HMRC have issued further guidance on the Self-Employed Income Support Scheme (SEISS) which I have detailed below:-

How to claim

The online service will be available from 13 May 2020. If you’re eligible, HMRC will tell you the date you can make your claim from. If your claim is approved you’ll receive your payment within 6 working days.

 If you receive texts, calls or emails claiming to be from HMRC, offering financial help or a tax refund and asking you to click on a link or to give personal information, it is a scam. You should email it to [email protected] and then delete it.

When you make your claim

You’ll only need your:

• Self Assessment UTR – if you do not have this find out how to get your lost UTR
• National Insurance number – if you do not have this find out how to get your lost National Insurance number
• Government Gateway user ID and password – if you do not have a user ID, you can create one when you check your eligibility online
• Bank account number and sort code you want HMRC to pay the grant into (only provide bank account details where a Bacs payment can be accepted)

You’ll have to confirm to HMRC that your business has been adversely affected by coronavirus.

If you claim the grant HMRC will treat this as confirmation you’re below the state aid limits.

HMRC will check claims and take appropriate action to withhold or recover payments found to be dishonest or inaccurate.

After you’ve claimed

Once you’ve submitted your claim, you will be told straight away if your grant is approved. HMRC will pay the grant into your bank account within 6 working days.

You must keep a copy of all records in line with normal self-employment record keeping requirements, including:

• the amount claimed
• the claim reference number for your records
• evidence that your business has been adversely affected by coronavirus

You will need to report the grant:

• on your Self Assessment tax return
• as self-employed income for any Universal Credit claims
• as self-employed income and that you’re working 16 hours a week for any tax credits claims

If you have any questions just let me know.

Additional information – Self employed income support scheme

The self employment income support scheme will be available from mid-May.

Based on the current guidance we will not be able to submit the claims for you but we will be able to assist with queries.

Please click on the below link to see if you are eligible:-

https://www.tax.service.gov.uk/self-employment-support/enter-unique-taxpayer-reference

If you get a response stating you’re not eligible and you think you should be, please get in touch and we can look at the figures for you in case we need to appeal the decision.

If you don’t have a government gateway account then please set this up ASAP – you will need this to be able to make a claim.

As ever if you have any questions just shout.

Bounce Back Loan Scheme

On 27 April 2020 the government released a new scheme called the “Bounce back loan scheme”.

This scheme is not available yet. It will launch on 4 May 2020.

The Bounce Back Loan scheme will help small and medium-sized businesses to borrow between £2,000 and £50,000.

The government will guarantee 100% of the loan and there won’t be any fees or interest to pay for the first 12 months.

Loan terms will be up to 6 years. No repayments will be due during the first 12 months. The government will work with lenders to agree a low rate of interest for the remaining period of the loan.

The scheme will be delivered through a network of accredited lenders.

Eligibility

You can apply for a loan if your business:

• is based in the UK
• has been negatively affected by coronavirus
• was not an ‘undertaking in difficulty’ on 31 December 2019

Who cannot apply

The following businesses are not eligible to apply:

• banks, insurers and reinsurers (but not insurance brokers)
• public-sector bodies
• further-education establishments, if they are grant-funded
• state-funded primary and secondary schools

If you’re already claiming funding

You cannot apply if you’re already claiming under the Coronavirus Business Interruption Loan Scheme (CBILS).

If you’ve already received a loan of up to £50,000 under CBILS and would like to transfer it into the Bounce Back Loan scheme, you can arrange this with your lender until 4 November 2020.

How to apply

The Bounce Back Loan scheme will launch on 4 May 2020.

More information about the scheme will be published shortly.

I have already spoken to one high street lender who have confirmed:-

“A new Government loan scheme (Business Bounce Back loan) will be available from Monday the 4th May.  While we don’t yet have all of the information available the Chancellor confirmed in his Statement to Parliament that the loan terms for the new scheme will include no capital or interest repayments in the first year, compared to 6 months with the current scheme.  The new scheme can only be applied for using an online form and doesn’t require an interview or any financial information.  We are still waiting for full details, such as the interest rate, however Lloyds Bank / Bank of Scotland will participate in the scheme.  Full details of the scheme and the application form will be available on our website from Monday.  If you would like to apply for this loan there will be no need to call in, you can apply directly online.”

As ever if you have any queries please do not hesitate to get in touch.

Tax rates and allowance for 2020/21 are detailed below:

The National Minimum Wage is the minimum pay per hour almost all employees are entitled to be paid by law.

These rates apply from 1 April 2020.

Furlough workers during COVID19 (Coronavirus)

HMRC have released additional guidance in relation to furlough workers which now includes provision for directors, please see the link to the full guidance from HMRC:-

https://www.gov.uk/guidance/claim-for-wage-costs-through-the-coronavirus-job-retention-scheme

As always if you have any questions please get in touch.

Business loans for COVID19 (Coronavirus)

From Friday 03 April 2020 Chancellor Rishi Sunak has extended the current Coronavirus Business Interruption Loan Scheme (CBILS) to help more small businesses access loans.

• The Scheme supports SMEs with accessing loans of up to £5 million for up to 6 years.
• The government will make a Business Interruption Payment to cover the first 12 months of interest payments and any lender-levied fees so that there are no upfront costs.
• Loan scheme extended to include all small companies affected by Covid-19, and not just those unable to get commercial funding
• The government is providing lenders with a guarantee for 80% of the loan amount.
• Provided you are borrowing less than £250,000, there can be no personal guarantee on the remaining 20%

There are only 40 accredited lenders, so make sure you are applying through a legitimate channel. You can view authorised lenders/partners on the following link:

https://www.british-business-bank.co.uk/ourpartners/coronavirus-business-interruption-loan-scheme-cbils-2/current-accredited-lenders-and-partners/

Loan details

If applying, you will need to provide your lender with details of the loan you’re asking for:

• How much you need to borrow
• What the money is for
• The period of time you want the loan for

Supporting documents

You need to provide evidence that shows you can afford the loan repayments. This will vary from lender to lender, but may include:

• 3-months’ bank statements
• Management accounts
• Cash flow forecasts
• Business plan
• Annual accounts
• Details of assets owned

If you need any help, or require additional financial reports in order to access these loans, please get in touch.

Grant funding for COVID19 (Coronavirus)

The claim forms are now available on both the Northumberland County Council and Newcastle City Council websites, see links below:-

https://www.northumberland.gov.uk/Business/Grants/Grants-Funding.aspx

https://www.newcastle.gov.uk/services/public-health-wellbeing-and-leisure/public-health-services/coronavirus-covid-19/support-business-coronavirus

Financial support during COVID19 (Coronavirus)

During these difficult times there are many forms of financial support available, below is a summary of what’s on offer:-

• If you have to furlough your staff there are grants available to cover 80% of their salary costs, up to a maximum of £2,500. The portal is not yet up and running, but is expected to be in April.

https://www.gov.uk/guidance/claim-for-wage-costs-through-the-coronavirus-job-retention-scheme

• If you have business premises (even if you get small business rates relief) there are grants available of £10k. Check your local authority website for updates, Northumberland County Council and Newcastle City Council already have online claim forms. Businesses in some sectors such as hospitality and retail will be eligible for up to £25k

• Self employed people can claim a grant of up to 80% of their average earnings

https://www.gov.uk/guidance/claim-a-grant-through-the-coronavirus-covid-19-self-employment-income-support-scheme

• VAT deferment – you will need to cancel your direct debit to ensure payments are not taken automatically

https://www.gov.uk/guidance/deferral-of-vat-payments-due-to-coronavirus-covid-19

• Business interruption loan scheme, contact your bank to see if you may be eligible
• Mortgage payment holidays – many banks now have an online form to apply for this
• Loan payment holidays – some banks (such as Barclays) have stated than an online form to apply for this is coming soon
• Apply for universal credit, this will be a financial life line to many people while they wait for other support to come through

https://www.gov.uk/apply-universal-credit

If you have any questions please get in touch.