| Your regular update on the coronavirus business support update includes what we know so far regarding the CJRS extension to furlough support, details on how to go about applying for an SEISS grant and unfortunately no new news on the much anticipated top up grant scheme or rebates of statutory sick pay… |
I hope all remains well with you and your loved ones and you are managing to look after not just your physical health, but also your mental health.
For those of you who have sent your tax return information for 2019-20 in to us for preparation and completion, thank you ????????.
Meanwhile, on the coronavirus business support front, we have the following update for you:
As always, previous newsletters and articles can be found via the home page on our website: https://www.in-accountancy.co.uk/
Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme (CJRS)
I am sure you have all heard that the furlough scheme is to be extended by a further four months to take us to 31 October 2020.
Further details will be announced by end of May and we will of course update you in full now, so for now please find below just a couple of bullet points on what we know so far…
- There will be no changes to the scheme until end of July
- From 1 August there will be new flexibility introduced to encourage employees back to work and boost the economy
- we anticipate this will include options such as part time /reduced hours working combined with furlough grant support,
- and a reduction to the current minimum three week furlough period
- From 1 August also employers will be expected to pay a percentage of the contribution the government is currently making to ensure all employees continue to receive 80% of their salary, up to the £2500 per month maximum.
With regards to making your furlough claim, I know some of you who prefer to do this yourselves have been experiencing difficulties adding PAYE to your online gateway, receiving a message that the PAYE code is already being used.
We have now gone through this ourselves and tested with a number of clients and I can confirm that there should be no issue with this – it can be used by both yourselves and your accountant.
We have had most success when using the very helpful webchat function on the HMRC website as we are going through the process, and simply letting them know that your accountant also uses your code and asking them to help you add it to your gateway too – this has worked on every occasion it has been tried.
I do hope you understand that with the huge volume of queries we are receiving and the limited resource we have in this area, regrettably we are unable to check claims and calculations for you if you are choosing to calculate and submit your own claim.
Bounce Back Loan Scheme Success
A number of you have successfully applied for a Business Bounce Back Loan and received the fund very quickly indeed, which is great to hear. In fact over a quarter of a million loans have been approved nationally to the tune of almost £8.4 billion.
If this is something you have been considering, please refer to my previous article for details of who can apply and how to go about this:
Self Employed Income Support Scheme (SEISS)
SEISS grant applications open today. Please check my previous article if you require further details about who is eligible.
If you are self employed and have not yet checked your eligibility via HMRC’s online tool, you can do so HERE.
Simply enter your Unique Taxpayer’s Reference (UTR), which is the 10 digit reference used to file your tax return.
If you are successful you will receive the following message:
“You will be able to claim from <xx> am on <Day Date> May 2020. To get ready you need to add your contact details. We will use these to tell you when to claim and what to do beforehand”
In order to move on to this next step you will need to have a Government Gateway account set up – please note this is not something we will have done, or can do, for you.
If you already have one you will need to sign in and add your contact details.
If not, please find the steps below as to what you need to do – it really is very straightforward:
- Go to: https://www.gov.uk/log-in-register-hmrc-online-services
- Click the green ‘Sign in’ button, followed by ‘Create sign in details’
- Enter your email address – you will then be sent a confirmation code
- Once you have entered your confirmation code you can set up your Gateway account.
- You will be issued with a User ID – please keep this safe as you will need it every time you wish to log in to your account.
- Remember we cannot make these claims on your behalf, so if you haven’t yet set your account up I would urge you to do this as soon as you are able.
Once you have submitted your claim you will be advised immediately if your grant has been approved, and payment will be made into your account within six working days.
The amount paid to you will be equivalent to three months worth of 80% of an average of your average trading profits. This will be paid in a single lump sum and is to be capped at a maximum of £7500.
Top-up to local business grant funds scheme
No new news on this, and I am checking daily as this is something we know is essential to the survival for some of our clients. We will keep checking and let you know just as soon as there is something to tell you.
How to claim back Statutory Sick Pay
Again, no new news – we will keep you posted.
Any questions, you know where to find me ????
Best wishes as always,
Sarah x
