Express New Application 2025

WTFP
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59 steps
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5 minutes

Overview of Organization

Enter your organization's Federal Employer Identification Number (FEIN) in the indicated section, and click outside the box. If your organization is already in our system, key details will auto-fill once you click out of the FEIN field. If not, you’ll be prompted to enter your organization's information for this section manually. All fields indicated in red are required. In the next few steps, we've called out the questions that will appear as new for most Express applicants.

Please note: to have your organization's information prepopulate with data in our system, you will need to click out of the FEIN box for the business information to prefill.

*New question!* Enter a brief description of your organization in this section. There is no minimum size required. For example, you could write, "We are a small accounting firm that specializes in filing small business tax returns."

*New question!* Select your entity type: for-profit, non-profit, or other. Note that only organizations that contribute to the Workforce Training Fund--which includes most for-profits and non-profits that elect regular UI contributions--are eligible for WTFP grants. Any organization that doesn't fit those two broad categories is likely ineligible to receive funding. If you select "other," a warning message will appear. For more on program eligibility, click below. [Express Program Eligiblity : Commonwealth Corporation](https://commcorphelp.freshdesk.com/support/solutions/articles/44002390484-how-can-i-determine-if-my-organization-is-eligible-to-receive-an-express-program-grant-)

*New question!* Insert a link to your company's website or other official web presence. If you don't have a formal website, you can insert the link to your company's social media page (e.g., Facebook, LinkedIn) here too.

*New question!* If your business has a parent company, please select "yes" and enter that company's name in the field that appears. If not applicable, select "no."

Please enter your businesses' legal Massachusetts address where work is performed. Please note that this address must be a physical location within the state where work is performed, and cannot be a P.O. Box, employee's home address, or another location not owned or leased by the company or company owner(s). For full WTFP location requirements see below. [If my business is headquartered outside of Massachusetts, but has employees working in the state, are we still eligible for Express Program reimbursement? : Commonwealth Corporation](https://commcorphelp.freshdesk.com/support/solutions/articles/44002309504-if-my-business-is-headquartered-outside-of-massachusetts-but-has-employees-working-in-the-state-are)

*New question!* Please enter the mailing address for the business. This address can be provided if you'd like payments to be sent to a place other than the Legal Address. Unlike Primary Address, Mailing Address *can* be a P.O. Box. It can also be the same as the Primary Address listed above. If relevant, click the box, "Same as Primary Address."

The optional Business Diversity section helps us understand the makeup of your organization's leadership. While not required, we welcome any information you'd like to share regarding your business's certifications or classifications. If "Yes" is selected for any of these questions, a drop-down box will appear, allowing you to select a number of different options for certifications, certifying organizations, and diverse designations that may apply to your business.

*New question!* At the end of this page there is an Acknowledgment section. Please review our program's up-to-date policies and guidelines on our website every time you apply, and click the check box once you've reviewed them. Please see link below to our current guidelines and policies. **Reach out before you apply to the Express Program at express@commcorp.org if you have specific questions or concerns about our program's guidelines.** [Commonwealth Corporation - Express Program Guidelines](https://commcorp.org/subprogram/wtfp-express-program-guidelines/)

While in the application, you won't be able to move forward to the next page if this red error message is displayed upon clicking "Next." Review the page you are on and look for error messages displayed in red text. Once all required fields are completed, you will be able to move forward to the next page. This will apply throughout the application process.

At the top of each page there is an important alert: **please do not click "Refresh" in your browser at any point in the application or all data will be erased.** Please use the "Back" and "Next" buttons at the bottom of the application to navigate between the pages.

Applicant Contact Information

CommCorp requires a minimum of three contact roles to be provided. One person may serve in multiple roles, but each section must be completed. Roles include: Authorized Signatory: The person authorized to sign contracts. Fiscal Contact: Responsible for invoices and budget matters. Primary Contact: Main day-to-day contact (will be copied on all communication). Additional Contact (Optional): For example, a Project Manager or secondary point of contact. One employee can serve as the contact for more than one role. If the Primary contact is the contact for multiple roles please check off the box "Same as primary contact" in each section.

Note: Having multiple contacts is helpful in case we are not able to get in contact with the Primary Contact to communicate about your grant.

Compliance

*New question!* The Employee Count section provides us with the number of employees located in Massachusetts to determine program eligibility and reimbursement percentage. In this application, we are asking you to provide total number of Full-Time and Part-Time separately. The application will automatically calculate Total Number of Payroll Employees in MA as the sum of these two numbers.

*New question!* We are also asking applicants to provide their total number of Full-Time and Part-Time employees outside of the state of Massachusetts and internationally, emcompaseed by the "Worldwide" numbers. If your organization only has Massachusetts employees, copy the values you entered in the Massachusetts-specific sections. If your organization employs people out of state or out of country, please add the respective Part-Time and Full-Time numbers to the Massachusetts numbers, and enter them in the indicated fields.

*New question!* If the question, "Has there been any layoffs in MA in the Past 2 Years?" is answered "Yes," a description box will appear and a short description will be required. There is no minimum size required. **Note that answering "Yes" will not negatively impact your eligibility for the Express grant program.**

The first compliance requirement is a valid, non-expired DUA Certificate of Compliance. Please see the article below on how to obtain a Certificate of Compliance from the DUA, and what a valid document looks like. Please upload the certificate below. Each compliance check will have an example of the document we need. Click the box, "Example" to view them. [How can I obtain a Certificate of Compliance from the Department of Unemployment Assistance (DUA)? : Commonwealth Corporation](https://commcorphelp.freshdesk.com/support/solutions/articles/44002587371)

Your Certificate of Compliance from the DUA must explicitly note "\[Name of Company\] contributes to the Workforce Training Fund Program" and must not be expired to satisfy requirements. The number of employees will also be listed; if "0," your organization reports no employees to Massachusetts and thus is ineligible to receive grants. Reach out to DUA if this is the case to correct any reporting errors.

If the most recent compliance document you submitted to WTFP is up to date, the status will read, "Compliant," and you will not have to upload the document again.

The following section is where the Certificate of Good Standing (COGS) issued by the Department of Revenue can be uploaded. Please make sure the COGS is obtained from the Department of Revenue (DOR), and NOT the Secretary of the Commonwealth. The Date of Notice can be found in the top right corner of the COGS. The Notice Date should have a date within six months of the date of application submission. The legal name on the COGS should line up exactly with the current legal name of the organization as listed on your application. [FAQs: DOR Certificate of Good Standing or Corporate Tax Lien Waiver ](https://www.mass.gov/info-details/faqs-dor-certificate-of-good-standing-or-corporate-tax-lien-waiver)

Here is an example of what a Certificate of Good Standing from the Department of Revenue looks like. The Notice Date will be in the top right corner. Please make sure your COGS is addressed in the full business name including Inc., LLC, P.C., etc.

Please upload a signed copy of your company's Form W-9. The W-9 should contain your business's full legal name, FEIN and should be signed and dated within one year of the application submission. [Form W-9 (Rev. March 2024)](https://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/fw9.pdf)

Here is an example of a W-9. Please make sure the business name is listed in full, the DBA name if applicable, current address and FEIN. The W-9 needs to be signed and dated within one year of the application submission.

Training Plan

The following section is the Training Plan, where you will be able to enter course data. Your Contract Start Date will be prefilled as well as the Contract End Date. The Express Service Agreement start date is automatically set to be 21 days from the date of application submission. The end date is automatically set to be 1 year minus 1 day from the start date. There is no ability to change start and end dates within these parameters. **Please be mindful that Express Program applications need to be submitted at least 21 days prior to the start of training; no exceptions are permitted.** Each training course should be completed within the timeframe entered in the application. Please notify us if your training schedule changes so we can update our record. All approved training must be completed within 12 months of the Contract Start Date.

As you work through your training plan, the Balance Remaining of your company for the calendar year and the total amount you a requesting in reimbursement will automatically tabulate at the top of the Training Plan page.

In Course Selection, you must first search for your training provider and select their approved course. Click on the magnifying glass to start your search. For reference, here is the link to our Course Directory that contains all currently-approved courses for the Express Program:[Commonwealth Corporation - Express Directory](https://commcorp.org/subprogram/wtfp-express-directory/)

Search for your training provider in our Lookup. Select your training provider and click Apply.

Your training provider name will prepopulate. Next, click the magnifying glass under Step 2 to review your selected provider's approved courses.

All of the training providers with approved courses that are on the Express Directory will be listed here. Please select the desired course and click Apply.

The course details will prepopulate, including the number of total training hours, the course cost type(s) approved, course capacity. In the example below, the course we are applying for is only approved in the Directory at a Per Trainee rate. Thus, we will only be able to apply for a Per Trainee rate in the next section.

The next section is the Training Details for your organization's run of this course. You can type in or select the calendar icon for your course training start date and end date. Please enter the date in MM/DD/YYYY format. Please note that your training start date and end date cannot fall before or after your Grant Contract Period indicated in the section at the top of the page.

In this example, "Per Trainee" will prefill as this course is only approved at a Per Trainee rate. Please enter the course cost you would be paying for one trainee, inclusive of any discounts you may be receiving. The course cost will be listed in the Course Details section directly above Training Details.

Some training providers offer membership discounts that result in a lower course cost. If one or more trainees are receiving a different rate, please apply for them in a separate course.

Please enter the number of trainees that will be taking the course.

*New question!* The following question will ask if the organization has received a WTFP grant in the last five years. If "Yes" is selected, a note box will appear reminding you of program guidelines for repeat courses.

*New question!* If you know the **first and last names** of employees who are taking training, you can enter them here (note: trainee names are not required in the event of courses you haven't taken before). If you've previously received reimbursement for this course, it is helpful for our team to have trainee names upfront to prevent application processing delays after you submit.

*New question!* To activate the subsidy calculator, click the button "Calculate Max Reimbursement Amount for this Course" and the maximum amount your organization can request in reimbursement will display. The max amount you can request is based on the details provided to WTFP about the course and your organization. Grant funds are limited to $15,000 per company per calendar year, $300 per instructional hour, and $3,000 per employee per course. Businesses are responsible for covering additional costs beyond these caps out-of-pocket. See the below links for more on how we calculate the maximum amount you can apply for. [What are the current subsidy caps for the Express Program? : Commonwealth Corporation ](https://commcorphelp.freshdesk.com/support/solutions/articles/44002683750-what-are-the-current-subsidy-caps-for-the-express-program-)[How can I calculate the cost per instructional hour for the course I want to take? : Commonwealth Corporation](https://commcorphelp.freshdesk.com/support/solutions/articles/44002560389)

*New question!* Please enter below the total amount that you will be requesting in reimbursement for the course. Note that this number cannot exceed the value displayed in the section above.

After adding one course, you can Add Another Course or Remove this Course. If you are not adding another course please scroll to the bottom and click Next. **Note**: **once you click, "Add Another Course" or advance to the next page, the training details will be locked and you will not be able to edit them**. **If you wish to edit previously entered course details, you must first remove the erroneous course and add the correct details in a new course listing.**

If you are adding an additional course you will repeat the same steps in the Course Selection, search for the training provider and select from the list of courses.

The next course we will be applying for is a group rate course.

Once confirmed, click the check box.

Please enter the start and end date of the training.

"Group Rate" will be prefilled as this course is only approved by WTFP at a group rate. Please enter the course cost you are paying for the group based on the Course Details entered above.

Please enter the number of trainees that will be attending.

Please enter the trainee names if desired. Then, please click "Calculate Max Reimbursement Amount for this Course"

Based on our current subsidy caps, this applicant can request up to $3,000.00 for reimbursement for this course. See below calculations: $4,0000.00/10 hours= $400 Total Cost Per Instructional Hour (exceeds our subsidy cap of $300 per instructional hour) $300.00 x 10 hours= $3,000.00, the maximum amount that can be requested

Please enter the total amount you are requesting based on the maximum amount you can request.

We are going to be adding one more course to our training plan. I have searched for the training provider and selected the course. Note that this course is approved for both a per trainee rate and a group rate.

We have entered our training start and end date. Next, we have to select if we be paying the provider at per trainee rate or a per group rate. For this example, we will be applying for per group.

We entered the course cost for the group based off the cost listed in the Course Details.

Please enter the number of trainees and their names if this information is known.

Please be sure to click "Calculate Max Reimbursement Amount for this Course". The max amount you can request for this course is $2,200.00. See below for a note on how this value was calculated: *Generally, at a course-level, the max reimbursement amount for an 8-hour group rate course would be $2400 (due to our $300/instructional hour subsidy cap). However, in this example, the MAX request amount is showing as $2200. This is because this example organization has **also** reached its $15,000 subsidy limit for the year when accounting for already awarded grants, as well as the cumulative requested amounts for the other two courses applied for in this application. Our new application will not allow application requests to exceed $15,000 total in requests/awards for a given year.*

Please enter the total amount you are requesting for reimbursement for this course.

Once you have add all the courses the business plans to take please click Next. You can add up to 10 courses in your training plan per application.

Acknowledgements and Submission

In the last section, you will see an overview of the courses you applied for and the Total Amount Requested in reimbursement.

Confirm the information is correct and click the check mark.

To submit the application, you must read and agree to follow our Guidelines and Key Terms for the duration of the Grant Contract. Please use the scroll bar on the side to scroll all the way down within the text box to read each guideline.

Once you have reviewed all guidelines, please click off the check mark at the bottom of the text box.

Please confirm who filled out the application: select one of the contacts given in the Contact Details section of the application, or enter your name if you weren't one of the contacts given.

If you are one of the contacts, please select yourself.

All of the contacts that were entered at the beginning of the application will be entered here. Please choose the relevant contact and click Apply.

Please review the information and click the check box confirming that you are the person indicated above.

Please click Submit at the bottom

You're done! All correspondence will be sent to the primary contact noted on the application. Please be sure to add "express@commcorp.org" and Docusign emails/domain to you company Safe Sender List, as our notifications could go to spam.

Please click Exit out of Application and it will bring you back to the Express home page: commcorp.org/express