The $28.6 billion Restaurant Revitalization Fund (RRF) opened for business on May 3, and in its first 36 hours 186,200 restaurants, bars and other eligible businesses applied to receive assistance. Of these, 97,600 were priority applications from majority women-owned, veteran-owned businesses, socially and economically disadvantaged individuals, or a combination of these categories. A total of 61,700 applications came from businesses with under $500,000 in annual pre-pandemic revenue, representing some of the smallest restaurants and bars in America.
These numbers reflect the dramatic impact of the pandemic on the restaurant industry. They also show that applicants heeded the advice to apply as soon as the application portal opened.
The US Small Business Administration is reviewing and processing priority applications during the initial 21 days (May 3 to May 24), and will then begin reviewing all applications on May 25. Applicants under review status should not anticipate any outreach from the SBA during this period.
To make a correction following application submission and before award funding, applicants must revisit the application portal or call the support hotline at 1-844-279-8898 to submit the correction or new documentation. This will reset the application’s date and place in line. It may also take 14 days from the time of resubmission for SBA to finalize the review. The SBA will not allow corrections to awards that have been paid to awardees.
If the submitted application is successful, all applications enter “IRS verification.” No action is needed from applicants for this process, which simply allows the SBA to validate the information. The process may take up to seven days.
Although funds are limited, eligible businesses are still encouraged to apply. Find a wide array of resources, FAQ’s and links to important SBA information on the RRF on our toolkit here. Useful tips on filling out the application are available here.