On June 23, 2023, the Department of Labor’s Employment and Training Administration (ETA) issued a Training and Employment Guidance Letter (TEGL) with critical updates to the current process used to administer WOTC.
In short, TEGL No. 22-22 formally introduces an all-new ETA Form 9198 – Employer Representative Declaration to State Workforce Agencies (SWA), employers and all other WOTC stakeholders. The sole purpose of this form is for employers to designate a third-party representative to act on their behalf to manage WOTC certification requests with SWA’s. As a result, the new form replaces and eliminates the use of IRS Form 2848 for WOTC altogether.
In addition, this TEGL provides updated versions of the following WOTC forms:
- ETA Form 9061 – Individual Characteristics Form (ICF), Rev. May 2023
- ETA Form 9062 – Conditional Certification Form (CC), Rev. May 2023
- ETA Form 9175 – WOTC Long-term Unemployment Recipient Self-Attestation (SAF), Rev. May 2023
- ETA Form 9065 – WOTC Audit Summary Worksheet
All businesses must transition to using ETA Form 9198 as well as all the updated forms (listed above) effective October 1, 2023. It is important to note that effective May 31, 2024, all designated periods listed on legacy IRS Form 2848 will expire and will not be honored by SWA when releasing certification determinations. Therefore, it is critical for employers to work with their WOTC providers to complete and file the new Form 9198 as soon as possible to prevent delays or avoid disruption to WOTC determinations.
According to the information on the TEGL, SWA’s may continue to honor the older version of ETA Form 9061 and ETA Form 9175 (Rev. March 2023) for a short period, but it’s important for businesses to transition to the updated forms to ensure compliance.
Not sure how this affects your WOTC program? Walton can help! Contact us for a free consultation.