Blog

We keep you up to date on the latest tax changes and news in the industry.

IRS Guidance: PPP Loan Expenses Not Tax-Deductible

On April 30th, the IRS released guidance announcing that expenses related to Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) forgivable loans will not be tax-deductible.

The PPP was originally created as part of the CARES Act, a $2.2 trillion coronavirus relief bill. The program provides low-interest loans to small businesses that will be forgivable as long as the funds go are used for “essential” expenses like maintaining payroll.

The initial appropriation of $349 billion ran out quickly, and a second-round was passed as part of the PPP & HCE Act, providing $310 billion in additional funds.

Usually, wages would be deductible expenses for employers, and forgiven debt would count as taxable income. Under the coronavirus relief packages, however, PPP loan forgiveness will not count as taxable income.

That being said, the IRS guidance states that expenses that result in forgiveness of a PPP loan are not tax-deductible in order to prevent a "double tax benefit."

If they decide to take action on this topic, Congress could override the IRS’s guidance by passing a law that would explicitly allow the deductions.

We will continue to keep you updated on the latest IRS guidance and other PPP news and legislation. Please contact us if you have any questions.

Share this article...

Sign up for our newsletter.

Each month, we will send you a roundup of our latest blog content covering the tax and accounting tips & insights you need to know.

I confirm this is a service inquiry and not an advertising message or solicitation. By clicking “Submit”, I acknowledge and agree to the creation of an account and to the and .

We care about the protection of your data.


“We are always looking to grow our business. Should you have any clients, friends, business associates looking for high quality accounting services from a CPA firm, please have them contact us.”

This e-mail (including any attachments) is only for the exclusive use of the individual to whom it is addressed. The information contained hereinafter may be proprietary, confidential, privileged and exempt from disclosure under applicable law. If the reader of this e-mail is not the intended recipient or agent responsible for delivering the message to the intended recipient, the reader is hereby put on notice that any use, dissemination, distribution or copying of this communication is strictly prohibited. If the reader has received this communication in error, please immediately notify the sender by telephone or e-mail and delete all copies of this e-mail and any attachments.

IRS Circular 230 Disclosure: In order to ensure compliance with IRS Circular 230, we must inform you that any U.S. tax advice contained in this transmission and any attachments hereto is not intended or written to be used and may not be used by any person for the purpose of (i) avoiding any penalty that may be imposed by the Internal Revenue Code or (ii) promoting, marketing or recommending to another party any tax-related matter(s) addressed herein.

Richards Group PC, CPA We love to chat!
Please feel free to ask a question, our Ai chat assistant would love to help.
Please fill out the form and our team will get back to you shortly The form was sent successfully