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.
Tom Oscherwitz is vice president of Legal and regulatory advisor at Informed.IQ, an AI software company with a specialty in auto lending. He has over 25 years of experience as a senior government regulator (CFPB, U.S. Senate) and as a fintech legal executive working at the intersection of consumer data, analytics and regulatory policy.
Donald Musso is the president and CEO of FinPro Inc.
Chris Lafond is the Chief Executive Officer at Insurity. With over 35 years' experience in the technology, financial, insurance and sectors, Chris has a deep understanding of the market challenges and objectives faced by multinational corporations. His expertise includes strategic planning, investor relations, and transformational leadership. Under his leadership, Insurity has experienced consistent growth, reinforcing its position as the largest cloud-based software provider in P&C insurance with 330+ customers deployed in AWS and Azure.
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.