Need advice on ERC process (Employee Retention Credit) - fair fee percentages?

Thanks for this insight. Do you think it's possible for a small business owner to just file for the ERC themselves? Or is it really too complex to DIY? Also, have you seen any cases where these companies mess up the filing and cause problems for the business owner?

It's definitely possible to file ERC claims yourself, especially if you have a straightforward case and good documentation. The IRS provides Form 941-X for amended quarterly payroll tax returns. The key is properly documenting your qualification (either through government shutdown orders or revenue reduction) and calculating qualified wages correctly. I've unfortunately seen several cases where discount ERC processors made serious errors. Common issues include claiming wages that were already used for PPP loan forgiveness, improper documentation of eligibility, and inflated wage calculations. In the worst cases, business owners faced audits and had to return funds plus penalties. Even with legitimate claims, inadequate documentation can create major headaches if you're audited.

How long did the whole process take from start to finish? I'm concerned about timeframes since I've heard the IRS is backlogged with these claims. Also, did they help with documentation for partially suspended operations? That's where I'm really stuck.

I'm skeptical about automated systems for something as complex as ERC. Did they have actual tax professionals review the final submission? I've heard horror stories about companies using software but not having qualified people check the work before submission.

The entire process took about 3 weeks from my initial submission of documents to having the completed claim ready for filing. They were upfront that actual IRS processing time for refunds is currently running 6-9 months for most claims, but that's an IRS issue affecting all ERC claims regardless of who prepares them. Yes, they absolutely had tax professionals involved! That's what made them different - the AI system did the initial analysis and documentation organization, but certified tax professionals reviewed everything before submission. They were particularly helpful with our partial suspension documentation, walking me through exactly what government orders to reference and how to document our specific operational limitations during those periods.

Wait, how does this actually work? Do they have some special access to the IRS or something? Seems too good to be true considering I literally spent 3 hours on hold yesterday before getting disconnected.

This sounds like a scam. There's no way to "skip the line" with the IRS. They probably just connect you with scammers pretending to be IRS agents who will steal your information. Be careful people!

The service doesn't skip any lines or use special access - they use automated systems to wait in the regular IRS phone queue for you. Instead of you personally sitting on hold for hours, their system does it and then calls you when a real IRS agent answers. You're speaking with the actual IRS, not some third-party. They don't get any of your sensitive tax information. You're just connected directly to the IRS phone system when an agent becomes available. It's basically like having a virtual assistant whose only job is to wait on hold with the IRS so you don't have to. All the actual tax discussions happen directly between you and the official IRS representative.

I filed my own ERC claim for my small retail shop (10 employees). It was definitely complex but doable. Make sure you're using Form 941-X for the correct quarters and have solid documentation of your revenue decline. The trickiest part was making sure I wasn't double-dipping with PPP wages. Took about 8 months to get the refund but saved thousands in fees.

Thanks for sharing your experience! That's encouraging to hear. Did you need to provide any specific documentation with your 941-X forms, or did you just keep it on hand in case of an audit? And how complicated was it to separate out the PPP wages from ERC-eligible wages?

I didn't have to submit documentation with the 941-X forms, but I created a complete package that I keep ready in case of audit. I included quarterly financial statements showing the revenue drop, payroll records, and a spreadsheet tracking exactly which employee wages were claimed for PPP vs. ERC. Separating PPP wages from ERC-eligible wages was definitely the most complicated part. I created a spreadsheet showing each employee, their wages during the covered period, how much was allocated to PPP forgiveness, and then the remaining amount eligible for ERC. The key is you can't use the same wages for both programs, so I had to be very methodical about tracking which dollars went where.

What exactly makes a claim "improper"? My business had a 30% revenue drop in 2020 Q3 compared to 2019 Q3, and we kept all employees on payroll. Isn't that enough to qualify?

Revenue decline alone isn't always sufficient - you need to meet very specific criteria. The IRS considers claims improper when businesses claim ERC without actually qualifying under the strict rules. Common issues include: claiming wages for employees who weren't actually working during shutdown periods, misunderstanding what constitutes a "government order" that suspended operations, incorrectly calculating the revenue decline test (it has to be compared to the same quarter in the prior year), and double-dipping with PPP wages. Your 30% decline in Q3 2020 vs Q3 2019 would potentially qualify you under the revenue test, but you'd need to ensure all your wage calculations and employee eligibility are correct. The IRS is particularly scrutinizing claims where businesses claimed ERC for periods when they weren't actually impacted by COVID restrictions or didn't meet the technical requirements.