The legislation does offer an option for all employers who choose to reduce hours rather than separate employees. The CARES Act makes funding available to support “short-term compensation” programs, where employers can apply for state approval to reduce wages and hours for affected workers. Those workers then become eligible to receive partial/pro-rated unemployment benefits. These programs require specific application and approval from the states, but if approved, the CARES Act establishes 100% funding for payments under STC programs through December 31, 2020. Below you will find new resources to help small businesses dig deeper into the various elements of the CARES Act – the loans, loan forgiveness, new tax credits to retain workers, tax relief and related measures – that support all types of businesses.

At the same time, employers need to be mindful of the potentially changing status of their employer tax accounts and future payroll tax rates and payments. Finding resources to help manage through this time period will be key. Many vendors, like Equifax, offer unemployment claims management for small and medium-sized businesses. And several are offering resources to help employers in the form ofwebinarsor blogs. Title II, Section A of the CARES Act, named the “Relief for Workers Affected by Coronavirus Act,” provides for substantial expansion of existing unemployment insurance and benefits programs. There are 16 sections in the act that offer new programs as well as additional guidance for unemployment claims related to the COVID-19 pandemic. The legislation affects eligibility requirements, the monetary benefits paid to employees and outlines who will be charged for those payments.

Small Business Debt Relief Program — CARES Act

There are options available to keep your employees paid so that when the time comes to re-open your business, you’ll be ready to hit the ground running with your valued employees by your side. You may defer payment of the employer share of Social Security taxes incurred between the date the CARES Act is enacted and December 31, 2020. These amounts are to be paid over the following two years, with half due on December 31, 2021, and the other half due on December 31, 2022. Any loan amounts not forgiven at the end of one year are carried forward as an ongoing loan with a maximum interest rate of 4% for a maximum of 10 years.

• Certification from a representative of your business or organization that is authorized to certify that the documentation provided is true and that the amount that is being forgiven was used in accordance with the program’s guidelines for use.
• In theory, a business can benefit from both the Paycheck Protection Program and Economic Injury Disaster Loan & Grants.
• The SBA’s Economic Injury Disaster Loan program provides small businesses with working capital loans of up to $2 million that can provide vital economic support to small businesses to help overcome the temporary loss of revenue they are experiencing.
• Borrowers may separately apply for and take out a PPP loan, but debt relief under this program will not apply to a PPP loan.

Unfortunately, as of the time of publication, the SBA isn’t processing applications for these grants as existing applications have exhausted the appropriated funds. The Department of Labor is charged with issuing clarification and further guidance to the states for the CARES Act, and they continue to do so.

What are allowable uses of loan proceeds

Essentially, the PPP is a loan given from a bank to a small business. Small business concerns and small agricultural cooperatives that meet the applicable size standard for SBA are also eligible, as well as most private non-profits of any size. • To ease your fears about keeping up with payments on your current or potential SBA loan? To ease your fears about keeping up with payments on your current or potential SBA loan? Any loan amounts not forgiven are carried forward as an ongoing loan with max terms of 10 years, at a maximum interest rate of 4%. Principal and interest will continue to be deferred, for a total of 6 months to a year after disbursement of the loan.

Training will be developed and conducted in coordination with the SBA and Community Capital New York, a Community Development Financial Institution and SBA-lender. The training will be provided by webinar, and the materials and step-by-step application guides will be provided to the What Is The Cares Act? Small Business Owners Guide To Cares Act volunteers. The Paycheck Protection Program is implemented by the Small Business Administration with support from the Department of the Treasury. Enacted on March 27, 2020, the CARES Act includes several provisions addressing the expansion of unemployment benefits and eligibility.

What happens after the forgiveness period?

These grants of up to $25,000 will provide financial support for expenses such as employee wages and benefits, rent, and other operating costs. Please check sites, advice and other information you may be receiving or seeing with trusted small business organizations, the SBA and your close advisors or tax experts.

However, you cannot use your EIDL for the same purpose as your PPP loan. For example, if you use your EIDL to cover payroll for certain workers in April, you cannot use PPP for payroll for those same workers in April, although you could use it for payroll in March or for different workers in April. The Paycheck Protection Program is providing small businesses with the resources they need to maintain their payroll, hire back employees who may have been laid off, and cover applicable overhead. All current SBA 7 lenders (see more about 7 here) are eligible lenders for the PPP program. The Department of Treasury will also be in charge of authorizing new lenders, including nonbank lenders, to help as many small businesses as possible to take part in this program. Most major banks of which you are aware, from Chase to Bank of America to Wells Fargo, are SBA7 lenders and you can obtain a PPP loan by visiting their websites. Of course, business owners must document what the funds were used for to have the loan forgiven.

Making Payments Just Got Easier

Because it takes longer to secure a SBA Disaster Recovery Loan and the amounts are up to $2 million, it is recommended that you commence this latter process first if needed. A potentially immediate benefit offered by the CARES Act is an incentive to states that ordinarily have a one-week waiting period to waive that requirement. Under the Act, the federal government will reimburse 100% of the benefits paid during the first week of an individual’s unemployment, if a state waives its waiting period. For certain nonprofits that have opted out of state unemployment insurance, the CARES Act provides for federal reimbursement of 50% of the unemployment compensation until December 31, 2020. If you receive a $10,000 advance under the EIDL’s emergency advance program, that amount will get subtracted from your PPP loan.

This material is for informational purposes only and is not legal, tax or business advice. Neither AmTrust Financial Services, Inc. nor any of its subsidiaries or affiliates represents or warrants that the information contained herein is accurate, appropriate or suitable for any specific business, tax or legal purpose. Readers seeking resolution of specific questions should consult their business, tax and/or legal advisors. The SBA works with several local partners to counsel, mentor and train small businesses. You can seek out the help of a business counselor through your local Small Business Development Center , Women’s Business Center , SCORE mentorship chapter, the Minority Business Development Agency or Veterans Business Outreach Center . SBA – Find information on all COVID-19 related programs that SBA is providing, including the Paycheck Protection Program, Economic Injury Disaster Loans and Emergency Grants, and Small Business Debt Relief. Volunteers will be provided training on all aspects of the application process.

The Pandemic Unemployment provisions provide for an extra $600 weekly payment to recipients, in addition to the weekly benefit amount an eligible employee otherwise receives under state law. This incremental weekly payment will be funded by the federal government and not charged to the employers state UI funds or certain nonprofits. For employers nationwide, the process of separating employees during this time also means handling the resulting unemployment claims now and anticipating the recalculation of payroll taxes in the future. Loan funds are available to cover a wide range of business expenses, including payroll, rent, accounts payable, and other fixed payments. You can also use EIDLs to cover bills that you could’ve paid had it not been for the coronavirus.

There will be paperwork involved, but it seems like a very attractive program for independent consultants to pursue. The CARES Act refers to the legislation passed by Congress on March 27th to help owners of small and medium-sized business owners impacted by the Coronavirus. The legislation involves multiple https://wave-accounting.net/ programs and additional funding for counseling services that help small business owners navigate these programs. NAPAMA has posted a list of resources, including information related to airfare refund and/or cancellation policies, emergency fund and relief programs, sample communications, and more.