Anytime there is a government program that provides financial assistance to businesses or individuals, scam artists come out in force. So it is with the pandemic-era Employee Retention Tax Credits (ERTC).
Scammers claiming to be companies specializing in recovering ERTC funds are reaching out to business owners and claiming those businesses could be missing millions of dollars in refunds. These solicitations can sound appealing due to complexity and ever-changing rules during the Covid-19 pandemic.
Beware if you are contacted by someone claiming they can help you recover any amount of money through the ERTC. The following are some signs you could be dealing with a fraudulent company:
- You are contacted by a telemarketing company;
- The company requests a large upfront payment or percentage of your credit in advance of receiving any funds; or
- The company cannot provide any documentation that you qualify for ERTC funds.
If you are unsure about the legitimacy of a company, you can check to see if it is registered with the IRS and offers audit protection.
If you are a client of Antares Group, we ask that you please send us a copy of any correspondence like this you may receive so we can help you verify whether or not it is valid.
We created a specialty team here at Antares Group in 2020 specifically to shepherd our clients through this complex process to ensure they qualified for the tax credits, and if so, that the proper procedures were followed and they received the maximum tax credits available to them.
Please let us know if you have any questions about potential ERTC funds you may be due.