Below I have summarised all the main tax related updates we’ve seen this week.
• Mortgage deferral extended for a further three months
• Coronavirus Statutory Sick Pay Rebate Scheme will launch online on the 26th May 2020
• Salesforce £5,000 small business grants
• Tide Banking accredited to offer the Government-backed Bounce Back Loans
• Questions we are commonly asked during the Covid-19 crisis
As always if you need any support or advice please don’t hesitate to contact me.
I hope you have a great bank holiday weekend!
Mortgage deferral extended for a further three months
The Government has confirmed that homeowners struggling to pay their mortgage due to Coronavirus will be able to extend their mortgage payment holiday for a further three months, or start making reduced payments, in proposals published today.
The availability of a three month mortgage holiday was first announced in March which will be coming to an end in June.
However, if you are still struggling and need help, a full extension of the mortgage holiday for a further three months will be available.
You can read more here: https://www.gov.uk/government/news/help-with-mortgages-to-continue-for-homeowners-affected-by-coronavirus
Coronavirus Statutory Sick Pay Rebate Scheme will launch online on the 26th May 2020
HMRC have confirmed that the Coronavirus Statutory Sick Pay Rebate Scheme will launch online on 26th May 2020.
The scheme will enable small and medium-sized employers with fewer than 250 employees to claim coronavirus-related Statutory Sick Pay (SSP).
If you are a Hillmans payroll client, we will be to make the claim on your behalf.
Employers are eligible to use the scheme if:
• they are claiming for an employee who’s eligible for sick pay due to coronavirus
• they had a PAYE payroll scheme in operation before 28 February 2020
• they had fewer than 250 employees across all PAYE schemes on 28 February 2020
• they are eligible to receive State Aid under the EU Commission Temporary Framework.
The repayment will cover up to two weeks of the applicable rate of SSP, and is payable if a current or former employee was unable to work on or after 13th March 2020 and entitled to SSP, because they either:
• have coronavirus
• are self-isolating and unable to work from home
• are shielding because they have been advised that they’re at high risk of severe illness from coronavirus.
To prepare to make a claim, employers should keep records of all the SSP payments they wish to claim for.
For more information about eligibility and the claim process go to: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/claim-back-statutory-sick-pay-paid-to-employees-due-to-coronavirus-covid-19
Salesforce £5,000 small business grants
Salesforce is partnering with Enterprise Nation offering grants of £5,000 to eligible small businesses that have received no grants in relation to COVID 19.
To be eligible to apply, companies must:
-Be registered at Companies House
-Been established for at least 12 months
-Have not received any other cash grant during 2020 in relation to COVID-19 from any Government
-Be based in the UK with a British bank account
-Have between 2 to 50 employees
-Meet all other eligibility requirements as stated in the grant programme terms
Applications will open in six regional phases, with the South of England region covering Somerset and Bristol opening on the 15th June and you will have until 21st June to apply. This is a very small window to make a claim, so our advice is to visit the link below to check if you qualify and set a reminder for the 15th June to make an application.
You can read more about the grant here: https://www.enterprisenation.com/smallbusinessgrants
Tide Banking accredited to offer the Government-backed Bounce Back Loans
Tide Banking have now been accredited to offer the Government-backed Bounce Back Loans to their customers.
The loans should be open to applications this week.
If you’re not currently a Tide customer you can register your interest for a loan at https://www.tide.co/bounce-back-loans/.
You can read more about the Government-backed Bounce Back Loan scheme here: https://www.hillmans.co.uk/bounce-back-loan-scheme
Questions we are commonly asked during the Covid-19 crisis
Is your office open?
While our Worle, Weston-super-Mare office is not currently open, our telephone lines are being answered remotely by the team working from their homes. All the accounts team are working normal hours (Monday to Friday 9am to 5pm) and being fully paid – so please contact us by phone or email and we will be pleased to assist you.
When will your office reopen?
Although we don’t know when our office will be reopening yet, we will of course follow government guidance and do everything we can to maintain the safety and the health of our team, clients and visitors to the office when we do reopen.
Can I drop records off to you to complete my accounts and tax return?
Yes, although our office is currently closed, we are popping into the office a couple of times each week to collect and open the post.
If you need to drop your records off to the Worle office, please call 01934 444100 before you leave to make sure there will be someone to collect the records from you. We will ask that you leave the package at the door for us to bring safely into the office.
Alternatively, we have a letter box you can post your records through (the letterbox is to the right of the reception front door).
Are you still taking on new clients?
Absolutely! We have had some really lovely feedback from clients over the past two months thanking us for our support during the pandemic (it’s been our absolute pleasure and privilege to assist!), with many of our clients referring us to their friends and family. If you would like to discuss switching accountants to us (or know someone who would), please drop me a line for a friendly, no obligation chat.
Stay safe and well.
Best wishes,
Steve
Steven Hillman ACA
Chartered Accountant
Chartered Accountant
Tel: 01934 444100
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