The Families First Coronavirus Response Act (the “FFCRA”), signed by President Trump on March 18, 2020, provides small and midsize employers refundable tax credits that reimburse them dollar-for-dollar, for the cost of providing paid sick and family leave wages to their employees for leave related to COVID-19 that occurs April 1, 2020 through December 31, 2020. Workers may receive up to 80 hours of paid sick leave for their own health needs or to care for others. Employees who have been employed for at least 30 days prior to their leave request may be eligible for up to an additional ten weeks of paid family leave to care for a child whose school or place of care is physically closed or child care provider is closed or unavailable due to COVID-19 precautions. The paid sick leave and expanded family and medical leave provisions of the FFCRA apply to certain public employers, and private employers with fewer than 500 employees. Small businesses with fewer than 50 employees may qualify for exemption from the requirement to provide leave due to school closings or child care unavailability if the leave requirement would jeopardize the viability of the business as a going concern. The FFCRA also permits employers whose employees are health care providers or emergency responders not to provide qualified sick leave or qualified family leave wages to those employees. If a child’s school is physically open and the child is permitted by the school to attend in person, then any personal choice by the child’s parents to instead have the child participate in remote schooling will not provide a qualifying reason for FFCRA leave. The Department of Labor also has a great tool for employees to use to determine if the Families First Coronavirus Response Act (FFCRA) applies to them. This can also be used by employers to assist them in understanding their requirements. https://www.dol.gov/…/ffcra/benefits-eligibility-webtoolThere are substantiation requirements to protect the employer in the event the credit is questioned by the IRS. Our office has a template that can be used to meet these requirements.
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