The U.S. Small Business Administration will launch a portal next week that will let borrowers with Paycheck Protection Program loans of $150,000 or less apply for forgiveness directly through the SBA.
The new forgiveness platform will begin accepting applications from borrowers on Aug. 4, the SBA said in a statement. Lenders that want their customers to be able to use the portal will have to opt in to the program.
“The SBA’s new streamlined application portal will simplify forgiveness for millions of our smallest businesses – including many sole proprietors – who used funds from our Paycheck Protection Program loans to survive the pandemic,” SBA Administrator Isabel Casillas Guzman said in the statement. “The vast majority of businesses waiting for forgiveness have loans under $150,000. These entrepreneurs are busy running their businesses and are challenged by an overly complicated forgiveness process. We need to deliver forgiveness more efficiently so they can get back to enlivening our Main Streets, sustaining our neighborhoods and fueling our nation’s economy.”
The SBA said over 600 banks have already signed up for the portal. More than 2.1 million borrowers from these banks will be eligible to use the portal, the SBA said, and they represent 30 percent of loans of $150,000 or less that have not applied for forgiveness.
The SBA has also established a customer service team to answer questions and assist borrowers with PPP forgiveness applications.
“This initiative will allow PPP borrowers to put their concerns of achieving full forgiveness behind them and focus on operating and growing their businesses again,” Patrick Kelley, associate administrator for SBA’s Office of Capital Access, said in the statement. “We are pleased to be able to assist financial institutions across the U.S. in processing forgiveness applications for small business owners.”
The 2021 round of PPP lending saw more than 6.5 million loans approved, with an average loan size of $42,000. Massachusetts small businesses received about 103,000 loans in 2021, for an average loan size of about $66,000.
