Job Support Scheme
As we know the CJRS (furlough) scheme that the Government introduced at the start of the pandemic will be finishing on 31st October and is going to be replaced by the Job Support Scheme which will be open to all employers in the UK even if they have not previously applied under the CJRS. The Job Support Scheme will run from 1st November 2020 for six months.
Employees will now receive 73% of their usual wage for working a minimum 20% of their usual hours. For the hours that are not worked by the employee, employers will only need to contribute 5% of the salary. For the full guidance to see if you are eligible for the scheme please following the link https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/the-job-support-scheme/the-job-support-scheme
Self-Employed Income Support Scheme (SEISS) Extension Grants
There will be a further Self-Employed Income Support Scheme grant which will be worth 40% of your income up to a maximum of £3,750. You will only be eligible to claim this grant if you met the criteria of the previous two grants, however you do not have to have claimed them. This grant will cover the three month period from the start of November 2020 to the end of January 2021. There will also be a further grant covering February 2021 to April 2021 but no figures have been disclosed at this time. Further guidance will follow on these grants regarding when Self-Employed individuals will be able to claim this. For the full guidance to see if you are eligible for the scheme please following the link https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/self-employment-income-support-scheme-grant-extension/self-employment-income-support-scheme-grant-extension
VAT reduced rate
VAT for the hospitality and tourism sectors was cut from 20% to 5% from 15th July 2020 and was originally planned to stop on 12th January 2021. This has now been extended and will now end on 31st March 2021.
Time to Pay Scheme
Previously the VAT payments due between 20th March and 30th June 2020 as well as the Self-Assessment payment on account for July 2020 were deferred and not required to be paid until 2021. If you are still struggling to pay these outstanding amounts HMRC have a new scheme for both SA & VAT where you can pay these amount over a 12 month period in 2021. You will need to arrange this with HMRC –
- For Self-Assessment worries please go on the following link https://www.gov.uk/government/news/self-assessment-customers-to-benefit-from-enhanced-payment-plans or phone 0300 200 3822.
- For VAT or any other taxes please phone 0300 200 3835.