The Employee Retention Credit is a federal refundable tax credit equal to 50% of up to $10,000 in qualified wages (including health plan expenses), paid by eligible employers after March 12, 2020 and before January 1, 2021. Eligible employers are those businesses with operations that were partially or fully suspended due to governmental orders due to COVID-19, or businesses that had a significant decline in gross receipts compared to 2019. If the employer was eligible to receive the credit and did not take it, they can submit amended federal tax returns. The Internal Revenue Service has issued a renewed warning urging people to carefully review the Employee Retention Credit (ERC) guidelines before trying to claim the credit as promoters continue pushing ineligible people to file. The IRS and tax professionals continue to see third parties aggressively promoting these ERC schemes on radio and online. These promoters charge large upfront fees or a fee that is contingent on the amount of the refund. And the promoters may not inform taxpayers that wage deductions claimed on the business' federal income tax return must be reduced by the amount of the credit. The presentation will identify the credit and its requirements along with the warnings.
