How To Apply For Employee Retention Credit 2023

COVID-19, the pandemic that has swept across the globe in recent years, has brought unprecedented challenges and hardships to businesses and organisations around. Many employers have faced reduced revenues, increased expenses, and disrupted operations due to lockdowns, social distancing, and health and safety measures.

To help employers keep their employees, and to provide them with health insurance during these difficult times, the U.S. federal government has created the Employee Retention credit (ERC), an refundable tax credits that can offset some of payroll costs for employers who qualify.

The ERC first became law in 2020 with the CARES Act. It was then extended and modified in subsequent legislations in 2021 and 2023. The ERC will be explained in this article, along with how it works and the different eligibility criteria and time periods for which it can be claimed.

For a brief reading of what the Employee Retention Credit or ERC is, take a look at this video from the YouTube channel “ERC Specialists”. You can also continue below to read an in-depth explanation of ERC.

What is Employee Retention Credit? How To Apply For Employee Retention Credit 2023

Employee Retention Credit is a tax credit that can be refunded to businesses and tax-exempt organizations who had employees affected by COVID-19. The ERC has been created by the CARES Act for 2020. It was further extended and modified with subsequent legislation in 2021, 2023. The ERC is designed to encourage employers to retain their employees and offer them health benefits in times of crisis.

Main Features and Benefits

Credit is a fixed percentage of qualifying wages and health care costs paid by employers to employees.
The credit limit and percentage are dependent on the period of time for which you claim the credit. For 2020, the percentage is 50%, and the limit is $5,000 per employee for the entire year. For 2021, the percentage will be 70%, and the limit per quarter is $7,000 for each employee. For 2023, the percentage is 70% for the first two quarters and 40% for the last two quarters, and the limit is $10,000 per employee per quarter. How To Apply For Employee Retention Credit 2023
The credit amount is fully refundable, meaning if the credit exceeds your employer’s tax liability on payroll, you will receive the excess as a reimbursement.
Employers may claim the credit if their gross receipts have declined significantly or they have had to suspend operations in whole or part due to a COVID-19-related government order. Employers who are considered to be recovery startup businesses may also claim this credit, but only for 2023.
Credits are available by submitting an amended employment return (Form 951) or by reducing deposits for employment taxes in anticipation. The credit can be requested in advance by employers using Form 7200.

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Criteria for Eligibility

To qualify for Employee Retention credit (ERC), employers must meet either of two main criteria.

A government order has suspended or halted the business or organization of an employer due to COVID-19 in a calendar year 2020 or 2021.
Employer’s gross receipts in a calendar quarter of 2020 or 2021 was less than 50% or 80% of the gross receipts in the same quarter in 2019.

A special rule is in place for businesses that have started operating after February 15, 2020, and whose average gross receipts per year are no more than one million dollars. These businesses can qualify for the ERC regardless of business suspension or revenue decline.

Business Suspension

An order of the government can suspend a business or an organization in full or part if it:

The order restricts commerce, travel or group meetings because of COVID-19
The order affects the operations of the business or organization
The order will apply to any calendar month in 2020 or even 2021

Some examples of government orders that can cause a business suspension are:

Stay-athome orders restrict non-essential enterprises from operating
Curfews are restrictions on the hours that certain businesses can operate
Limits in capacity that restrict the number or clients that a business can serve
Travel restrictions or bans that impact the ability of an organization to transport goods and services

To determine if a business was fully or partially suspended by a government order, an employer must consider:

The nature and scope of the order and how it affects the operations of the business
The order’s duration, frequency, and alignment with the calendar quarters
The impact and magnitude of the order to the business’s revenues and costs

Revenue Decline

A business or organization is considered to have experienced a significant decline in gross receipts if:

The gross receipts of any calendar quarter in 2020 are less than half the gross receipts of the same quarter in 2019.
The gross revenue for any quarter of 2021 was less than 80% that for the same period in 2019.

Gross receipts refer to the total of all money received or accrued during a company’s annual accounting period. Gross receipts include:

Sales of Goods & Services
Interest, dividends rents royalties and annuities
Contributions, gifts and grants How To Apply For Employee Retention Credit 2023
Membership dues
Gross revenue from businesses or trades

To compare gross revenues for different quarters an employer can use:

The same method of accounting (cash or accrual) that it used to file its federal income tax return for 2019
The same calendar year quarters that it used to file its federal employment tax returns (Form 941) for 2019 and 2020/2021
The same sources of revenue that they reported on their federal income tax return in 2019

Recovery Startup Business

A recovery startup is a business:

Began carrying on any trade or business after February 15, 2020,
If you have average annual gross revenues of less than $1 million in any three tax-year period that ends with the tax-year preceding the calendar quarter for credit determination.

Even if it does not meet the criteria for revenue decline or suspension of business, a recovery startup can still qualify. There are certain limitations and rules that apply to recovery startups businesses.

Maximum credit per quarter: $50,000
The credit is only applicable to wages paid for the third and fourth quarters of 2021
The credit has a cap of 250 million dollars for all startup businesses that are eligible.

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Credit Amount and Calculation

There are different ERC rules and amounts for different employers and periods of time. The ERC’s main influences are:

The employer’s business has been affected by the pandemic. This could be due to the government ordering the closure or reduction of operations or a significant drop in income from 2019.
How many employees the employer had in 2019 or 2020/2021, and whether they worked or not during the pandemic
How much did the employer pay each employee in health insurance?

In order to receive the ERC from the IRS, the employer will need to complete some forms. The employer has to fill out the forms and show how much he paid his employees, as well their health insurance, to qualify for ERC. The IRS will examine the forms to determine if the employer is eligible and then pay him the money. The employer may use the money in order to pay their employees’ health insurance premiums, or get refunds for their payroll tax.

The ERC is not available forever. The ERC began in March 2020, and it will end in September 2022. Employers must claim their ERC before they expire or become unavailable. The employer should also make sure to not waste the money. How To Apply For Employee Retention Credit 2023

Here is more information about the ERC and its calculation.

Time Period

The ERC was introduced, amended, and terminated by different laws in 2020, 2021, and 2022. The amount of credit depends on the time frame for which it’s claimed. The following table summarizes the key features and differences of the ERC for each time period:

Time Period	Law	Eligible Employers	Credit Rate	Qualified Wages
2020	CARES Act	Employers with business suspension or revenue decline of more than 50%	50% of qualified wages up to $10,000 per employee per year	Wages paid from March 13 to December 31, 2020
Q1-Q3 2021	CAA and ARPA	Employers with business suspension or revenue decline of more than 20%	70% of qualified wages up to $10,000 per employee per quarter	Wages paid from January 1 to September 30, 2021
Q3-Q4 2021 (Recovery Startup Business)	ARPA	Recovery startup businesses with average annual gross receipts of no more than $1 million,	70% of qualified wages up to $10,000 per employee per quarter (subject to a $50,000 cap per quarter),	Wages paid from July 1 to December 31, 2021,
Q4 2021 – Q3 2022 (Severely Financially Distressed Employer)	ARPA and IIJA	Employers with a revenue decline of more than 90%	70% of qualified wages up to $10,000 per employee per quarter	Wages paid from October 1, 2021, to September 30, 2022

Number of Employees

The number and type of employees can affect the definition and calculation for qualified wages and health care costs. Employers are classified as small or large employers based on their number of full-time workers (FTEs), and the period in which they were employed. The following table summarizes rules and thresholds to determine employer size.

Time Period	Small Employer Threshold	Large Employer Threshold
2020	Less than or equal to 100 FTEs in 2019	More than 100 FTEs in 2019
Q1-Q2 2021	Less than or equal to 500 FTEs in 2019	More than 500 FTEs in 2019
Q3-Q4 2021	Less than or equal to 500 FTEs in any calendar quarter in either calendar year beginning after December 31, 2019, and ending before July 1, 2021. If an employer did not have in either calendar year beginning after December 31, 2019, and ending before July 1, 2021, the employer is treated as a small eligible employer if it had less than or equal to 500 FTEs in any calendar quarter beginning after June 30, 2021. For recovery startup businesses, the employer size is irrelevant. For severely financially distressed employers, the employer size is irrelevant if the employer had a revenue decline of more than 90%. Otherwise, the same rules as Q1-Q2 2021 apply.	More than 500 FTEs in any calendar quarter in either calendar year beginning after December 31, 2019, and ending before July 1, 2021. If an employer did not exist in either calendar year beginning after December 31, 2019, and ending before July 1, 2021, the employer is treated as a large eligible employer if it had more than 500 FTEs in any calendar quarter beginning after June 30, 2021.

To count FTEs for a given year or quarter, an employer must use the following steps:

Count the number of employees who worked at least 30 hours per week (or at least 130 hours per month) for each month in the year or quarter
Add up the total hours worked by all other employees (who are not counted as FTEs) for each month in the year or quarter
Divide the total hours by120and round down to the nearest whole number
Add the number of FTEs from Step One and Step Three for each month in the year or quarter
Calculate the average number of FTEs by adding up the monthly totals and dividing by 12 (for a year) or 3 (for a quarter)

Earnings and Costs of Health Insurance

Qualified wage is the number of wages that are paid to employees who qualify during a time when a business has been suspended or revenue has decreased. Qualified wages include tips, commissions, bonuses, severance pay, sick leave pay, family leave pay, and other forms of compensation. Qualified salaries also include the costs of providing health coverage to eligible workers, including premiums, copays, deductibles, and coinsurance.

The employer size, the time period and the calculation of the qualified wage and health insurance cost will affect the calculation. Table 1 summarizes and gives examples of rules in various scenarios. How To Apply For Employee Retention Credit 2023

Employer Size	Time Period	Qualified Wages and Health Insurance Costs	Example
Small	2020	All wages and health insurance costs paid to any employee, regardless of whether the employee worked or not	An employer with 80 FTEs in 2019 paid $8,000 in wages and $2,000 in health insurance costs to an employee in 2020. The employer had a revenue decline of more than 50% in Q2 2020. The qualified wages and health insurance costs for Q2 2020 are $10,000.
Small	Q1-Q3 2021	All wages and health insurance costs paid to any employee, regardless of whether the employee worked or not	An employer with 400 FTEs in 2019 paid $12,000 in wages and $3,000 in health insurance costs to an employee in Q1 2021. The employer had a revenue decline of more than 20% in Q1 2021. The qualified wages and health insurance costs for Q1 2021 are $15,000.
Small	Q3-Q4 2021 (Recovery Startup Business)	All wages and health insurance costs paid to any employee, regardless of whether the employee worked or not (subject to a $50,000 cap per quarter)	A recovery startup business that began operations in March 2020 paid $9,000 in wages and $1,000 in health insurance costs to an employee in Q3 2021. The business had average annual gross receipts of $800,000. The qualified wages and health insurance costs for Q3 2021 are $10,000.
Small	Q4 2021 – Q3 2022 (Severely Financially Distressed Employer)	All wages and health insurance costs paid to any employee, regardless of whether the employee worked or not	An employer with 600 FTEs in Q2 2019 paid $11,000 in wages and $4,000 in health insurance costs to an employee in Q4 2021. The employer had a revenue decline of more than 90% in Q4 2021. The qualified wages and health insurance costs for Q4 2021 are $15,000.
Large	2020	Wages and health insurance costs paid to an employee for the time that the employee did not work (up to the amount that the employee would have been paid for working an equivalent duration during the 30 days immediately preceding the period of economic hardship)	An employer with 120 FTEs in 2019 paid $10,000 in wages and $2,000 in health insurance costs to an employee who worked full-time (40 hours per week) in 2020. The employer had a business suspension due to a government order in April 2020. The employee did not work for two weeks in April 2020. The qualified wages and health insurance costs for April 2020 are $2,308 ($10,000 x2/52+$2,000 x2/52).
Large	Q1-Q3 2021	Wages and health insurance costs paid to an employee for the time that the employee did not work (up to the amount that the employee would have been paid for working an equivalent duration during the 90 days immediately preceding the period of economic hardship)	An employer with 550 FTEs in 2019 paid $15,000 in wages and $5,000 in health insurance costs to an employee who worked full-time (40 hours per week) in Q1 2021. The employer had a revenue decline of more than 20% in Q1 2021. The employee did not work for three weeks in Q1 2021. The qualified wages and health insurance costs for Q1 2021 are $5,769 ($15,000 x3/13+$5,000 x3/13).
Large	Q3-Q4 2021 (Severely Financially Distressed Employer)	All wages and health insurance costs paid to any employee, regardless of whether the employee worked or not (only if the employer had a revenue decline of more than 90%. Otherwise, the same rules as Q1-Q32021 apply.)	An employer with 700 FTEs in Q4 2019 paid $12,000 in wages and $6,000 in health insurance costs to an employee who worked full-time (40 hours per week) in Q4 2021. The employer had a revenue decline of more than 90% in Q4 2021. The qualified wages and health insurance costs

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Claim and Report the Credit

The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) requires that employers claim the Employee-Retention Credit by filing a federal income tax return, Form 941, or a modified employment tax form (Form941X), with them. The employer must report the qualified wages and health insurance costs paid to eligible employees and the amount of credit claimed for each quarter.

Form 941

Form 941 is used by employers to report their quarterly federal tax liabilities, which includes income tax, Medicare tax, and social security tax. Form 941 allows employers to claim ERCs for current or future quarterly periods. The employer can use Form 941 to:

ERC reduces taxes that employers have to deposit at the IRS.
If the ERC is greater than the tax that the employer must deposit, you can request an advance payment. How To Apply For Employee Retention Credit 2023
Carry forward any excess credit to subsequent quarters

To ensure the correct completion of Form 941, and to avoid common errors:

Use the latest version of Form 941 that reflects the changes and updates made by the laws that affect the ERC
Follow the instructions and worksheets provided by the IRS for calculating and reporting the ERC
Use Line 11c to declare the wages and costs of health insurance paid to employees who qualify.
Use Line 13d when reporting the credit for each quarter.
Line 13f should be used to report any advance payments made by the IRS.
Line 24 is the place to ask for an advance payment if you need it.
You can report excess credit on Line 25 for the following quarters.
Sign Form 941, date it and attach any documents or schedules that you wish to include.

You can find some helpful tips on how to fill out Form 941 here:

Use electronic filing (e-file) or online services to submit Form 941 faster and more securely
Check the IRS website for updates, FAQs, and guidance on Form 941 and the ERC
Contact the IRS or a tax professional for assistance or clarification if needed

Form 941-X

Form 941-X allows you to correct mistakes or make adjustments in Form 941 that has already been filed. The employer can also claim the ERC retroactively by using Form 941X. Form 941-X can be used by the employer to: How To Apply For Employee Retention Credit 2023

Claim a refund or credit for overpaid taxes due to claiming the ERC
Report additional qualified wage and health insurance expenses paid to eligible employees which were not reported in Form 941
Correct any mistakes or omissions made on Form 941 that affect the amount of credit claimed

The employer should:

Use the most recent version of Form 941X, which reflects any changes or updates to the ERC laws.
The IRS has provided worksheets to help you calculate the ERC.
Use Part 2 to indicate the lines on Form 941 that are being corrected or adapted.
Use Part 3 for explaining why form 941 has been corrected or adjusted
Line 24 is used to report additional wages and health insurance premiums paid to eligible employees.
Use Line 25 for any additional credit claimed each quarter.
Use Line 26 to report any credit or refund due to the ERC claim.
Sign and date Form 941-X and attach any supporting documents or schedules

Here are some tips and resources to help you fill out Form 941X:

File a separate Form 941-X for each quarter that is being corrected or adjusted How To Apply For Employee Retention Credit 2023
After making a correction or finding an error, you should file Form 941X.
You can find updates, FAQs, and more information on the IRS site about the ERC and Form 941X.
If you need clarification or assistance, contact the IRS or an accountant.

Deadline and Statute of Limitations

Form 941 must be filed by the last date of the month that follows the end each quarter. For example for Q1 (2021) (January – March), Form 941 should be submitted by April 30, 2019. In the event that an employer has deposited the taxes due on time for a particular quarter, Form 941 can be filed by the 10th date of the following month. Following the end of the quarter. For example, for Q1 2021 (January-March), Form 941 is due by May 10, 2021, How To Apply For Employee Retention Credit 2023

The deadline for filing Form 941-X is generally three years from the date that the original Form 941 was filed or two years from the date that the tax was paid, whichever is later. For example, for Q1 2020 (January-March), Form 941 was due by April 30, 2020. If the employer has filed Forms 941 and paid tax by April 30th 2020, they have until April 30th 2023 to submit Form 941X. If an employers filed Forms 941 and paid taxes on June 15, 2019, the deadline is June 15, 2022.

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Conclusion

Employee Retention credit (ERC), a valuable benefit under tax law, can help employers who have been affected by COVID-19 keep their staff on payroll and minimize the impact of pandemic.

The ERC is a refundable tax credit that varies depending on the time period, the number of employees, and the amount of qualified wages and health insurance costs paid to eligible employees. The ERC may be claimed through IRS Forms 941 and 941X, which require the employer to report the qualified wages paid and the health insurance expenses incurred by each employee.

If you are an employer who meets the eligibility criteria for the ERC, you should not miss this opportunity to take advantage of this tax benefit. The ERC cannot be claimed forever. There is a deadline to claim it and a statute that limits its use. Use the resources and tips provided in this article to ensure that you fill out your forms correctly and avoid common mistakes. If you need clarification or assistance, you can contact the IRS.

The ERC is a great tool for both your business and employees. It will help you to keep your employees, maintain a healthy cash flow, as well as recover from pandemic. This article aims to provide you with more information about the ERC. Thank you for reading, and stay safe.

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How To Apply For Employee Retention Credit 2023

What is the ERC?

Employee Retention Credit – This tax credit is available to employers for keeping their employees employed during the COVID-19 epidemic.

It was created in March of 2020 by the CARES Act and later extended and amended by the CAA Act of December 2020 (Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2021).

Who is eligible for the ERC?

ERC eligibility is not universal. Only employers who paid wages and retained employees between March 13, 2019, and December 31, 2020, are eligible.

There are also criteria for eligibility; more details can be read above, but here are the highlights:

A government order imposed a suspension (full or partial) on the business or organization due to COVID-19.
Their gross receipts for a calendar quarter in 2020 or 2021 were less than a percentage of their gross receipts for the same quarter in 2019.
It is a recovery-startup business that has been operating since after February 15, 2020. Their average annual gross receipts are no more than one million dollars.

What is the ERC worth?

The amount ERC received by a business or organization will depend upon several factors.

Some of these factors include the time period, the number of employees, the number of qualified wages, and health insurance costs paid to eligible employees. If you want a more detailed explanation, read the above article.

How to claim the ERC?

For an employer to claim the ERC, they must file either a federal reform of employment tax or an amended employment tax return (941-X).

The employer must provide a quarterly report detailing the wages, health insurance and other costs that are eligible for credit as well as the amount claimed.

When is ERC’s deadline?

The deadlines for filing ERC forms for Forms 941 and form 941 X are different.

The deadline for Form 941 is usually the last day in the month after the end of every quarter. While the deadline for the Form 941-X will be three years after you filled out the original Form 941. It can be as late as two years after you paid the tax, but the later date is the preferred date.