Scottish Government has announced further support and grant funding to assist businesses who have been impacted by COVID -19. These are: an extension of Non-Domestic Rates Relief, the introduction of a Newly Self-Employed Hardship Fund and a new Mobile and Home-Based Close Contact Services Fund.
Non-Domestic Rates Relief
Retail, hospitality, leisure, and aviation businesses will pay no rates during 2021-22 under the new proposals outlined.
The new proposals are part of many proposed by the Finance Secretary, Kate Forbes, following confirmation of a further £1.1Billion of substantial funding from the UK Government.
Find out all the new information regarding rate relief here: https://www.gov.scot/news/non-domestic-rates-relief-extended/
Newly Self-Employed Hardship Fund
Anyone who became self-employed after April 2019 was not eligible for the UK Government’s Self-Employed Income Support Scheme as the SEISS grant requires you to have submitted more than one self-assessment tax return to calculate an average income to allow HMRC to assess if you were able to make a claim.
This new scheme offers a one-off £4,000 payment for those whose status as newly self-employed made them ineligible for the UK Government SEISS grant. The fund will be open to applications for four weeks.
To be eligible for the Newly Self Employed Hardship Fund this you must be able to demonstrate that you either:
- a) became self-employed on or after 6 April 2019 but before 17 March 2020; making you ineligible for the SEISS grant
or
- b) became self-employed between 1 October 2018 and 6 April 2019 but are ineligible for the SEISS grant because you were not self-employed for a sufficient period in the 2018/2019 financial year to demonstrate that you derived 50% of your income from self-employment
There is also additional information you must confirm when submitting your application.
Find out all the information, if you can apply and how to apply here https://findbusinesssupport.gov.scot/service/funding/newly-self-employed-hardship-fund
Mobile and Home-Based Close Contact Services Fund.
This grant is for owners and operators of mobile and home-based close contact business and registered driving instructors. It is not for employees of those businesses.
Employees of any business should speak with their employer to know their eligibility for support through the UK Government’s Job Retention Scheme.
Similarly, with the Newly Self-Employed Hardship Fund, there are strict eligibility criteria when applying for the mobile and home-based close contact fund.
With this funding grant, you must operate your business primarily on a mobile basis or from home; you are not eligible for this grant if your business cannot conduct solely from a fixed premise used exclusively for business purposes. If you have already benefited from a business grant support due to operating from fixed business premises, you cannot apply for further support from this fund.
See the full criteria to determine if you are eligible and start the application here https://findbusinesssupport.gov.scot/service/funding/mobile-and-home-based-close-contact-services-fund.
