Employee Retention Credit (ERC)
The Employee Retention Credit commonly known as ERC or Employee Retention Tax Credit (ERTC) is basically a Payroll Refund that the IRS will give to Eligible Employers who paid qualified wages and can qualify for a refund i.e. credit. The IRS guidelines for qualifying are as follows:
- The credit is available to eligible employers (private and some non-profits employers) that paid qualified wages to some or all employees after March 12, 2020, and before January 1, 2022. Eligibility and credit amount vary depending on when the business impacts occurred. Excluded from the ERC are individuals or self-employed persons with no employee(s), family or relative you employed. The ERC also exclude certain wages for which you’ve received credit such as credit for sick or family leave, work opportunity tax credit, etc. etc. etc.
- Generally, most businesses and tax-exempt organizations may qualify ERC if wages paid employees during Covid-19 were qualified wages. An example of non-qualifying wages is the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP loans) employers received for employee wages. These PPP wage payments are non-qualifying wages for ERC purposes if the loan was forgiven. (Excluded).
- Businesses that closed because of a government order due to the COVID-19 pandemic during 2020 or the first three calendar quarters of 2021, or a business experienced a decline in gross receipts during these eligibility periods during 2020 or the first three calendar quarters of 2021 may qualified.
- A business may also qualified as a recovery startup business for the third or fourth quarters of 2021 to a maximum refund of $50,000 per quarter
Eligible employers must have paid qualified wages to claim the credit.
ERC Dollar Limitations
Eligible Employer
- An employer which was carrying on a trade or business during the calendar quarter for which the credit is determined.
- Tax-Exempt Employers (Some Non-profits)
- Tribal Entities (Govt and Non-Govt) carrying on a Trade or Business
Eligible employers can claim the ERC by filing an amended payroll tax form 941-X, 943-X, 944 and a CT-1 form.