Business owners who face disasters, including the coronavirus pandemic, are likely to sustain net operating losses (NOL). This means a company's allowable tax deductions are greater than its taxable income for a given tax period.Taxpayers mitigate those losses via taxes through NOL carry-backs and carry-forwards, which are mechanisms that let you claim a percentage of a year's NOL in previous or future years. The 2017 tax act removed the ability to carry NOL back and limited NOL carry-forward to 80% per year. The new Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act (CARES Act) changed that, allowing taxpayers to carry 100% of NOL backward or forwards.Figuring out how to do this can get complicated, so it's best to work with a professional."Talk to a tax accountant about how to use an NOL because depending on your income or tax bracket, it might be good to carry it forward," says Luke Frye, a certified public accountant (CPA) and co-founder of Timber Tax Accounting.