The SBA will re-open the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) the week of January 11, 2021, so today I’m answering the most important questions you might have about receiving a Second Draw PPP Loan for your small business.
As you likely know, on December 27, 2020, Congress signed into law an Economic Aid Act that provides $284.5 billion for a reinstated PPP for small business owners. In addition to re-opening PPP, the new legislation revises certain PPP requirements for both new and past loans.
The SBA will re-open the Paycheck Protection Program from January 11 through March 31, 2021 for eligible small businesses, including:
The types of businesses eligible for PPP loans include:
Business owners can show a loss of revenue in 2020 by proving at least a 25% reduction in gross receipts from any quarter in 2020 compared to that same quarter in 2019. Here’s how you can do this calculation:
If your business wasn’t open during the first three quarters of 2019, but you were operating in the fourth quarter and you have gross receipts from one of the first three quarters of 2020, then you can still demonstrate a 25% revenue reduction by comparing one quarter from 2020 with your last quarter in 2019.
Finally, if you weren’t in business in 2019 but were operating before February 15, 2020, you can use your gross receipts during the last three quarters of 2020 to demonstrate a 25% revenue reduction when compared to the first quarter.
Another important note is that this time around, at least $25 billion is being set aside for business owners with a maximum of 10 employees and for loans of $250,000 or less to business owners in low- or moderate-income neighborhoods.
PPP Second Draw Loan funds can now be used for any of the following:
For most business owners, the maximum loan amount for a Second Draw PPP Loan is 2.5 times your average monthly payroll costs in 2019 or 2020 up to $2 million. If your business is in the Accommodation and Food Services sector, then you’ll be able to borrow 3.5 times your average monthly payroll costs in 2019 or 2020 up to $3 million.
Borrowers qualify for full loan forgiveness if, during the 8-week to 24-week covered period following loan disbursement, all of these criteria are met:
Business owners borrowing less than $150,000 can apply for forgiveness with a one-page attestation which has not yet been released. Borrowers who didn’t supply revenue reduction documentation at the time the loan application was submitted will have to supply those documents when applying for forgiveness.
There are a few different forms that can be used to apply for the loan and for loan forgiveness. You can look over the newly released five-page application now, but you should speak to your lender about which form they will require for the loan application. Forms can be submitted to any SBA 7(a) lender or through any federally insured or eligible institution participating in PPP.
If you are an existing borrower, you can apply with the same lender that issued your original PPP loan, or you can apply with another lender. PPP lending options include the following (all now authorized by the SBA for funding):
Yes! This is great news! The IRS previously stated that expenses paid using PPP loan funds wouldn’t be tax-deductible, but the new bill changes that. Any expenses covered by a past or new PPP loan can be claimed as tax-deductible and the forgiven PPP loan amount will not be included in taxable income.
The other good change here is that if you received an EIDL advance grant, that no longer counts against a business requesting full PPP forgiveness. Guidance for those already denied full forgiveness from the SBA has not yet been released.
If you chose not to take the full amount offered to you for PPP funds during the first go-round, you will be allowed to take the rest of that amount in this second round. Guidance for this process from the SBA has not yet been released. These are the main questions my clients have right now, but since the SBA is still in the process of clarifying rules, be sure to visit their site for key PPP updates and borrower requirements as they become available. If you need help calculating your gross revenue receipts or still have questions about PPP loans or forgiveness, you should contact a CPA you trust.