Before You Start

Starting your forgiveness application? Read this first!

The vast majority of our forgiveness applications have been returned to borrowers due to insufficient documentation. With this in mind, we have created a list of useful resources and documents that you need to review and compile before beginning your forgiveness process to help you save time and money.

1. Review the SBA Forms 3508, 3508EZ, and 3508S

There is no need to fill out these forms. Our Smart Portal will populate your appropriate form with any existing information, guide you through the application, and submit it to the SBA on your behalf. The forms linked below are a great reference tool if you would like to better understand the SBA submission process.

2. Use our integrations

a. Our Portal – has automatic integration features that allow you to provide documents directly from certain payroll providers and utility companies.

b. Payroll Costs – complicated, but necessary

i. Your payroll provider might be able to help! One way to tremendously simplify the payroll cost calculation is to obtain a standard Paycheck-Protection-Program Forgiveness Report from your provider. These reports are PDFs you can run from within your payroll system that will take care of the entire calculation for you. We have provided instructions to help obtain this report from some of the largest payroll providers in the country. Contact your payroll provider if they are not listed as they may have created standard PPP forgiveness reports.

ii. Gusto & BenefitMall customers can upload the forgiveness payroll cost report, and our Portal will read it to automatically populate forgiveness calculations.

iv. Customers of other providers can provide the standard report as a supporting document to significantly reduce the time required to verify your application.

v. Remember, businesses who qualify for the S form are still required to calculate forgiveness and provide all required supporting documentation. The standard report from your payroll provider is a great resource regardless of the form you are filing, as it will vastly simplify the calculation process.

c. Utility Providers

i. Connect your forgiveness application to your utility providers from within our Portal for automatic calculation and support of utility expenses during the Covered Period.

Payroll Providers

3. Gather documentation & submit it to the portal

a. SBA has released specific documentation requirements that must be submitted for us to be able to process your Forgiveness application.

b. We will not process Forgiveness applications with incomplete documentation. The checklist below will help you prepare a complete document package to submit to our Portal.

c. Not sure which checklist to work with? That’s ok! Our smart portal will take you through a step-by-step process to determine whether you qualify for the Standard, EZ, or S form. In the meantime, keep each of the checklists handy as you will need to provide the support prior to submitting at the last step of the portal.

4. Find Your Journey

Now that you’ve gathered the necessary information to begin PPP forgiveness, find your personalized journey and get tip and advice as you move through our Smart Portal.

To qualify for an SBA 7(a) small business loan, your business must be:

  1. U.S.-based and operated
  2. Owner supported / owner funded
  3. Eligible per the SBA’s requirements

Your loan amount will determined by the business’ average annual revenue, FICO score, and years in business