Following on from our earlier email which detailed the latest information on the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme (CJRS), we have now received further clarity from HMRC regarding the Self-Employment Income Support Scheme (SEISS).
SEISS has been designed to support self-employed individuals (including members of partnerships) whose income has been negatively impacted by COVID-19.
The scheme will provide a grant to self-employed individuals or partnerships, worth 80% of their profits, up to a cap of £2,500 per month.
The scheme will be open to those where the majority of their income comes from self-employment and who have profits of less than £50,000.
The scheme will be open for an initial three months, with people able to make their first claim by the beginning of June.
Are you eligible?
To be eligible for the scheme you must meet ALL the criteria below:
- Be self-employed or a member of a partnership
- Have lost trading/partnership trading profits due to COVID-19
- File a tax return for 2018-19 as self-employed or a member of a trading partnership
- Those who have not yet filed for 2018-19 will have an additional four weeks from this announcement to do so – please contact our Champion Tax team if you require assistance in completing and submitting your Tax Return
- Have traded in 2019-20; be currently trading at the point of application (or would be except for COVID-19) and intend to continue to trade in the tax year 2020 to 2021
- Have trading profits of less than £50,000 and more than half of your total income come from self-employment
- This can be with reference to at least one of the following conditions:
o Your trading profits and total income in 2018/19
o Your average trading profits and total income across up to the three years between 2016-17, 2017-18, and 2018-19 - It is our understanding from questions submitted to the Chancellor and answered by him yesterday that if you have submitted only one or two trading periods up to 2018-19 then HMRC apply the conditions above, averaging over the reduced periods available
How to access SEISS?
- HMRC is asking that individuals do not contact them now
- HMRC has confirmed that they will use existing information to check potential eligibility and invite applications once the scheme is operational
- HMRC will then pay the grant directly to eligible claimants’ bank accounts
- Grants are expected to start being paid out by beginning of June 2020
- HMRC has confirmed that there will be further guidance updates and we will continue to bring these to you when issued.
Keep informed of the latest information regarding COVID-19 and the support available by visiting the dedicated resource centre on our website.
As always, you can contact your Champion advisor or your local Champion office for more information.
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