A new free tool developed by AICPA and the fintech lender Biz2Credit is designed to help borrowers and their CPA advisors complete the application for forgiveness of Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loans.
Available at PPPForgivenessTool.com, the dynamic platform automates the forgiveness process for small business owners who received PPP funds. The tool incorporates the PPP forgiveness calculator developed by AICPA and is available to any business approved for a PPP loan, regardless of the lender you worked with to receive funds.
Borrowers or their CPA advisers can use the tool to complete the waiver request. The tool will automatically produce all forms required by the government. PPP applicants may electronically sign Form SBA 3508, PPP Loan Forgiveness Calculation Form, or Form 3508EZ, and the required source documents will be kept in a downloadable file that can be provided to PPP lenders.
The AICPA estimates that the tool will save hours of manual labor for any applicant who goes through the PPP loan forgiveness process. It is expected that the Final Treasury and United States Small Business Administration (SBA) Frequently Asked Questions about PPP forgiveness will be released soon, and the PPP loan forgiveness tool will be updated to reflect any new changes. Based on this, the AICPA recommends that borrowers and CPA companies wait for the final guidance before generating the final signed Form 3508.
CPA.com, the commercial and technological arm of AICPA, helped develop the tool. The tool platform was developed by the fintech lender Biz2Credit. The goal is to drive a simple and effective forgiveness process, said Erik Asgeirsson, president and CEO of CPA.com.
“Our broader goal with this tool is to help drive a common approach to this process with the payroll and lender communities,” Asgeirsson said in a press release.
The open architecture of the platform allows easy integration into the forgiveness tool. Payroll providers and other companies that have small business data can automate the import of the source data they have, such as payroll reports, increasing the speed with which companies can complete their waiver requests.
More information about the tool is available at PPPForgivenessTool.com. Additionally, videos are available that provide a brief description of the tool for borrowers and how CPA companies can use the platform.
The PPP in summary
Congress created the PPP as part of the $ 2 trillion Economic Aid, Relief and Economic Security Act (CARES), PL 116-136. The legislation authorized the Treasury to use the SBA’s 7 (a) small business loan program to finance forgivable loans of up to $ 10 million per borrower that eligible companies could spend to cover payroll, mortgage interest, rents, and utilities. .
The loans are available to small businesses that were operational on February 15 with 500 or fewer employees, including nonprofits, veterans organizations, tribal concerns, self-employed people, sole proprietors, and independent contractors. Businesses with more than 500 employees in certain industries can also apply for loans.
Congress designed the loans to support organizations facing economic hardships created by the coronavirus pandemic and to help them continue to pay employee wages. PPP loan recipients can receive full forgiveness of their loans if the funds were used for eligible expenses and other criteria are met. The amount of loan forgiveness can be reduced based on the percentage of eligible costs attributed to non-payroll costs, any decrease in the number of employees, and reductions in wages or salaries per employee.
the AICPA Paycheck Protection Program Resource Page contains resources and tools produced by AICPA to help address the economic impact of coronavirus
For more news and reports on the coronavirus and how CPAs can handle the challenges related to the pandemic, visit the JofA‘s coronavirus resource page or Subscribe to our email alerts for giving PPP news.
– Ken Tysiac ([email protected]) is he JofAThe editorial director.
