Covid-19 Summary of Announcements and What You Need to be Aware Of
As always we are here to support you in these unprecedented times. We are keeping an eye on all the government updates. Therefore, to help offer some clarity we have provided information below on what we know and what you need to be aware of:
| WHAT WE KNOW | WHAT YOU NEED TO BE AWARE OF | |
| Coronavirus Job retention scheme All UK employers will be able to access support to continue paying part of their employees’ salary for those employees that would otherwise have been laid off during this crisis.HMRC will reimburse 80% of furloughed workers wage costs, up to a cap of £2,500 per month. |
All UK businesses are eligible
This is only applicable for furloughed workers You need to designate employees as furlough – these employees must not work at all while furloughed The mechanism to apply for the repayment is not live yet – As soon as we have an update we will be in touch
|
|
| Deferring VAT
HMRC will support businesses by deferring Valued Added Tax (VAT) payments for 3 months. The deferral will apply for payments due from 20 March 2020 until 30 June 2020 |
This is an automatic offer with no applications required.
Businesses will not need to make a VAT payment during this period. VAT refunds and reclaims will be paid by the government as normal. Taxpayers will be given until the end of the 2020 to 2021 tax year to pay any liabilities that have accumulated during the deferral period.
ACTION REQUIRED Customers who normally pay by direct debit should cancel their direct debit with their bank if they are not going to make their payment during this time. Please do so in sufficient time so that HMRC does not attempt to automatically collect on receipt of your VAT return. |
|
| Deferring Income Tax If you’re self-employed, Income Tax payments due in July 2020 under the Self-Assessment system will be deferred to January 2021. |
This is an automatic offer with no applications required. No penalties or interest for late payment will be charged in the deferral period.
|
|
| Support for paying sick pay to employees If you are you are a UK business that employs fewer than 250 employees as of 28 February 2020 you can reclaim Statutory Sick Pay (SSP) paid for sickness absence due to COVID-19 Eligible period for the scheme will commence the day after the regulations on the extension of SSP to those staying at home comes into force |
The payment of SSP from day 1 is only in relation to absence due to COVID-19. It covers up to 2 weeks of absence per eligible employee Employers should maintain records of staff absences of this nature Employers will work with business in the coming months to set up a repayment mechanism As soon as we have an update on the system we will be in touch |
|
| Coronavirus Business Interruption Loan Scheme If you are a UK-based affected by the Coronavirus and with a turnover of no more than £45 million per year you may be eligible for a loan. The loan scheme will support SMEs with access to loans, overdrafts, invoice finance and asset finance of up to £5 million and for up to 6 years. |
There are 40 accredited lenders able to offer the scheme, including all the major banks.
Your business needs to meet the bank’s eligibility criteria The scheme is now open for applications If you think you will need funding please speak to your bank as soon as possible. |
|
| Time to pay service All businesses and self-employed people in financial distress, and with outstanding tax liabilities, may be eligible to receive support with their tax affairs through HMRC’s Time To Pay service. This will cover VAT, PAYE & NI, Income Tax and Corporation Tax |
These arrangements are agreed on a case-by-case basis and are tailored to individual circumstances and liabilities.
As the helpline is currently either constantly engaged or cutting you off after a substantial hold period it looks as though we will have “ ask for forgiveness” for non-payment as we currently cannot get permission. |
If you want to keep an eye on the daily updates from HMRC you will find information at the following links:
COVID-19: support for businesses & COVID-19: support for employees
