The Government has extended the three coronavirus business interruption loan schemes - the Coronavirus Business Interruption Loan Scheme (CBILS), the Coronavirus Large Business Interruption Loan Scheme (CLBILS) and the Bounce Back Loan Scheme (BBLS).
As the schemes were announced at different times, they previously had different closing dates, with each scheme originally open for applications for a period of 6 months. The extension aligns the end date for applications for the schemes to 30 November 2020. Ashgates has assisted several clients with successful applications so far and can assist you in this process. If you require advice or assistance, please contact us. Extension of Repayment Terms The Government also announced an extension to the repayment terms for BBLS and CBILS.
We expect more details to be released on the extension of repayment terms including how existing terms can be extended and are monitoring further Government announcements and will update accordingly. We are here to help so please contact us if you wish to discuss any of the above. The Government has extended the temporary reduced rate of VAT (5%) to tourist attractions and goods and services supplied by the hospitality sector. This relief came into effect on 15 July 2020 and was due to end on 31 January 2021 but will now be extended to 31 March 2021 across the UK.
We are here to help so please contact us if you wish to discuss any of the above. If you deferred paying your July 2020 payment on account, you will need to pay the deferred amount in addition to any 2019/20 balancing payment and first 2020/21 payment on account by 31 January 2021. This may be a larger payment than you usually pay in January.
If you're unable to pay this liability in full by 31 January 2021 then you can set up a Time to Pay payment plan of up to 12 months online. If your self-assessment tax debts are up to £30,000 then you'll able to access this Time to Pay facility through the gov.uk website and approval will be automatic and immediate. If your self-assessment debts are over £30,000 or you need longer than 12 months to repay your debt in full then you will still be able to apply for a Time to Pay arrangement by calling HMRC. It is likely that you will have to provide evidence of the reason you can not pay and produce cash flow forecasts. We are here to help so please contact us if you wish to discuss any of the above. Businesses who deferred their VAT payments that were due between 20 March and 30 June 2020 were due to make these payments in full to HMRC by 31 March 2021. Under the VAT Deferral New Payment Scheme, businesses can now opt to spread the deferred payments in equal instalments up to 31 March 2022.
Businesses can make payments as normal by 31 March 2021 or make Time to Pay arrangements with HMRC if you need more tailored support. Current VAT payments remain due on the normal due date. We are here to help so please contact us if you wish to discuss any of the above. Two previous grants have been available to self-employed individuals whose business has been adversely affected by Covid-19. The SEISS has now been extended for self-employed individuals who are actively continuing to trade but are facing reduced demand due to Covid-19.
To be eligible for the grant extension self-employed individuals, including members of partnerships, must:
The extension will provide two further grants to self-employed individuals who qualify with the grants being paid in two instalments each covering a three-month period. The first grant will cover November until the end of January with HMRC providing the taxable grant covering 20 per cent of average monthly trading profits. The grant will be paid out in a single instalment covering 3 months’ worth of profits and capped at £1,875 in total. The second grant will cover February until the end of April with the exact details of the value of the grant being set in due course. The grants are subject to Income Tax and National Insurance Contributions. It is expected that the claims process will be the same as the previous grants with claims being made through the individuals’ digital tax accounts. Confirmation of this and the timing for making a claim will follow in due course. We are here to help so please contact us if you wish to discuss any of the above. As announced last week the new Job Support Scheme will be introduced from 1 November 2020 to help to protect jobs where businesses are facing lower demand over the winter months due to coronavirus. The scheme will run for six months to April 2021 and will see the Government contribute towards the wages of employees who are working fewer than normal hours due to decreased demand.
Employers will continue to fund the wages for the hours worked by employees. For the hours the employee does not work, the employer and the government will each pay one third of their usual wages (capped at £697.92 per month). Examples can be found on the Government’s Job Support Factsheet. Employers will need to meet their share of the pay for unworked hours together with all the National Insurance and statutory pension contributions The eligibility criteria for employers is as follows:
Further details of the financial assessment test and criteria regarding the capital distributions will be released with future guidance releases. Eligible employees must:
The Job Support Scheme will commence on 1 November and you will be able to claim for November in early December. Grants will be paid on a monthly basis. The existing Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme is completely separate to this new scheme and neither the employer or the employee needs to have previously used the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme. Further, the Job Support Scheme will operate in addition to the Job Retention Bonus and employers and employees can benefit from both schemes in order to help protect viable jobs. For further information please see the Government’s fact sheet. We are here to help so please contact us if you wish to discuss any of the above. Further to our previous messages regarding furloughed staff we thought we should remind you that the level of the CJRS grant reduces from 1 October 2020. The Government’s contribution to wages will reduce to 60% of wages up to a cap of £1,875.00 for the hours a furloughed employee is on furlough.
Employees remain entitled to receive 80% of their normal wages while on furlough with the balance of 20% after the CJRS claim now being funded by the employer. Employers will also continue to pay the national insurance and pension contributions for hours not worked as well as all costs for any hours worked under the Flexible Furlough Scheme. These changes should be factored into any decisions regarding the use of flexible furlough and decisions to bring employees back to work, as well as implications for holiday entitlement and timing of any redundancy decisions. The CJRS will close at 31 October 2020 and be replaced by the Job Support Scheme. We are here to help so please contact us if you wish to discuss any of the above. The Chancellor has today announced new measures to support businesses through the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic. The headlines of his announcements are:
We are monitoring further Government announcements and will update accordingly once these have been released. As always, we are here to help so please contact us if you wish to discuss any of the above. The Government have announced new grants will be available for businesses in England that are required to close due to local lockdown measures.
Payments are triggered by a national decision to close businesses in a high incidence area. Each payment will be made for a three week lockdown period and each new three week lockdown period triggers an additional payment. The grants are available for each property that is closed at the following rates:
Further information from the Government regarding this scheme can be found at: https://www.gov.uk/government/news/ministers-announce-new-grants-for-businesses-affected-by-local-lockdowns
HMRC have published the updated rates for mileage claims on company cars that take effect from 1 September 2020.
You can use the previous rates for up to one month from the date the new rates apply. The advisory fuel rates per mile for journeys undertaken on or after 1 September 2020 are: |
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