The third legislation, the CARES Act includes a program that provides resources for small businesses and non-profit organizations to keep their employees on their payroll. The funding is in the form of a loan that will be forgiven if it is used for payroll and eligible expenses during the eight weeks after the loan is received. Applications will be accepted beginning Friday, April 3 on a first-come, first-served basis.
The steps are:
- Review the fact sheet to determine if you are eligible
- Calculate the amount of your loan — a spreadsheet (now v5) is downloadable here.
- Note: this will be updated as the requirements change (!)
- Fill in and print the application form, linked here.
- Note: the SBA revised their form again (!)
- Submit it to your local bank (if it is a Small Business Agency-preferred bank) or another bank
- Call your bank to determine their process
- Include whatever documentation your bank requires
- If you qualify for the loan, there will be documentation responsiblities in order to qualify for loan forgiveness
- Any amount not forgiven can be repaid over a two-year period, with a 0.5% annual interest rate.
Detailed information is available in many places, including the Southern New England UCC webpage.