In response to the various pandemic-era tax breaks and credits, many consultants have popped up to assist employers in claiming them, such as the Employee Retention Credit (“ERC”).

Unfortunately, many of these groups are providing bad guidance to — or even intentionally scamming — unsuspecting employers.

The problem has become so pervasive with the ERC that the Internal Revenue Service has issued multiple warnings (see here and here), even going as far as to include the problem in its annual Dirty Dozen list of tax scams.

Local churches should be very cautious when considering whether to hire any particular group, as the consequences of claiming the Employee Retention Credit when ineligible for it can be significant.

The Internal Revenue Service has extensive information about the ERC here.