Although Employee Retention Tax Credit (ERTC/ERC) deadlines might seem far away at this point – with important dates to keep in mind coming up in 2024 and 2025 – it’s important to claim ERTC funds in a timely manner, or you might regret not doing so sooner. There are a lot of reasons why you should consider applying for the tax credit in the near future, before the deadlines make it too late.
What is the ERTC?
The ERTC is a payroll tax credit some businesses can claim on qualified wages paid to their employees if they kept staff on payroll even in the face of major financial setbacks during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic. It is fully refundable and not a loan and many business owners have already applied for the tax credit.
The Employee Retention Tax Credit is available to employers that experienced either a full or partial shutdown of operations due to a governmental order related to COVID-19, or to businesses that experienced a decline in gross receipts in 2020 or 2021 when compared to the same quarter in 2019.
If you’re an employer and your business qualifies to claim the ERTC, you can still claim the credit retroactively by amending your employment tax returns from 2020 and 2021. For all quarters in 2020, the deadline to apply for the Employee Retention Tax Credit is April 15, 2024. For all quarters in 2021, the deadline is April 15, 2025.
Why You Should Claim the ERTC in a Timely Way
If there’s still some time to claim the ERTC, why should you consider doing it sooner rather than later? For one thing, you could be missing out on major funds for your business by putting off applying for this important tax credit.
According to the IRS, the credit maximum for the ERTC per employee is $7,000 for each employee per quarter in 2021. That equals $21,000 in total, which is no small amount of money, especially for small businesses. If you add that to the maximum credit of $5,000 per employee in 2020, you could potentially claim up to $26,000 per employee for your business.
In addition to bringing in funds for your business more quickly, you should consider claiming the ERTC soon because there’s always a possibility that updates could be made to the program that could make you ineligible to claim it later. The most major change the IRS has made to the program recently is a pause on applications through the end of the year, and while that doesn’t disqualify businesses that previously were eligible to claim the ERTC, there’s no telling whether a later update might do just that.
Work With a Skilled ERTC Team
A tax professional can answer any questions you may have about why it’s important to claim ERTC funds in a timely way to avoid regret later. Here at Dayes Law Firm, we can offer you a free, no-obligation consultation to discuss any questions or concerns you may have about the Employee Retention Tax Credit.
Our team can also offer invaluable assistance with claiming the ERTC. We have assisted businesses in filing for over $250 million in ERTC claims to date, and with the help of our firm and our partner firms, our clients have already received over $25 million in ERTC refunds.
Please contact us today to learn more! You can call us at (800) 503-2000 to get the process started and avoid putting off claiming the ERTC even more. We’d hate for you to regret not starting this journey sooner – give us a call today!