Small Business Emergency Loan Program 2

Eligibility

In order to qualify for the SBELP2, the business must:

1. Be located within the boundaries of the City of Miami. To verify the business’s location, please access the Miami-Dade Property Appraiser website and perform a property search by the business address. If the results display a “FOLIO” number that starts with “01-XXXX-XX-XXXX”, your business meets this eligibility requirement.
2. Be a for-profit business currently open for business located within the boundaries of the City of Miami with more than 5 employees, but no more than 20 employees.
3. Be registered with State of Florida prior to September 1, 2019 and maintaining an active status in the Florida Division of Corporations.       
4. Be able to retain at least one (1) job for a low to moderate income person for a period of no less than 6 months (24 CFR 209(b)(1)(i)) after executing a contract with the City, for every $35,000 loaned.
5. Have suffered a loss of business income as a result of COVID-19 (on or after March 1, 2020).
6. Have a City of Miami-issued Certificate of Use/Accessory of Use and is current with its Business Tax Receipt (BTR) payments. Visit https://www.miamigov.com/estart/Home if you need to renew your BTR/CU this year.
7. Be currently open and up to date with all financial obligations with the City of Miami.        
8. Business did not have an annual revenue of more than $2,000,000 in calendar year 2019.
9. Comply with all regulations, guidelines, and policies as they relate to this program.

Required Documentation – copies of the following must be submitted as part of the application 

1. Copy of Florida Picture ID of person applying for assistance which must be a business owner or a registered agent.
2. Business Tax Returns for 2019 (to calculate maximum amount of assistance).
   • Sole proprietorship – Form 1040, US Individual Income Tax Return, with Schedule C “Profit or Loss from Business”.
   • Partnership – Form 1065, US Return of Partnership Income, Schedule K-1 “Partners Share of Income, Deductions, Credits, etc.”
   • Corporation – Form 1120, US Corporation Income Tax Return.
   • S-Corporation – Form 1120S, US S-Corporation Income Tax Return.
3. Proof of Number of Employees - Copy of latest RT-6 form “Florida Department of Revenue Employer’s Quarterly Report”.
4. Proof of loss or reduction of revenue as a result of COVID-19 after March 1, 2020. Quarterly P&L Statements for all four (4) quarters of 2020 is required.
5. Copy of City of Miami-issued Certificate of Use/Accessory of Use and Local Business Tax Receipt Card. Must be up to current and up to date.
6. 6. Proof of your business having a DUNS Number, which includes a printout from fedgov.dnb.com or an e-mail received from them showing the business DUNS number. If you applied for a DUNS Number and have not received it yet, you can submit proof that you have applied for it.
7. Completed and signed W-9 Form matching the business’ name to the one in the application. 
8. Proof of payment – Must have been incurred after March 1, 2020 and must NOT have been paid by other COVID-19 relief program from either federal, state or local sources. All expenses must be related to business operations and under the business name. The program will cover (1) rental/mortgage payments – if past due rent is being requested, the landlord must complete the Program’s Rent Verification Form; (2) utility/insurances/licenses and bills; (3) employee salaries. NOTE: Please see application for complete details on what is considered acceptable proof of payment.
9. For paper applications, additional programmatic certifications/affidavits are being provided and include: (1) SBELP II Affidavit (notarization required); (2) Public Records Disclosure and Acknowledgment; (3) Acknowledgement and Acceptance of the Program Rules and Requirements (notarization required); (4) Rent Verification Form if requesting reimbursement for unpaid rent. For applications submitted online, agreeance to all certifications/ acknowledgements are embedded in the submission.

Please Read Rules & Regulations 

Rules and Regulations page. 

Apply

Before you begin the online application process, please ensure that you have assembled all the documents you will be required to attach to your application. You will need to upload them to the online application. If you need technical help with this process, please select the Troubleshooting option on this web page.

In order to fill out and submit your application in the online portal, you must create a username and password. You are asked to make a note of these two unique identifiers, as they will allow you to stop and return to your application at a later time, if necessary. Please do not submit more than one application per business. 

 APPLY HERE

If you do not have computer access, you can download/print paper applications here and submit, along with the Required Documentation, to the Mail Dropbox indicated. Please note that submitted paper applications must be reviewed by a city staff for completeness first and will then be entered into the online application portal which may delay the processing of your application. As noted before, applications are assigned to processing staff following the order in which they were submitted in the online portal. Therefore, we strongly encourage you to apply online. 

Paper applications can be downloaded and printed from below (see links). Interested persons can also pick up a paper application at one of the City’s Neighborhood Service Centers. 

English Application
Spanish Application
Creole Application

NOTE: Any documents supplied to the City of Miami as part of this application, whether supplied online or in paper format, are considered public records and will not be returned. Guidelines, forms, and other documents utilized for this program are subject to change from time to time to ensure proper utilization of public funding.

Troubleshooting

Here are some quick and easy troubleshooting tips for you to explore:

• Recommended browser is Chrome
• Be sure JavaScript is enabled in your browser
• When you upload documents, upload ONLY documents saved as: Microsoft Word (.doc, .docx) Adobe Acrobat PDF Files (.pdf) Image Files (.jpg, .jpeg, .bmp, .png, .tiff).
• It is recommended you access the online application utilizing a desktop or laptop computer connected to the internet. However, you can also utilize an android-based mobile device (cellphone). Please note that there have been reported issues accessing some of the application functions with Apple© products such as iPads and iPhones; therefore, these Apple© devices could be utilized, but are not recommended.
• If you are having technical issues when submitting online, please look for the Question (?) symbol in the bottom right corner of the screen to submit your request for assistance.

Please note that only ONE application will be accepted per business via the portal.

Frequently Asked Questions

1. How do I know if my application was received via the online platform? Once you submit a final application, you will receive an e-mail indicating submission with a case ID number.
2. Once I apply, how long will it take for me to be contacted? Applications are reviewed in the order in which they are received. Please check the applicant waitlist sorted by case ID number to find out which application numbers staff are currently processing. 
3. What happens if I am ineligible? If your application is determined to be ineligible, you will receive an e-mail indicating the reason why that determination was made. 
4. If approved, how quickly will I receive assistance? If approved, you will be required to execute a contract with the City of Miami. This process may take between 2-4 weeks. Once the contract is executed, you will be asked to submit a ‘reimbursement request form that will contain all the backup documentation for the expenditures you are requesting to be reimbursed.
5. Do I need to sign a contract as part of this agreement? Yes
6. How many businesses can be assisted via this program? This program was allocated $1 million in funding, so we anticipate assisting approximately 65-75 businesses.
7. Where is the funding from this program coming from? These funds come from the federal Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act, through the Coronavirus Relief Fund. Congress designated a portion of these funds to go to local governments to meet urgent financial needs incurred due to the COVID-19 pandemic within communities.
8. Is there a deadline for this program? No. The application period will remain open while funds remain available, but should we receive sufficient applications based on the funding available, we will close the application period at that time.
9. Are home-based businesses eligible? Yes, home-based businesses may qualify. Please refer to the Rules and Requirements for a full list of ineligible businesses.
10. Can I submit more than one application? No. Submission of more than one application per business may be grounds for disqualification.