8/18/2021
Candace J. Dixon
Despite dismal predictions and an apparent lack of enthusiasm from lenders, an August 18 press release from the Small Business Administration (SBA) announced that their Direct Borrower Forgiveness Portal had surpassed expectations, receiving over 340,000 submissions in less than two weeks, with half already approved for full or partial forgiveness.
Since the portal opened on August 4, the SBA received more than three times the number of submissions as the top 10 PPP lenders not using it.
"We are incredibly excited that in just two weeks, the Direct Borrower Forgiveness Portal is providing small businesses with a streamlined, user-friendly way to apply for forgiveness and receive relief on these essential PPP loans,” said Patrick Kelley, Associate Administrator for SBA’s Office of Capital Access. “Already, we've seen hundreds of thousands of borrowers navigating quickly and easily through the process, and we continue to proactively help borrowers apply through extensive outreach and webinar trainings. We encourage all lenders to opt-in to this tested portal."
Before the Direct Borrower Forgiveness Portal opened, borrowers had to download forgiveness forms on their own or wait for lenders who weren't always quick to reach out and offer them guidance, some not yet possessing the processes to start accepting forgiveness applications. While forgiveness was not user-friendly then, borrowers can now submit their applications in just six minutes and receive forgiveness decisions within a week when they use the SBA's streamlined Direct Borrower Forgiveness Portal. Borrowers with loans through lenders that have chosen not to opt-in to the SBA portal must still apply for forgiveness through their lender. Over 1,230 PPP lenders have currently opted-in.
Source: sba.gov