Missed the ERTC Claim? Business Options Explained
Since businesses can claim the Employee Retention Tax Credit for 2020 and 2021 quarters, employers may believe that in 2023, if they haven’t already claimed the ERTC, they can no longer do so. But there are options for businesses if they missed claiming the Employee Retention Tax Credit in previous eligible quarters, so don’t completely give up on applying for the ERC if you haven’t done so yet!
Claiming the ERTC for Previous Eligible Quarters
The ERTC is available to qualified employers for wages paid from March 13, 2020, through December 31, 2021, which may make some business owners mistakenly think they’ve lost their chance to apply for the ERTC.
But that’s not the case! Businesses have three years after the ERTC program ends to conduct a look back at wages paid during eligible quarters. For example, if a business wants to claim the tax credit for wages paid in 2020, it can still file an amended return up to April 15, 2024 for the 2020 tax year. Meanwhile, for all quarters in 2021, the deadline to apply for the ERTC is April 15, 2025.
To be clear, the Employee Retention Tax Credit is not available for filings from 2022. However, businesses do have the option to retroactively claim the ERTC for previous years if they qualify to do so.
The tax credit is “for businesses that continued to pay employees while shut down due to the COVID-19 pandemic or had significant declines in gross receipts” during the pandemic, according to the IRS. If your business had to partially or fully shut down operations during the COVID-19 pandemic due to a government mandate, it may qualify to claim the ERTC even now.
How to Claim the ERTC
There is still time remaining for business owners to claim the Employee Retention Tax Credit for previous quarters in 2020, and more than a year left for any 2021 quarters.
But with those deadlines getting closer every day, you’ll want to file an amended Form 941X (Quarterly Federal Payroll Tax Return) to claim the ERTC for past tax quarters as soon as possible. You’ll need that form, alongside other documentation, to prove why you are eligible to claim the ERTC even if you previously missed applying for it, and a tax professional like the ones at Dayes Law Firm can help you.
The team at Dayes Law Firm can assist you with filing the appropriate amended quarterly payroll tax returns to retroactively claim your Employee Retention Tax Credit funds. Our clients have already received over $25 million in ERTC funds already, and we work on new cases all the time.
Our firm can offer a free, no-obligation consultation to discuss your situation and to determine whether your business may qualify to claim the ERTC. Please call (800) 503-2000 or contact us here on our site to schedule an evaluation with one of our business tax attorneys today.
