How To Check Your EIDL Loan Status?

You are in a bind. Your business is currently trapped in the middle of a disaster zone. It could be a hurricane sweeping the coastline, or an earthquake shaking the very foundations of your workshop. Either way, you told your employees to stay home and stay safe.

Now though, as you look on the crumbling ruins of your business, your employees next to you in equal shock, all you can do is think about how to mitigate more disaster and how to rebuild from here. In a vast country, like the USA, this is a far too common occurrence. Natural disasters are unfortunately common here, and we have, as a society, learned to just carry on as that is all we can do.

Luckily, the government has set up several systems in order to help in these situations and one of them is known as the EIDL, which is funded for just this scenario. ‘What is EIDL?’ We hear you cry, ‘How do I even check or access it?' We hear from others. Well, we are here to answer these questions and more, so you can navigate this system and aid your business.

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What are EIDL loans?

An EIDL (or an Economic Injury Disaster Loan) is a short-term loan given out by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) to help a person or business that has been devastated by a natural disaster.

The law that created the program was passed many years ago and has been used to aid small businesses, private non-profit agencies and, most commonly, farmers or farming enterprises, during periods in which their area was devastated by natural disasters. These have been used for events like flooding, hurricanes, tornados, earthquakes, and recently for pandemics.

While these loans are similar to PPP (Payment Protection Program) loans, they are not the same and should not be thought of as such under any circumstances. For instance, an EIDL cannot be written off and is not forgivable by the loaning party. Anyone who applies and uses these loans must pay back the entire loan amount and the accumulated interest. However, the interest rates and the loan options are considered much more manageable and competitive than any other alternative.

This can be seen in a lot of the nuances of this loan. The interest rate, for example, is fixed at 2.75% for non-profits and 3.75% for anyone else. It will also not waver from that amount at all. The other benefit of this loan is the repayment period. You gain a 30-month deferred payment and 30 years to pay off the total of the loan. While this may be difficult considering the maximum you can borrow is $2 million dollars, over 30 years this equals about $66,000 a year, which if your business is doing okay, shouldn’t be a problem.

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What is a Targeted EIDL Advance?

A Targeted EIDL Advance is a short-term advance, up to 120 days in length, provided to the business owner by their lender to assist with rebuilding after a disaster. This advance is for people and businesses who operate or are from low-income communities and works more like a grant.

We say ‘grant’, because should you be eligible and should you be invited for this advance, you will not have to repay it. This is for a couple of reasons. The first is that it is not as high an amount as the other loans, with the maximum that can be granted being $15,000. The second is that it is designed to help businesses that are in low income areas, who would never be able to repay back the other loan.

This grant is a part of what is often referred to as a “bridge” financing. It’s designed to provide a temporary influx of cash to help communities rebuild and encourage the trade that was once there. Eligible businesses will be contacted to check whether they want or need the advance, but there are a couple of criteria necessary to accept it:

- You need to live in a low income area.

- You can prove or show a 30% reduction in revenue during an 8-week period from the start of the disaster.

- You have 300 or fewer employees.

There is also a smaller advance called a Supplemented Targeted Advance for smaller businesses, that offers only $5000. Eligibility for this requires:

- Your business is located in a low income area.

- You can prove or show a 50% reduction in revenue during an 8-week period from the start of the disaster.

- You have 10 or fewer employees.

Who is eligible for the EIDL loans?

In order to receive an EIDL loan, you must have the following criteria apply directly to you and your business:

- The business was functioning and operational as of the 1st January 2020.

- The business is one of the following: a small business, a private non-profit organization, a Veteran’s organization, independent contractors, Tribal organizations, self-employed individuals, a qualified agricultural business, or sole proprietors of a business.

- The business or company has to have fewer than 500 employees.

- The business is not at that point involved in bankruptcy proceedings.

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How To Check Your EIDL Loan Status?

Unfortunately, waiting patiently for a loan to be processed by the government is a bit difficult, when all you hear is that bureaucracy is slow while your life and business crumble around you. However, you can check the status of your loan through a few different means.

The most common is through the online portals, either at  https://disasterloanassistance.sba.gov or via the SBA portal. You can also call the customer service center directly on 1-800-659-2955, which is open between 8am and 8pm, Monday through Sunday. Finally, you can email them at disastercustomerservice@sba.gov.

While it may take some time to get back to you, you should hear from them straight away or within a few days of contact.

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How Long Does It Take for the Loan to Be Processed?

This is a bit of a tricky question, as it depends on the circumstances of your application and the extent of the disaster. If it is widespread, then it could take a while and if you wait too long, your application could get caught in a huge stack of applications, doomed to being side-lined until someone can deal with it.

Normally, though, an EIDL loan application takes about 21 days to process once it has been applied for. If the loan is approved, then it takes between an additional 5 to 10 days for it to enter your bank account.

If your loan isn’t approved, you can try to find out why and then appeal it, though this would start the whole process over again.

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Conclusion

The best piece of advice we can give you is to get prepared for any disaster that could strike. Learn about your insurance policy and be ready to file a claim if necessary at a moment's notice. This way you can be in the best possible position and potentially not take the loans on offer. However, if you ever need them, it is useful to know they are there and how to get at them.

Our pay stub generator produces high-quality and reliable pay stubs. It is wise to have this process nailed down, especially in times of disaster.