NY unemployment income reporting on SBA form - confused about 2020/2021 earnings

SBA forms are tricky with unemployment income. Generally, unemployment benefits ARE considered income for tax purposes, but NOT for most SBA applications and loans. They're specifically looking for business revenue/income, not benefits. If you had zero business income in 2020/2021 (only unemployment), you should put zero for those years and only report your 2019 Uber/Lyft income. Make sure to have documentation of your 2019 earnings from your Schedule C tax form.

i got the same email! put zero for the years u didnt work, thats what i did. unemployment isnt business income

I received a similar email last month and was just as confused. The SBA is looking for business income only. Unemployment compensation is NOT business income - it's benefits. If you didn't have any rideshare or other self-employment income in 2020/2021, then you'd put zeros for those years. Only include your actual 2019 earnings from driving.

DONT ADD UNEMPLOYENT AS INCOME!!! They will REJECT your application! I made this mistake last time and wasted 2 months waiting only to get denied. The SBA only wants BUSINESS income not benefits. Put ZERO for any year you didn't have actual business revenue!!!

This question comes up a lot. When you're filling out SBA forms, they're looking specifically at your business income - meaning money you earned from your business activities. Unemployment benefits, even if taxable, are not considered business income for these forms. For the years you only received unemployment, you'd put $0 for business income.

I had the exact same issue with my SBA application! I couldn't get through to anyone at SBA to ask questions - their phone system is a nightmare. I finally used Claimyr (claimyr.com) to get through to an actual person. They have this service that helps you reach agents when phone systems are backed up. They have a video demo too: https://youtu.be/Rdqa1gKtxuE The agent confirmed that unemployment benefits should NOT be included as business income on SBA forms. Only include actual business revenue. So in your case, report your 2019 Uber/Lyft income and zeros for 2020/2021.

my brother got denied bc he put his unemployment as income! dont do it

To add some clarity here: SBA forms are specific about what constitutes business income. Here's what they're looking for: 1. For 2019: Your net profit from Schedule C for your Uber/Lyft driving 2. For 2020/2021: Only business income, which would be $0 if you only received unemployment The reason this confuses people is because unemployment benefits are considered taxable income by the IRS, but they are NOT considered business revenue by the SBA. Different agencies with different definitions. Make sure you have documentation of your 2019 income ready - they may request proof during the review process.

Did you get the targeted EIDL advance email or is this for a different SBA program? Just wanted to clarify because different programs might have slightly different requirements.

Thank you all so much for your help! Based on everyone's advice, I'm going to: 1. Report only my 2019 Uber/Lyft income from my Schedule C 2. Put zeros for 2020/2021 since I only had unemployment those years 3. Have my documentation ready in case they ask for verification I really appreciate everyone sharing their experiences and knowledge - this has been super helpful!