Small businesses that manage to get their Paycheck Protection Program loans forgiven may find themselves losing valuable tax breaks, according to new guidance from the Internal Revenue Service.
Companies that qualify for loan forgiveness under legislation Congress approved won’t be able to deduct the wages or other businesses expenses they paid for using the loan, according to an IRS notice published Thursday.
“This treatment prevents a double tax benefit,” the agency said in the notice. “This conclusion is consistent with prior guidance of the IRS.”
The guidance clarifies a point of confusion in the $670 billion small business loan program to help businesses struggling as the coronavirus has brought the economy to a standstill. The law states that the forgiven loan won’t be taxed, but didn’t specify whether companies could still write off the expenses they covered with that money.
The campaign looks to recognize auditors through videos, blog posts and other stories in order to "put a face to the auditors who play a significant role in keeping the capital markets functioning."
Sarahjane Sacchetti is a busy mother of two and the CEO of Cleo, a parenting benefits company. Prior to Cleo, Sarahjane helped build Collective Health as their CMO, and has helped launch and build several startups in a variety of industries, from adtech to social media to energy and enterprise technology. She recently spearheaded the Invest in Parents initiative, along with Paid Leave for the United States, The Mom Project and Happiest Baby, which aims to support, protect and invest in working parents during times of uncertainty.
PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP expects the majority of its 22,000 U.K. staff to spend some of their time working remotely, even after the coronavirus crisis passes.
The tax code permits companies to write off businesses expenses, such as wages, rent and transportation expenses, but generally doesn’t allow write-offs for tax-exempt income.
The ruling adds to the list of stumbling blocks facing businesses as they try to qualify for the Paycheck Protection Program loans.
Small businesses have reported technical issues in trying to apply for the funds, which restarted Monday after the first round of funding ran out after just 13 days.
The program, run by the Small Business Administration, provides funds to cover eight weeks of payroll costs and the loans are forgiven if the employers keep workers on the job or quickly rehire laid-off workers.