Updated 13.51am Thursday 5 November 2020
Lockdown 2.0 is upon us! Today the Government have announced new measures to try and support businesses through this time.
FURLOUGH SCHEME
The furlough scheme has been extended to March 2021. (Review in January) It will pay up to 80% of a person’s wage up to £2,500 a month. Anyone made redundant after 23 September can be rehired and put back on furlough.
JOB SUPPORT SCHEME
The Job Support Scheme (JSS) has been placed on hold for the moment.
SELF EMPLOYMENT INCOME SUPPORT SCHEME (SEISS)
The Self-Employment Income Support Scheme will be increased, with the third grant covering November to January calculated at 80% of average trading profits, up to a maximum of £7,500.
ECONIMIC SUPPORT DURING LOCKDOWN
Business premises forced to close in England due to local or national restrictions are to receive grants worth up to £3,000 a month under the Local Restrictions Support Grant.
• For properties with a rateable value of £15k or under, grants to be £1,334 per month, or £667 per two weeks;
• For properties with a rateable value of between £15k-£51k grants to be £2,000 per month, or £1,000 per two weeks;
• For properties with a rateable value of £51k or over grants to be £3,000 per month, or £1,500 per two weeks.
Check with local councils as the detailed guidance has not been published nationwide.
BOUNCE BACK LOANS
The scheme is open to applications until 31 January 2021. It helps small and medium-sized businesses to borrow between £2,000 and up to 25% of their turnover. The maximum loan available is £50,000.
The government guarantees 100% of the loan and there won’t be any fees or interest to pay for the first 12 months. After 12 months the interest rate will be 2.5% a year.
You can apply if your business is based in the UK, Established before 1 March 2020 and been adversely impacted by the coronavirus
MORTGAGE HOLIDAYS
Borrowers who have been impacted by coronavirus and have not yet had a mortgage payment holiday will be entitled to a 6-month holiday, and those that have already started a mortgage payment holiday will be able to top up to 6 months without this being recorded on their credit file.
The above is in addition to the measures already in place below:
VAT REDUCTION
The special 5% VAT rate for hospitality and tourism (including supplies of food and non-alcoholic drinks) will continue to apply to 31 March 2021.
SELF-ASSESSMENT – ENHANCED TIME TO PAY
Taxpayers with up to £30,000 in self-assessment tax liabilities due in January 2021 will be able to use HMRC’s self-service Time to Pay facility to secure a plan to pay their liability over 12-months.
BUSINESS RATES HOLIDAY
For the tax year (6 Apr 2020 – 5 Apr 2021) there’ll be no business rates for businesses based in England in the retail, leisure or hospitality sectors to pay.
