Employee Retention Credit Fraud!

I don’t know about you, but I’m sick and tired of hearing those ERC commercials on the radio and tv.

According to the commercials, pretty much everyone is eligible for $26,000 per employee. Guess what? Not true! It IS a real program. It was designed to help those businesses that retained employees during the COVID quarantines when a lot of people lost their jobs. The requirements have to do with that. What you could get is a rebate of the payroll taxes you paid, so if you do qualify, it’s only $26,000 IF that is what you paid in payroll taxes.

I had a client call me last year (thank goodness!). A salesman had her convinced she could get $26,000. The problem? She was a Sole Prop with no employees - NO payroll!! I explained it to her and she was shocked that this salesman had so blatantly lied to her.

Because of these disreputable pop up providers, expect this to be a huge audit area for the IRS. If refunds were paid out incorrectly or fraudulently, the IRS WILL want their money back! And, they’re going to get it from you - not from the cheater who filed the claim.

This video and the one in the comments give a good explanation of what ERC is and what you should watch out for.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UHalW3RxnN8

The Fine Print

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