While the national public health emergency related to the COVID-19 pandemic may have ended in 2023, combating COVID-related fraud remains a top federal law enforcement priority in 2024. The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) is one of several agencies involved in the government’s ongoing response, and IRS Criminal Investigation (IRS CI) […]
Category: Covid-19
On October 19, 2023, the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) announced a limited-time “withdrawal option” for businesses that improperly claimed the Employee Retention Credit (ERC). The ERC is a pandemic-era relief program that allows eligible businesses to claim refundable employment tax credits for the 2020 and 2021 tax years. Technically, the […]
In a recent update on the federal government’s ongoing efforts to prosecute Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) and Economic Injury Disaster Loan (EIDL) fraud, we noted that the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) has identified 11 “fraud indicators” based on its enforcement efforts to date. As we also noted in the […]
The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) and its Criminal Investigation Division (IRS CI) are continuing to prioritize the investigation of COVID-19 relief fraud. This includes fraud under the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) and Economic Injury Disaster Loan (EIDL) program, as well as fraudulent use of the limited-time Employee Retention Credit (ERC). […]
The Internal Revenue Service’s Criminal Investigation division (IRS CI) recently published a report on its COVID-19 fraud enforcement efforts in connection with the third anniversary of the passage of the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act. Passed on March 27, 2020, the CARES Act established several COVID-19 relief […]
The pandemic has changed the way we think about working, socializing, our health, education, child care, and now taxes. The pandemic has forced many businesses and their employees to eschew meeting together to work. This has meant a shift to work from home, increased “side gigs,” more virtual meetings, and […]