Proposed legislation (Tax Relief for American Families and Workers Act of 2024) that includes setting a January 31, 2024, deadline to file Employee Retention Claims (ERC) has passed the House Ways and Means Committee in Congress, and has the support for the Senate Finance Committee. The current deadline for the ERC, which was established at the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, is April 15, 2024, for the 2020 tax year. Due to fraudulent claims being made by taxpayers, sometimes unwittingly due to the increase of third-party claim processors, the bill includes a number of measures to counter fraudulent claims, including the foreshortened claim period. Whether or when the bill will pass is not certain at this time, but eligible employers should be informed.
The ERC, also known as the Employee Retention Tax Credit (ERTC), is a refundable tax credit for certain eligible businesses and tax-exempt organizations that can be claimed on an original or amended employment tax return for qualified wages paid between March 13, 2020, and December 21, 2021. However, to be eligible, employers must have either:
For more information, see the IRS ERC FAQs.