By Brock Blake, Forbes Contributor
Just in time for tax season, the IRS recently released its “Dirty Dozen” list. The agency says this list represents the worst of the worst tax scams, and it issues it as a way to warn and urge businesses and consumers to be vigilant in not falling victim to one of these scams. In theory, this is a great way to protect both businesses and consumers. However, this year, many legitimate organizations are voicing concerns that the list may have caused more harm than good in the Employee Retention Tax Credit (ERTC or ERC) industry. As possible evidence of this, the volume of bad actors and illegitimate ERC applications has spiked to an all-time high since the release of the list.
The ERC was part of the CARES Act and was focused on providing eligible employers with a tax credit for retaining employees during the height of the pandemic (up to $26,000 per employee). As the CEO of a company that, among other services and products, helps small businesses (SMBs) receive the ERC, I’ve seen firsthand the fly-by-night applicants that come out of the woodwork, believing they can make a fast buck, and then disappear just as quickly as they appeared. I’ve also seen organizations (similar to those we saw during the Paycheck Protection Program) who lack compliance, controls and process and, as a result, overpromise the amount of refunds an applicant can qualify for. So, I was actually glad to see these “mills,” bad actors, and scams called out by the IRS.
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