The Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2021 (CAA) extends the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) and expands the list of forgivable expenses. Below, we outline what you need to know about this new provision.
Note: The PPP Extension Act of 2021 further extended the PPP application deadline. The deadline to apply for a PPP loan is now May 31, 2021.
What’s New
The CAA extends the PPP until March 31, 2021. As such, eligible businesses may apply for a First Round or Second Round PPP loan until March 31, 2021 (or until funds run out).
The CAA also makes more types of expenses eligible for forgiveness. To be eligible for full forgiveness under the CARES Act, borrowers were limited to using their loan funds for:
- Payroll costs (including benefits)
- Mortgage
- Rent
- Utilities
Under the CAA, borrowers may now use their loan funds for the following expenses without impacting their forgiveness:
- Covered operations costs (such as software, cloud computing services, or other human resources needs)
- Covered property damage costs (including vandalism and looting costs that are not covered by insurance)
- Covered supplier costs (such as payments to a supplier for goods that are essential to business operations)
- Covered worker protection costs (such as personal protective equipment needed to comply with health and safety guidelines)
- Certain group insurance payments (such as group life, disability, dental, and vision insurance benefits)
This list of expanded forgivable expenses applies to all PPP loan borrowers except for those who were already granted loan forgiveness.
What Do I Need to Do?
If you would like to apply for a First Round or Second Draw PPP loan, check the appropriate requirements to ensure you’re eligible. Then gather the required application information and check with your SBA 7(a) lender, bank, or credit union to make sure they’re participating in the program. You may also use LenderMatch or this map of lenders to find a participating lender near you.
You can find more information about each loan and the link to each application here rel=”nofollow noreferrer noopener”. Please consult your financial advisor for further assistance.
If you receive a loan, be sure to comply with all PPP rules and regulations to ensure your loan’s forgiveness. You must also remember to submit your forgiveness application on time: you have 10 months after your loan’s covered period ends to submit your forgiveness application. If you borrowed a loan of $150,000 or less, you may be eligible for a simplified forgiveness process.
How Sentric Can Help
Sentric provides an easy-to-understand report that contains most of the information you need to complete a PPP loan application. We also provide our clients with any reports or data they may need to comply with their loan forgiveness application with our all-in-one HRIS.
For more information about how Sentric can help, please contact one of our product experts.
For an overview of the CAA and its main provisions, please check out The Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2021 (CAA): What Employers Need to Know.
