What COVID 19 support is available

Here’s the latest information about what COVID 19 support is available to help you financially.

This includes:

a reminder of the 14‌‌‌ ‌June deadline for submitting May Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme (CJRS) claims
details of changes to the CJRS from July
and the 21‌‌‌ ‌June deadline for joining the online VAT deferral new payment scheme.

Self Employed Income Support Scheme

All eligible customers can now claim for the fourth grant of the Self-Employment Income Support Scheme (SEISS). You must apply by the 1^st of‌‌‌ ‌June at the latest.

Here are some further updates on the scheme.

Amending tax returns – do you need to pay back some or all of a SEISS grant?

If you have made an amendment to your tax return on or after 3‌‌‌ ‌March 2021, check if your eligibility for the SEISS grant has been affected. This new requirement applies to claims for the fourth and fifth SEISS grants only, and amendments made on or after 3‌‌‌ ‌March 2021 to Self Assessment returns for tax years between 2016-17 and 2019-20.

You will then need to pay back some or all of the grant but do not need to tell HMRC if the grant has lowered by £100 or less.

Tax returns can only be amended up to 12 months following the filing date, so this time limit will have passed for most returns between 2016-17 and 2018-19, unless they were issued late.

If returns are amended ‘out of time’, this will not change the relevant tax return so will not be taken into account for the fourth or fifth SEISS grants.

You can tell HMRC if you need to pay back some or all of a SEISS grant by completing a simple form online. HMRC will then contact you and let you know how much you need to repay, and how to do this. More information can be found on GOV.UK.

Will receiving a SEISS grant affect future tax returns?

SEISS grants are subject to Income Tax and National Insurance and should be included in your Self Assessment return.

Submit your CJRS claims for May

CJRS claims for periods in May can be submitted now, and ‌‌must be made by Monday‌‌‌ the ‌14^th of June.

Employers can claim before, during or after you process their payroll. If you can, it’s best to make a claim once sure of the exact number of hours employees will work, so you don’t have to amend the claim later.

Check if you and your employees are eligible and work out how much you can claim using CJRS calculator and examples on GOV‌‌‌‌‌‌‌‌‌‌‌‌.UK.

Conditions of claiming CJRS grants

You must pay the associated employee tax and National Insurance contributions to HMRC. This is a condition of applying for the grant, so not doing so will mean you’ll need to repay the whole of the CJRS grant and may not be able to claim for future CJRS grants.

If you are having difficulties paying any of your tax liabilities to HMRC, they will work with you to explore affordable payment options – for example, through a payment plan where you can pay over time, in instalments. To find out more go to GOV.UK.

What you need to do now

If you haven’t submitted your claim for April but believe that you have a reasonable excuse for missing the 14‌‌‌ ‌April deadline, check if you can make a late claim by searching ‘claim for wages’ on GOV‌‌‌‌‌‌‌‌‌‌‌.UK.
Submit any claims for May no later than Monday‌‌‌ ‌14^th of‌‌ June.
Keep records that support the amount of CJRS grants you claim, in case HMRC needs to check them.
Make sure you‘re paying employee tax and National Insurance contributions to HMRC and contact us if they’re struggling to pay.

VAT deferral – apply online by 21st‌‌‌ ‌June

The VAT deferral new payment scheme is open for all businesses who deferred paying VAT due between 20‌‌‌ ‌March and 30‌‌‌‌‌ ‌June‌‌ 2020 and were unable to pay in full by 31‌‌‌ ‌March‌‌ ‌2021.

If you haven’t done so yet, you can apply now to spread these payments – businesses that join by 19^th of‌‌ ‌May‌‌‌ ‌2021 can pay in up to nine monthly instalments. If businesses apply to spread their payments between 20‌‌‌ ‌May and 21‌‌‌ ‌June they can pay in eight instalments.

21‌‌‌ ‌June is the deadline for businesses to join this scheme. They can apply quickly and simply online without needing to call us. To find out more go to VAT deferral on GOV.UK.

Businesses may be charged a 5% penalty and/or interest if they do not sign up to the VAT deferral scheme by the deadline of 21‌‌‌ ‌June, or pay in full by 30‌‌‌ ‌June, or get in touch to make an alternative arrangement to pay by 30‌‌‌‌‌ ‌‌June‌‌ ‌2021.