It can be difficult to keep track of the various coronavirus schemes available and when you need to take action to make sure you do not miss out.
To help you, in this blog post we provide a timeline, in order of dates occurring soonest, some going right through to 2030.
We also provide brief summaries of each scheme to refresh your understanding of them.
Coronavirus relief scheme end dates – in brief:
Top-up grants for retail, hospitality and leisure businesses:
No end date has been revealed yet.
Self-Employment Income Support Scheme (SEISS):
It is not yet known when applications for the fourth grant will open and close.
Coronavirus loan schemes:
31 March 2021 (final application date).
Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme Extended (CJRS):
30 April 2021 (this is when the scheme ends for furloughing of employees; the final claim date is not yet known).
VAT reduced rate for hospitality and tourism:
31 March 2021.
VAT Deferral New Payment Scheme:
31 March 2022.
Job Retention Bonus:
Expected to follow the end of the CJRS on 30 April 2021.
Pay As You Grow:
As late as November/December 2030.
Tax relief for home working expenses:
No end date has been mentioned.
Top-up grants for retail, hospitality and leisure businesses
The government announced that retail, hospitality and leisure businesses in England will have access to top-up cash grants in light of new lockdown restrictions, which came into force on 5 January 2021.
End date
The final claim date for the top-up grants hasn’t been announced yet. The same goes for businesses not eligible for the grants but that can access funds from the additional support pot.
What you need to know or do
Check your Local Authority’s website to submit a claim if your business is eligible for the grants.
Self-Employment Income Support Scheme (SEISS)
The SEISS allows those who are self-employed and who use the Self Assessment income tax system to claim grants lasting three months each and running consecutively.
These are intended to augment earnings, meaning you can continue to work and still claim. The deadline for the first three grants have now passed.
The fourth grant amount hasn’t yet been announced but will cover the period 1 February 2021 to 30 April 2021.
End date
Claims for the third grant opened on 30 November 2020 and closed on 29 January 2021.
It’s not yet known when applications will open or close for the fourth (February 2021 to April 2021) grant.
What you need to know or do
The government’s SEISS website contains details of how to apply.
If you haven’t claimed for a SEISS grant before (but are eligible for the grant), you’ll need to provide your Self Assessment Unique Taxpayer Reference (UTR), your National Insurance number, and have a Government Gateway user ID and password.
Setting up a Government Gateway ID can take some time because you have to undergo identity checks. Ensure you do this sooner rather than later to prevent missing any deadlines.
Coronavirus loan schemes
As part of the coronavirus relief schemes, the government created several loan schemes to provide guaranteed loans at attractive interest rates. They are:
- Bounce Back Loan Scheme (BBLS)
- Coronavirus Business Interruption Loan Scheme (CBILS)
- Coronavirus Large Business Interruption Loan Scheme (CLBILS)
The loan application periods were extended and the potential to top-up existing loans to the full amount eligible was made available.
End date
31 March 2021 is the date when applications for the coronavirus loans close, following the extension announced by the chancellor in December.
What you need to know or do
To apply for any of the loans, enquire with your existing lenders / banks, assuming they’re accredited as part of the loan scheme.
If not, you might need to approach other lenders.
Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme Extended (CJRS)
One of the earlier and most used coronavirus relief measures for business, the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme (CJRS) also known as ‘furlough’ concludes on 30 April 2021, after being extended several times.
The scheme allows businesses to furlough staff who are unable to work or in response to lower demand while being able to claim back a percentage of their usual salary for the furloughed hours/days. The rate is currently 80% with employers having to contribute the NI, PAYE and pension liabilities due.
End date
The current end date is 30 April 2021. This is the final date for which employees can be furloughed and the claim must be submitted by 14th May.
What you need to know or do
You should then make your claims for furlough no more than 14 days after the month end of which you are claiming for.
Remember that, to make a claim, you’ll need to provide information on the hours worked and employees details.
VAT reduced rate for hospitality and tourism
As part of the initial coronavirus relief measures, the government reduced the VAT rate classification for certain goods and services within the hospitality and tourism industry.
This meant businesses could apply a reduced 5% rate of VAT to supplies of food and non-alcoholic drinks consumed on their premises, or hot takeaway food/non-alcoholic drink, and to holiday accommodation.
End date
The last date on which this rate of VAT can be charges is 31 March 2021.
What you need to know or do
If your business is eligible, you’ll most likely already be applying the reduced VAT rate, if not, please contact us to help you with adjustments you need to make.
You should prepare for the arrival of the deadline, which might involve updating menus or signage to reflect increased pricing, adjusting receipt printing/invoicing systems, and making changes in your accounting.
VAT Deferral New Payment Scheme
The government allowed VAT-registered businesses to defer their VAT due for the March to June 2020 period.
The payment could be delayed until March 2021 but it has since been announced that any liabilities still due can be spread out across 2021 – 2022.
End date
The date the whole liability must be paid for by is 31 March 2022 , although you’ll need to apply before this date to let HMRC know you are spreading the costs.
What you need to know or do
HMRC have created a website to allow you to apply to pay in instalments.
Job Retention Bonus
If you made use of the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme (JRS; see above) to furlough employees, the government originally said businesses could claim a £1,000 one-off bonus for each employee who works continuously for you between November 2020 and January 2021.
This has now been cancelled, with the government advising that it will “redeploy a retention incentive at the right time”.
The original bonus scheme had some key rules that may or may not be carried forward to the new bonus scheme which we will detail when the new announcement is made.
End date
The dates for the new bonus are unknown, but it’s likely to follow the end of the CJRS which at this stage is 30th April. We will of course update you on this to ensure you do not miss any deadlines.
What you need to know or do
The government will announce details of a website where you can claim closer to the date above. We’ll update this blog when we know more.
Pay As You Grow
As mentioned above, The government announced the Bounce Back Loan Scheme (BBLS) as part of its initial coronavirus relief measures.
In addition to the extension for applications, the government is letting businesses switch to interest-only payments for periods of up to six months, don’t forget there are no payments due in the first 18 months.
Perhaps more importantly, it is also extending its backing of loans for up to 10 years, meaning businesses can choose to repay the loan over that period.
End date
As late as November/December 2030, depending on when you were granted the loan.
What you need to know or do
As mentioned earlier, to apply for a BBLS, you should initially enquire with your existing lenders, assuming they’re accredited as part of the scheme. If they’re not, you’ll need to approach other lenders.
If you wish to extend the loan for the 10-year period, contact the lender to discuss this.
Please note that the use of Pay As You Grow will not affect your business’ credit rating.
Tax relief for home working expenses
Those who were forced to work from home because of coronavirus can claim tax relief for additional household costs.
Claims such as this have always been possible for home workers, even before the coronavirus outbreak.
For the tax year 2020/21 only, HMRC has made a concession that taxpayers can claim a full year’s relief (52 weeks) even if they were only required to work from home for as little as one day!
In normal years, relief can only be claimed for the actual number of whole weeks worked at home.
The allowance that can be claimed without further evidence was raised to £6 per week from 6 April 2020, compared to £4 a week in previous years.
End date
There is currently no end date for the extension to the scheme to cover forced home-working because of coronavirus but note the end of the tax year being 5th April.
What you need to know or do
You can claim for the home working tax relief in two ways:
Using a flat rate of £6 a week from 6 April 2020, which is calculated based on your rate of tax. For example, if you’re a basic rate taxpayer, you can claim 20% of this – £1.20 per week. Claiming this way means you don’t need to provide evidence of the extra costs.
This will adjust your tax code, meaning you will receive the relief as a reduction in the tax you pay in your monthly wage.
For the exact amount of extra costs. But you’ll need to keep the paperwork and submit a Self Assessment claim (such as receipts, bills or contracts).
The administrative requirements of utilising coronavirus relief schemes can be an additional burden for businesses to contend with. But making note of the dates above in your calendar will help.
Remember to add calendar reminders a few weeks beforehand too, so you have plenty of time to prepare where necessary and don’t forget we are here to help. We perform most of these tasks on a daily basis so if you need our help, call us on 01482 888820.