Furlough is now live
Last month, the government announced the Job Retention Scheme as one of the ways to help employees who have lost their jobs as a result of coronavirus. Employees will receive an 80% grant, up to £2,500 a month, from the government to cover salaries backdated to 1st March. The wage subsidy scheme will be extended until the end of June. An update on individual eligibility has also been announced – an employee originally has to be employed on or before 28th February, however to ensure the scheme helps as many people as possible, the eligibility date has been extended to 19th March 2020 as long as an RTI (real time information) report has been filed to HMRC by that date.
As of Monday 20th April, the online portal to claim the grant is now open. Employers can now apply for the cash grants through the portal, with the money expected to be transferred within 6 working days. The system is said to be able to process up to 450,000 applications an hour – as many businesses will be applying at the same time, employers may be asked to wait in a queue. HMRC have said that, if this message appears, the system has not crashed.
We have successfully filed a number of claims already for our clients and expect to assist many more in the coming days and months. The BBC reports that in the first 30 minutes of the portal being open 67,000 claims were successfully filed.
How to apply:
HMRC have released a step by step guide for employers explaining the information required to claim for their employee’s wages.
Guidance is available on eligibility, calculating the grants, and further details on applying for the grant.
Eligibility:
You must have
- Created and started a PAYE scheme on or before 19th March 2020
- Enrolled for PAYE online
- A UK bank account
We can help you apply for the Job Retention Scheme 80% grant. Contact us now if you need guidance on making your claim.
Has your business been affected by coronavirus? We have launched a COVID-19 Client Assistance Program to help you gain control of your finances during these extraordinary times, head to our COVIS-19 webpage to find out more information and book your meeting today.
