The 2009 Recovery Act allows an eligible small business to carry-back its 2008 Net Operating Loss (NOL) for three, four, or five years. For fiscal year taxpayers, this applies to the NOL for the tax year either beginning or ending in 2008. To qualify for the new carry-back provision, a small business must have no greater than an average of $15 million in gross receipts over a three-year period ending with the tax year of the NOL. The IRS issued guidance on the new carry-back in March and reminded taxpayers about some special elections to take advantage of the new provision.
