For Businesses Impacted by COVID-19
FOR BUSINESSES IMPACTED BY COVID-19
UPDATE: 8/12 - San Francisco to require proof of vaccination for entry to certain indoor businesses and all large indoor events
GET VACCINATED: COVID-19 vaccine info for San Francisco
We're glad you found us - helping SF businesses impacted by COVID-19 is our top priority. Read below to learn about city, state and federal resources.
The Commercial Eviction Moratorium is set to end on September 30, 2021 - Learn how to prepare
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English Español 中文（粤语） (21 年 9 月 17 日)
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LOANS · GRANTS · TAX RELIEF · GENERAL INFORMATION · REOPENING UPDATES
FINANCIAL RESOURCES
The City continues to make resources available to help San Francisco small businesses impacted by COVID-19 and aid in their economic recovery.
Has your storefront business experienced vandalism?
The Storefront Vandalism Relief Grant provides up to $2,000 in financial relief for the restoration of small businesses impacted by deliberate actions that result in destruction or damages of small business storefronts. This program will offer amounts of either $1,000 or $2,000 depending on the total cost incurred to repair physical damages (not including loss of stolen goods or property) and is available on a first-come-first-serve basis, based on fund availability.
Storefront Vandalism Grant Eligibility
Your business must:
✺ Have a storefront
✺ Have less than $8M in gross revenue in 2020
✺ No formula retail except franchises with less than $8M in gross revenue
✺ Have been damaged on or after July 1, 2020
✺ Provide proof of damage
Apply
Need Help?
✺ Read the Vandalism Relief page for more info and email VandalismRelief@sfgov.org if you have more questions or concerns.
Interested in a low-interest federal SBA Disaster Loan up to $2M?
The Economic Injury Disaster Loan (EIDL) is the federal SBA's disaster loan. It offers SF businesses, nonprofits, certain self-employed, sole proprietors, and independent contractors loans up to $2M with interest rates of 3.75% (2.75% for nonprofits). Loans may be used to pay fixed debts, payroll, accounts payable and other bills. No personal guarantee required for loans $200,000 and under. On December 27, 2020, new funds were added to the EIDL Advance Grant program. SBA has resumed processing applications on a first-come, first-served basis.
EIDL Eligibility
✺ Suffered substantial economic impact
✺ Business and nonprofits with fewer than 500 employees
✺ Certain self-employed, sole proprietors, and independent contractors are eligible
✺ You do not need to prove you cannot get credit elsewhere
Apply
✺ The SBA is accepting new applications. NOTE: You can check your status by logging into your account.
✺ Apply online.
Need Help?
✺ More information and FAQs can be found here.
✺ SBA Customer Service: 1-800-659-2955 or disastercustomerservice@sba.gov
✺ Or contact one of these San Francisco-based Technical Assistance Centers:
SF Small Business Development Center (415) 937-7232
Renaissance Entrepreneurship Center (415) 541-8580
Mission Economic Development Agency (MEDA) (415) 282-3334
Southeast Asian Community Center (SEACC) (415) 885-2743
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Are you waiting to hear back about your EIDL loan?
The SBA Express Bridge Loan allows small businesses that currently have an existing business relationship with an SBA Express Lender to access up to $25,000 with less paperwork. If you have an urgent need for cash while waiting for a decision and disbursement on an EIDL loan, contact your business' bank to see if you qualify
HOW TO HELP YOUR EMPLOYEES
Have you been impacted by COVID-19 or the Shelter in Place order and continued to pay your workers?
The Employee Retention Tax Credit (ERTC) is a refundable tax credit that rewards businesses up to $33,000 per employee. The ERTC was designed to reward and encourage businesses to keep their employees on payroll. It has been dramatically expanded to provide more financial relief to a larger group of employers. Employers can take advantage of the ERTC against federal employment taxes via qualified wages paid to their employees from March 13, 2020 to December 31, 2021. Businesses can retroactively claim the credit against past quarters. The ERTC has a maximum credit of $5,000 per employee in 2020, and a maximum of $28,000 per employee in 2021.
NOTE: Businesses that received a PPP loan are eligible to claim this credit.
We strongly recommend that you speak to your CPA to help your business maximize the value of the ERTC. If you do not currently work with one, the San Francisco Chamber of Commerce has a list of local CPAs link.oewd.org/CPA. For more information, go to oewd.org.ERTC.
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Employers can now let workers change health plans without waiting
Under I.R.S. guidance issued May 12, 2020, businesses now have more flexibility to allow workers to make changes to their health plans outside an enrollment period. The change doesn’t require employers to offer these options; they must opt-in if they want to give their employees the added flexibility. This may be applied to health plans retroactively to January 1, 2020.
For example, employers can let their workers drop out of their health insurance if they have another option, or sign up if they failed to earlier in the year. Workers may also add more family members to their plan, or switch from one workplace plan to another.
REAL ESTATE ASSISTANCE
Commercial Eviction Moratorium
The Commercial Eviction Moratorium is set to end on September 30, 2021 when the Governor’s Executive Order expires. State law controls what San Francisco and all local governments can do with respect to laws governing commercial landlords and tenants. San Francisco has been able to limit commercial evictions due to the Governor's Executive Orders, which temporarily suspends state law. On June 11, 2021 the Governor issued Executive Order N-08-21, which extended the timeframe for protections stated in the previous Executive Orders through September 30, 2021. Accordingly, the Moratorium Period began on March 16, 2020 and currently is scheduled to expire on September 30, 2021.
The moratorium has been in place since March 2020 and prohibits commercial evictions because of nonpayment due to COVID-19. It applies to any rent that was due from March 18, 2020 to September 30, 2021, and may be extended.
For more information about what to do if you are unable to pay your rent and the forbearance process, visit our Commercial Eviction Moratorium page.
For more information about calculating your number of Full-Time Equivalent Employees, read our detailed guidance.
Eligibility
✺ A commercial tenant and/or subtenant
✺ Registered to do business in San Francisco
✺ Annual gross receipts at or below $25M
✺ Month-to-month or holdover tenants are eligible
Need Help?
✺ Read our FAQs to learn more
✺ If you still have questions, contact our Small Business Assistance Center
415-554-6134, sfosb@sfgov.org
✺ Or contact one of these San Francisco-based legal assistance providers:
Legal Services for Entrepreneurs 415-543-9444 x217, lse@lccrsf.org
SF Bar Association 415-782-8940, cis@sfbar.org
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Commercial Lease Assistance
OTHER RELIEF YOU SHOULD KNOW ABOUT
Shared Spaces Program ━ AVAILABLE
The City allows businesses to apply for a no-cost, expedited permit to share the sidewalk or parking lane for restaurant pickup and general retail. Apply here.
SFMTA Color Curb Renewal Late Fees ━ TEMPORARILY WAIVED
Businesses with white and/or green zones may receive renewal invoices from the Color Curb Program. Renewals for white and green zones are invoiced every two years. If your business is closed due to COVID-19, please email ccp@sfmta.com to postpone the renewal or revoke the zone. All late fees are temporarily waived. For more information, go here.
Third-Party Delivery Fees ━ TEMPORARILY CAPPED
In December 2020, the City adopted legislation establishing a number of requirements for transactions between San Francisco restaurants and third-party food delivery services. These provisions include making it unlawful for a third-party food delivery service to charge a restaurant a fee per online order that totals more than 15% of the purchase price of the order, among other requirements. Read this legislation to learn more. If you believe your restaurant has experienced a violation of these requirements, please contact ben.vanhouten@sfgov.org.
SBA Loans ━ DEFERRED
The SBA automatically paid the principal, interest, and fees for current 7(a), 504, and microloans for a period of six months, issued prior to September 27, 2020. Additional assistance is available starting February 2021. For more information, visit the SBA's Debt Relief overview.
Business Registration Fees ━ DEFERRED * UPDATED *
The City deferred 2020-21 business registration fees until April 30, 2021, instead of May 31, 2020. For businesses with $25M in gross receipts or less in 2020, the 2021-22 business registration fee is due November 1, 2021. For businesses with more than $25M in gross receipts in 2020, the 2021-22 business registration fee was deferred to June 30, 2021. For more information, visit this SF Treasurer & Tax Collector webpage.
Business Licensing Fees ━ DEFERRED * UPDATED *
The City is deferring collection of 2020-21 and 2021-22 business license fees until November 1, 2021. For more information, visit this SF Treasurer & Tax Collector webpage.
California Rebuilding Fund ━ OPEN
Loans up to $100,000 are available for qualifying businesses, with 3- to 5-year terms and fixed interest. Businesses that employed 50 or fewer full-time equivalent employees (FTEs) and had gross revenues of less than $2.5 million or below in 2019 are eligible to apply. You can fill out a pre-application to get matched with a participating community lender. Learn more and apply here.
State Sales & Use Income Tax ━ EXTENDED
The deadlines for returns for Sales and Use Taxes have been extended. Check the State's website for more information about the new deadlines and if it applies to your business. Certain small businesses can qualify for a 12 month, interest-free payment plan. Learn more and apply here.
State Payroll Taxes & Reports ━ EXTENDED
The California Employment Development Division (EDD) is granting a 60-day extension to file state payroll reports and/or deposit state payroll taxes without penalty or interest for employers experiencing hardship from COVID-19. A written request for an extension is required. For the most up-to-date information, visit CA EDD’s COVID-19 resource page.
Property Tax Payment ━ DEFERRED
If you were unable to pay your property taxes by the deadline because of the COVID-19 crisis, we encourage you to submit an online request for a penalty waiver. If approved, you will be able to pay your bill without the 10% late payment penalty and $45 administrative fee. For more information, read Frequently Asked Questions about the Property Tax deadline along with the SF Treasurer & Tax Collector's COVID-19 page.
PG&E Electricity Shutoffs ━ SUSPENDED
PG&E will not disconnect power due to non-payment until further notice and will offer flexible payment plans for those impacted by COVID-19. For more information, visit PG&E’s COVID-19 webpage.
GENERAL INFORMATION & DOCUMENTS
Use trusted resources to stay up-to-date with accurate COVID-19 information:
✺ Guidance for all businesses during Shelter In Place orders. Check our Reopening Page for more information.
✺ Multilingual COVID-19 flyers, graphics, and fact sheets
✺ CDC COVID-19 Guidance for Businesses & Workplaces
✺ Right to Reemployment Following Layoff Due to COVID-19 Pandemic
