There are countless Chambers of Commerce throughout the country, all serving different groups of people and businesses. Typically, if your chamber consists of W-2 employees, then it may fall into at least one of the following two categories to qualify for ERC:

• Your chamber(s) experienced decreased revenue during quarters 1-4 in 2020 and 1-3 in 2021, compared to 2019 
• Your chamber(s) suffered from any number of government-mandated restrictions

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Government-mandated restrictions may include things like full or partial shutdowns limiting services offered to members, capacity limitations, cancellations of pre-planned events, restrictions on public gatherings, state or local orders requiring employees to work remotely, or overall altered hours of operation, among many others.

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On top of this, chamber members may wonder how previously receiving the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loan in 2020 or 2021 may affect their ERC eligibility. Regardless of if you received PPP loans 1 and/or 2, you may still be eligible for ERC. Speak with a trusted CPA to discuss your Chamber’s eligibility. 

If you are part of a Chamber of Commerce that is a nonprofit organization, then you still may be eligible to receive ERC, assuming you have W-2 employees and have been affected by COVID mandates. Nonprofit chamber organizations experienced the same government-mandated restrictions as for-profits, therefore they may seek ERC if they qualify. 

Aside from ERC directly benefiting the chamber by helping its financial situation, Strategic Tax Planning can further assist your chamber. We have partnered with numerous chambers in the United States, including Washington state, Maryland, Virginia, and New York to not only help them claim ERC individually but also provide services to their members’ businesses when applicable. 

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We have helped several businesses from chambers including restaurants, retail stores, fun centers, art galleries, theaters, medical/dental offices, cosmetics/beauty shops, and even recovery start-up businesses that were opened after February 15, 2020. Strategic Tax Planning appreciates any opportunity to assist business owners with determining their ERC eligibility. 

Business owners who have already filed for Employee Retention Credit are probably wondering when they can expect to receive the tax credit. With such a large number of businesses being affected by the pandemic, the IRS has a high volume of applications to process. Every case is different and will have a unique timeline. Your refund could be processed in about 8 months, although it may take longer. 

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If you wish to check the status of your refund, you may call the IRS, or use the “Where’s My Refund?” feature on the IRS website.