Like anything that has to do with the IRS, getting an ERC refund requires documentation. The documents we need to process your claim will help us guide our calculations for how much you can claim.

Gathering these documents ahead of time will speed up the process of preparing and submitting your claim to the IRS.

Here's everything you'll need to find if you want us to help you file your ERC claim.

Payroll documents you'll need for an ERC refund

While you won't necessarily need all of these documents when you first fill out our questionnaire at the beginning of the process, having them on hand can help make our initial estimate more accurate.

That's because when you fill out our initial intake form, we'll ask for some numbers. Though it's fine for you to give your best guess, referencing the necessary documents will give you a better idea of how much your claim could be.

So, if you want to start early and get ahead of the game, here's the documents you'll want to gather:

• Your quarterly payroll tax returns
• Payroll reports for 2019-2021

These payroll reports should include as much information as possible. The more info they have, the more accurate we can be.

So what kind of information should be on there?

Well, ideally, they should detail each employee's name, their gross wages, paid by dates, address of their job location, and, if applicable, their start and end dates.

Luckily, most payroll reports automatically include this kind of info, so most likely you won't have to make any tweaks or special requests.

Documents supporting your ERC qualifications

In addition to the payroll documents, we highly recommend that you also provide any additional documents that you used to determine your own ERC eligibility.

So even though we don't offer any ERC audit services, storing your eligibility documents with us can help make a potential audit simpler and more hassle-free.

But what, exactly, are these types of documents?

Well, depending on which qualification you are planning on using for your claim(s), you may need to provide one of the following:

• A summary of your gross receipts for each quarter
• Confirmation of government shutdown or suspension orders for the state(s) where your business operates and have employees

If you're planning on using the same qualification for every quarter, then you only need to provide one of these types of documents for each quarter.

For the gross receipts qualification, that means you'll provide the gross receipts summary for each quarter you're claiming. And for the government shutdown qualification, you'll only need to confirm the shutdown orders for each of the quarters you're making a claim for.

However, if you plan on using the gross receipts qualification for some quarters and the government shutdown qualification for others, then you'll need to gather both kinds for their corresponding quarters.

Documentation related to any PPP loans

Finally, if you received any money from the PPP loan program, we will need some additional information and documents in order to make sure we maximize your loan amount.

These documents include things like:

• PPP loan forgiveness application(s)
• The total PPP loan amount(s)
• The issue date of your PPP loan(s)

If you received more than one PPP loan, we'll need this same information for all of them, as well as the total number of PPP loans you received.

Other information you'll need to provide

Now, while you won't need a document for everything we ask, there is some important business information that we'll still need you to provide. This information includes:

• Your business's legal name
• Your business's legal address
• Addresses and number of your business locations
• The number of employees you have
• Your lines of business, including products, services, etc.

Once you provide all of this information, we can take the next step by filling out the final document for your ERC claim: Form 941-X, which is called the Adjusted Employer's QUARTERLY Federal Tax Return or Claim for Refund.

Because your original Form 941 has to be filed every quarter, it's likely yours were filed for 2020 and 2021 before legislators and the IRS clarified the program rules. That's why you need Form 941-X. It allows you to retroactively apply the program benefits by amending or updating your quarterly returns.

Now, because Form 941 is filed based on quarters, you will need to have a separate 941-X for each of those quarters. Luckily, here at ERC Go, we do all of that for you so you don't have to worry about the hassle of filling out the same five pages six or seven different times.

Let's get started on your ERC claim

Remember, even if you don't have these documents all together yet, that's ok! It's possible to get started without any of it. So even if you're not sure where to go to find these documents, we can help you out.

Ready to get started?

Give us a call today! We're here to help you with every step of the process, from initial consultation to document gathering and analysis, all the way to filing and even receiving your check.