EIDL COVID-19 deadline is over: more loan options for businesses in need

The deadline to apply for COVID-19 EIDL Loans, Targeted Grants, and Additional Targeted Grants ended on December 31, 2021. Here’s what that means and other options to help your business get financing if it still is. struggling due to the pandemic.

The SBA has stopped accepting applications for COVID-19 EIDL loans and grants after December 31, 2021. If you applied before the deadline, the SBA will continue to process:

• Loan requests received before the deadline, including reconsideration requests.
• Targeted EIDL Advance (grant) requests, including reconsideration requests.

This means that some business owners will be approved for EIDL COVID-19 loans and / or grants in 2022. Additionally, some business owners who have requested a review or loan increases may still be approved.

However, the SBA no longer accepts or processes requests for additional targeted advance (grant), even for companies that have met the application deadline.

You can check the status of your request by:

What is the COVID-19 EIDL loan?

In March 2020, the entire United States and its territories were declared a disaster area due to the COVID-19 pandemic, and as a result, Covid-19 economic disaster loans were made available qualifying businesses (including independent contractors and sole proprietors) across the United States. Subsequently, Congress passed a law that added a grant of up to $ 10,000 that did not have to be repaid. Eligibility has been broadened to include nonprofits and some farm businesses, although traditionally SBA loans have only been available to for-profit businesses.

Improvements to the program were made by subsequent legislation, including the targeted subsidy of $ 10,000 for hardest-hit businesses and an additional targeted subsidy of $ 5,000.

These loans offer a maximum amount of $ 2 million, carry a low interest rate of 3.75% (or 2.75% for nonprofits) and have a generous 30-year repayment period. These working capital loans can be used to make regular payments for operating expenses including payroll, rent / mortgage, utilities, and other regular business expenses. Borrowers can also use the proceeds to pay off most commercial debts incurred at any time (past, present or future).

Is the EIDL loan still available?

If you are interested in EIDL because your business has been impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic, the EIDL loan deadline has expired at the end of 2021 and no new applications will be considered.

However, the economic disaster loan program itself has not gone away. These loans are part of the SBA’s Disaster Lending Program, and they were and continue to be available before the pandemic. If your business is located in a federally declared disaster area (whether due to fires, hurricanes, tornadoes, floods, or other disasters) and suffers economic damage as a result, you may Apply for a low-interest EIDL directly from the US Small Business Administration. on SBA.gov.

However, there is no ongoing EIDL grant under the traditional EIDL program. The $ 10,000 grant (and the additional $ 5,000 grant) was created by Congress specifically to help businesses weather the coronavirus pandemic.

More help for small businesses

The SBA’s Paycheck Protection Program and Economic Disaster Loan Program for Businesses Affected by COVID-19 were the most widely available small business assistance programs during the pandemic. No other program has approached them in terms of size or reach.

Small business owners who are still struggling will need to strategically seek out other grants and COVID-19 relief programs. Options may include:

It will take time and effort to find the right programs for your business, and a good place to start is with your SBA resource partner such as SCORE, Small Business Development Center (SBDC) or Women’s Business Center. They provide free advice for small businesses and can be a great resource for identifying local programs as well as helping get your business back on track.

Faq

Will the EIDL deadline be extended?

With waves of COVID-19 variants such as delta and omnicron impacting small businesses, it’s possible Congress could pass additional legislation to help small businesses. But at this time, the deadline has not been extended and only EIDL loan applications received before the deadline will be considered.

Will EIDL loans be canceled?

Unlike PPP loans, Covid EIDL loans are not forgivable. Congress should probably act to make this happen, and there has been little discussion about forgiving these loans. (The Targeted Advance and the Additional Advance are grants that do not have to be repaid, so they are, in a sense, “forgiven”.)

When does the reimbursement start?

The SBA has extended the time before SBA EIDL loans begin to be repaid. Business owners now have two years before they have to start repaying their loans. However, interest does accrue during this time, so you may want to consider making payments as soon as your business has stabilized.

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