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Apply for Self-Employed Tax Credits With SETC Pros
How to Apply for Self-Employed Tax Credits With SETC Pros
The deadline is approaching to claim tax credits related to being unable to work during the pandemic. The program is called the Self-Employed Sick Leave and Family Leave Tax Credits.
Self-employed individuals who were unable to work during the pandemic must act before April 18, 2025, to receive any unclaimed credits that were a part of the Families First Coronavirus Response Act (FFCRA) and CARES Act—they were created in order to provide financial relief to those who were unable to work due to illness, quarantine, caregiving, or government-mandated shutdowns in 2021.
What Are the Sick Leave and Family Leave Tax Credits?
The Sick Leave and Family Leave Tax Credits are designed to support independent workers like you who were unable to work due to:
Contracting COVID-19
Quarantine requirements
Caring for sick family members
Handling school or daycare closures for children
If you missed work for any of these reasons in 2021, you may qualify for relief. The credits provide up to 100% of your average daily income for sick leave and 67% for family leave. That’s real money you could use to cover fuel costs, vehicle maintenance or other expenses for your rideshare and delivery driving gigs.
Who Is Eligible?
If you’re an independent contractor, gig worker or self-employed driver, you could qualify. The amount you receive depends upon your average daily self-employment income and the number of days you were unable to work.
These credits were made to support the most vulnerable workers who did not have employer-sponsored benefits during the pandemic. The deadline is approaching on April 18, 2025, and eligible workers are encouraged to apply as soon as possible to avoid any delays in processing.
To qualify, you must meet the following requirements:
In 2021, if you were a gig worker, 1099 contractor, single-member LLC, or sole proprietor (with or without employees), you might be eligible.
In order to qualify, you must have been directly impacted by COVID-19 and experienced the inability to work because of illness, testing, caregiving or mandated shutdowns. This could include quarantine, illness for yourself or someone in your care, vaccination appointments and/or experiencing side effects, caring for children due to school closures, virtual learning or childcare providers who were unavailable due to COVID-19.
You can check to see if you qualify on the SETC Pros website. The qualifying time period was between April 1, 2020, and September 30, 2021; however, the deadline for any dates in 2020 has already passed. The current deadline for any 2021 dates is April 18, 2025.
Why You Should Apply
You could claim up to $32,220 in tax credit refunds with this opportunity. That’s a lot of potential money to just leave on the side of the road. It’s worth at least finding out if you’re eligible for the tax credits.
The Sick Leave and Family Leave Tax Credit allows individuals who were independent contractors or gig workers to claim up to $511 per day for qualified sick leave and up to $200 per day (up to 67% of their daily self-employment income) for family leave credit for COVID-19 related time away from work.
Some may have already applied for and received this credit, but many have not. The best shot you have is to see if you’re eligible. Otherwise, you could be walking away from money that is owed to you.
How to Apply With SETC Pros
Applying can be complicated but worth it, and there are tools to make the process easier. The IRS requires eligible individuals to file Form 1040X and Form 7202 to amend their 2021 tax returns.
SETC Pros can help simplify the application process and help stop you from filing out unnecessary paperwork. They will help you find out if you’re eligible before taking the time to file the paperwork.
SETC Pros will help you make the process as simple as possible. You fill in the requested information and follow the steps. They will do the work to access your past tax records and determine if you qualify.
Using SETC Pros can help you with:
A secure and hassle-free online application that takes less than 10 minutes for you to complete
Proprietary, IRS-compliant software that pre-fills your necessary documents for you
Zero risk: Only pay for their services after you receive your refund
If it turns out that you owe back taxes, SETC Pros works with you to get a reduced rate
Customer support is available to you at [email protected]
As you see from the steps given by SETC Pros, the majority of the work is on them. See if you’re eligible and apply today!
Advanced Funding From SETC Pros
Not only does SETC Pros help you make the filing process easier to complete, but they also just rolled out a new Advanced Funding feature on February 5. This new feature will allow you to get your payment in advance before the application is even fully processed by the IRS. That way, you won’t have to wait the 3 to 6 months the IRS predicts it’ll take on their end.
Currently, this feature is only available for refund amounts over $3,000, and it is not available for Colorado and Iowa.
Once you find out you are eligible and SETC Pros helps you fill out the proper paperwork, you’ll send your documents to the IRS with proof of mailing it and the tracking number given to you.
You’ll upload this tracking number and shipping receipt to your SETC Pros account, and they will track the progress. Once the tracking number is received by the IRS, SETC Pros is free to release your funds to you. So, you’ll get your money in approximately 5 to 7 days instead of literal months.
Taking advantage of the Advanced Funding option means that you agree to a 9% fee deducted from your refund. This is an advanced funding fee set by the bank that allows you to receive your money 5 to 7 business days after the IRS receives your documentation from SETC Pros.
The payout will come directly to your bank account minus that and a 20% processing fee set by SETC Pros for doing the legwork for you. So, all told, you will receive 71% of the calculated refund amount.
That may sound like a lot has been taken away, but bear in mind that the IRS will also still be sending you money for the accrued interest that is not part of the initial refund estimate. In many cases, it is estimated that the interest that will come directly from the IRS will exceed the amount you pay for the processing and advanced funding fees.
The best part is that SETC Pros is taking on all of the risk. There will not be “clawbacks”. This means that if there’s an issue on the IRS end or if what they determine to send you doesn’t match what you’ve already been given, the money you got is staying with you. They will not be taking any money back out of your account if something goes wrong.
Is This a Scam?
The short answer? No. But let’s dive into it.
There is official communication from the IRS to warn you that scammers may be trying to take your money from you. The scammers being referenced are companies that take your money upfront and then never come through for you in getting your returns back to you.
The IRS also cautions that not every gig worker is owed a big payout, as a lot of companies are purporting. Not everyone is going to receive the full $32k+ back from the IRS when filing for this credit.
The article also emphasizes that this tax credit is for self-employed individuals, not regular employees of a company.
SETC Pros does not ask for a payment or fees from you upfront. They are also not falsifying claims. SETC Pros does the hard work of ensuring you are eligible before filing your paperwork for you.
They are taking on all of the risks, allowing you to have the peace of mind that if you are eligible, you will receive your refund. SETC Pros does not charge an application fee or anything to check your eligibility.
Ryan Umina, CEO of SETC Pros, addresses the IRS article in this video:
FAQs
How Much Money Can I Get Back?
The maximum amount you can receive for the Sick Leave and Family Leave Tax Credit is up to $32,220 if you’re self-employed and affected by COVID-19.
What Time Period Does This Cover?
The eligible time period was between April 1, 2020, and September 30, 2021.
Can Two Self-Employed Spouses Claim the Maximum Sick Leave and Family Leave Tax Credit?
If two spouses are both self-employed, they can both claim the maximum Sick Leave and Family Leave Tax Credits of $32,220 individually as long as they meet the eligibility requirements. If they are filing for childcare reimbursement, they cannot “double dip,” as it were. Only one person in the household can claim qualifying COVID-19-related days for childcare.
When Is the Deadline?
The deadline for claiming the Sick Leave and Family Leave Tax Credits for 2021 is April 18, 2025, because Tax Day for 2021 was April 18th, 2022. The deadline for any dates in 2020 has already passed.
Will This Hurt My Credit?
Not at all. There are no credit checks involved in this process.
Is SETC Pros Legit?
Yes! You can really work with SETC Pros to find out your eligibility and file properly before the April 18, 2025, deadline. They do not take money from you upfront like scammers do.
What Qualifies SETC Pros To Help With This?
The CEO of SETC Pros, Ryan Umina, is a lawyer, and the company is backed by Sheppard Mullin, the largest law firm in California. SETC Pros has partnered with Chart and ID.me to use verified IRS data in their filing and calculations. They have CPAs on staff who are ready to vet every individual’s information to make sure the eligibility and estimate process is as accurate as possible.
I’ve Got Questions for SETC Pros: Who Do I Contact?
Contact SETC Pros support for any questions at [email protected].
What Are My Options if I Don’t Want To Use SETC Pros?
If you don’t want to use SETC Pros, you can file on your own if you show a positive net income on IRS Form 1040 Schedule SE for 2021 taxes, and you must fill out IRS Form 7202 to apply for the credit. If you don’t want to use SETC Pros or do it all on your own, you can consult a tax professional of your choice.
Learn more about the IRS Form 7202 here.
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