Employee Retention Tax Credit Eligibility Category Recovery Startup Businesses are eligible for the ERC for 3rd and 4th quarter 2021 The American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 passed by Congress in March of 2021 expanded the Employee Retention tax Credit by introducing a new eligible category of employer – The Recovery Startup Business. A Recovery Startup Business is defined as a business that started operating after February 20, 2020 and has “average annualized receipts” of less than $1,000,000. Recovery Startup Businesses are automatically eligible for the Employee Retention Credit in the third and fourth quarters of 2021. The American Rescue