▦3 Years
Past Refund LookbackAmend 2023, 2024, and 2025 returns to receive direct refund checks from the IRS.
Get cash back on the payroll taxes you paid on employee tips.
Restaurants, bars, and salons overpay thousands in payroll taxes every year. Under federal law, you are entitled to a dollar-for-dollar tax credit on the FICA taxes you paid on employee tips, including cash refunds for the past 3 years.
Contact Us◇ $0 upfront • Contingency only▣ 3-year retroactive refunds✓ We coordinate with your CPA
◇$0 Upfront
100% Contingency OnlyZero out-of-pocket costs. If you do not receive tax savings, you pay nothing.
▤Turnkey
Works With Your CPAWe prepare audit-ready IRS Form 8846 packages for your accountant to file.
Who Qualifies for This Refund?
If your business has tipped employees on payroll and pays employer FICA taxes, you are legally entitled to this federal tax credit.
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Restaurants & Bars
Food & BeverageAny dining or drinking establishment where staff receive tips and the employer pays FICA payroll taxes.
- Full-service restaurants, diners & bistros
- Cocktail lounges, bars, taverns & breweries
- Event venues, private banquets & caterers
100% EligibleW-2 Payroll
✂
Salons & Personal Care
Beauty & WellnessPersonal grooming, styling, and wellness businesses with tipped professionals on W-2 payroll.
- Hair salons, barber shops & blow-dry bars
- Nail salons, brow & lash studios
- Day spas, skin clinics & therapeutic massage
100% EligibleW-2 Payroll
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Tipped Team Members
Direct & Pooled StaffCovers both directly tipped frontline staff and support staff who receive shared tip pool payouts.
- Servers, bartenders & sommeliers
- Bussers, food runners & barbacks
- Hair stylists, nail technicians & estheticians
100% EligibleW-2 Payroll
How It Works in 3 Simple Steps
Getting your FICA tax refund doesn’t require changing payroll systems or spending hours on paperwork. We handle the process from start to finish.
1Takes ~15 Minutes
⇧Share Past Payroll Summaries
Simply send or export your quarterly payroll summaries (Form 941) and tip reports for the past 3 years. There is zero disruption to your daily operations or POS setup.
✓ No changes to your current payroll service or team workflow.
2Takes 3 to 5 Days
⌗We Calculate Your Full Refund
Our tax specialists calculate your exact tip tax credit under IRC § 45B, audit your eligible tip pools, and prepare complete, audit-ready IRS Form 8846 filing packages.
✓ We do all the heavy lifting and math for you.
3Immediate Financial Impact
$You Collect Your Cash or Credit
We hand completed tax schedules to your CPA to reduce your business taxes, or submit amended returns to deliver direct IRS refund checks for prior open years.
✓ You keep the money. We only invoice a success fee after you recover.
Why Most Business Owners Miss Out
The FICA Tip Credit is one of the most under-claimed federal tax credits in the country. Here is why it puts thousands of dollars back in your pocket.
3 Prior Years of Cash Refunds
Didn’t claim it in 2023, 2024, or 2025? Under federal law, we can file amended returns to recover all the overpaid payroll taxes you already paid.
We Partner With Your CPA
We do not replace your accountant. We handle the labor-intensive employee-by-employee tip calculations and deliver ready-to-file Form 8846 packages.
IRS Audit Defense & Statutory Safeguards
IRC § 45B claims require strict technical compliance. We eliminate examination vulnerabilities by preparing comprehensive, certified workpapers before any filing is submitted.
Statute of Limitations Expiration
IRC § 6511(a) Limitation RulesIRS Compliance Exposure
The federal 3-year statutory lookback window closes irrevocably on each return's statutory deadline. Any unclaimed tip credit for closed tax years is permanently forfeited to the Treasury.
TRG Audit Defense Protocol
We run automated statute expiration audits across prior open tax returns (2023, 2024, and 2025) to prepare and file timely amended returns before statutory remedies lapse.
✓ Audit Defensibility StandardForm 8846 Certified
Tip vs. Service-Charge Misclassification
IRS Rev. Rul. 2012-18 EnforcementIRS Compliance Exposure
Treating mandatory service charges, automatic 18-20% large-party fees, or banquet gratuities as voluntary tips violates IRS rules and triggers examination disallowance.
TRG Audit Defense Protocol
Our POS auditing disaggregates mandatory service charges and auto-gratuities from genuine customer-directed tips, ensuring 100% audit defensibility under Rev. Rul. 2012-18.
✓ Audit Defensibility StandardForm 8846 Certified
Statutory Wage-Floor Computation Errors
Dual Benchmark ExclusionsIRS Compliance Exposure
Failing to subtract the statutory baseline minimum wage ($5.15/hr for food & beverage; $7.25/hr for beauty services) causes erroneous credit claims that do not reconcile with Form 8846 instructions.
TRG Audit Defense Protocol
Every employee hour is run through a dual statutory wage-floor algorithm that verifies net eligible tips above the threshold, preventing overstatement risk.
✓ Audit Defensibility StandardForm 8846 Certified
Inadequate Contemporaneous Substantiation
Treasury Circular 230 StandardsIRS Compliance Exposure
Tax credits claimed on Form 3800 without contemporaneous payroll journals, Form 8027 filings, and W-2 tip reconciliations face heightened scrutiny during IRS corporate audits.
TRG Audit Defense Protocol
TRG compiles a complete, audit-defensible workpaper binder linking Form 8846 line items directly to quarterly 941 reports, POS tip summaries, and W-3 annual reconciliations.
✓ Audit Defensibility StandardForm 8846 Certified
♧ CPA & Accountant Network
A specialized tax credit partner for CPAs & accounting firms.
We collaborate with CPAs, bookkeepers, and payroll bureaus serving the hospitality and personal care sectors. We take on the labor-intensive employee tip calculations and deliver ready-to-file Form 8846 packages, saving your firm hours of work while recovering significant cash for your clients.
Partner With Us100% Non-Compete Guarantee
We are specialized tip credit recovery analysts only. We never provide annual income tax preparation, bookkeeping, or audit services. Your client relationship is 100% safeguarded.
Complete, Audit-Ready IRS Form 8846 Packages
We deliver a complete workpaper binder cross-referenced to quarterly Form 941s and payroll journals, ready for you to attach to Form 3800 or amended returns.
Flexible Referral Compensation
Participate in revenue sharing for your firm or pass preferred volume fee discounts directly through to your business clients.
Common Questions Answered
Straightforward answers about how the FICA Tip Credit works and how we help you claim your money.
Never. Your employees keep 100% of their tips and their personal taxes are completely untouched. This is strictly a federal tax credit for the business owner to reimburse you for the employer FICA payroll taxes you paid out of pocket.
Calculating the tip credit requires hours of tedious math for every single employee, shift, and paycheck, which most CPAs simply do not have the time to do. Instead, they default to standard expense deductions and leave thousands of dollars on the table. We do all the heavy lifting and give your CPA a ready-to-file package so you get the full cash refund you deserve.
Zero dollars upfront. We operate strictly on a contingency fee basis. If you do not receive an approved tax credit or refund check from the IRS, you owe us nothing. There are no hourly retainers, hidden fees, or upfront costs.
Yes. Federal law allows businesses to amend tax returns for all open tax years within the 3-year statutory lookback window (currently 2023, 2024, and 2025). We review your past payroll records and prepare amended returns so the IRS sends you a direct refund check for overpaid taxes.
No. The FICA Tip Credit under IRC § 45B was enacted by Congress in 1993 and is claimed annually by tens of thousands of hospitality and personal care businesses across the country. It is a standard IRS Form 8846 filing. We compile complete, certified supporting documentation for every dollar claimed.
Any business with tipped employees where the employer pays payroll taxes (FICA). This includes full-service restaurants, bars, taverns, catering companies, diners, and banquet halls, as well as hair salons, barber shops, nail studios, and spas under federal parity rules.
Zero Upfront Cost • 100% Contingency
Ready to Claim Your FICA Tax Refund?
It takes 15 minutes of your time. We review your past payroll summaries, calculate your refund under federal law, and coordinate directly with your CPA.
Contact Us✓ $0 Out-of-Pocket Cost✓ 3-Year Retroactive Window✓ Turnkey for You & Your CPA