myths about this program. First, it is not a loan, and it does not have to be paid back.
Second, even if a business received funding from the Paycheck Protection Program, it can still qualify for the ERTC. Early on in the pandemic, the government did make business owners choose between the two, but that restriction was lifted more than a year ago.
Third, applying for this program can be expensive and time-consuming, and there’s no guarantee that a business will qualify. There are options available that make it easy and convenient. For example, The Lake Law Firm will file the paperwork on a business owner’s behalf after a quick interview that usually lasts about 45 minutes. The firm doesn’t charge unless the client receives the credit, the fee is tax-deductible, and Lake will even defend clients at no cost if they're later audited by the IRS.
Business owners and non-profit managers that want to learn more can visit www.ERTCAdvisors.org.
Michael Blom is an attorney at The Lake Law Firm who helps clients qualify for the ERTC.
