Inside a Sales Army Turning a Tax Break Into a Modern-Day Gold Rush
tax returns is open until April 2025, fueling aggressive marketing efforts, often from firms that didn’t exist a few years ago. Emails, texts and broadcast ads trumpet promises to help employers secure up to $26,000 per employee. Whether employers actually qualify under the law is what’s tricky; the answer depends on each situation.
For some helped by Bottom Line and its competitors, the tax credit will prove to be a lifeline. For others, it can start a messy, expensive dispute with the government. Even businesses that already received refunds can be audited.
The IRS doesn’t comment on specific companies but has warned about fraud and overstated claims. “The amount of misleading marketing around this credit is staggering," IRS Commissioner Danny Werfel said in July. “This was not how the law was intended to work." Werfel said the Biden administration might ask Congress to set earlier deadlines for filing amended returns seeking ERC payments, which would stop much of the ERC industry.
Recruiting an army Bottom Line’s founder, Josh Fox, 46, has promoted his ERC business with the help of online videos that mix motivational speeches and the prospect of wealth. “You would make $1.3 million if you can bring 100 clients to us in a two-year period," Fox said in one video as an off-camera aide punched numbers into a calculator. “This is your opportunity." Another video shows Fox fanning a thick stack of envelopes that, he said, contain IRS letters confirming clients are getting the ERC.
“This is the modern-day gold rush," Fox said in a third video. Bottom Line’s affiliates don’t need to fill out tax forms or persuade customers to shell out cash. The rep connects the client with Bottom Line.
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