On March 27, 2020, the US government passed the CARES Act in response to the COVID-19 crisis. Under the CARES Act, the Small Business Administration (SBA) offered loans under the Economic Injury Disaster Loan Program (EIDL) and advances under the EIDL Advance program.

On July 11, 2020, the SBA announced that the EIDL Advance program is now closed, having disbursed the $20 billion allocated to the program by Congress for emergency funding. The EIDL Advance program provided $1,000 per employee up to a maximum of $10,000 pending approval of the borrower's EIDL loan application. EIDL Advances do not have to be repaid, even if the EIDL loan is not approved. The SBA said that nearly six million small businesses employing 30.5 million people were provided with $20 billion through the EIDL Advance program.

The EIDL loan program is still available, even though the EIDL Advance program is not. The EIDL loan program offers long-term, low interest rate loans and emergency advances for eligible small businesses and nonprofit entities. Loan funds can be used to pay debts, payroll, accounts payable, and other bills that a business cannot pay due to the COVID-19 crisis, and that are not covered by an SBA Paycheck Protection Program loan. EIDL loans have a low interest rate of 3.75% for small businesses and 2.75% for nonprofit entities. They offer repayment terms up to a maximum of 30 years, with the first payment being deferred for one year.

The SBA encourages every eligible small business and non-profit entity to apply for the resources they need under the SBA programs.

For more information on the EIDL, see: