Below I have summarised all the main tax related updates we have seen this week.
• Business West COVID-19 Business Grants – Application Process Open
• Bounce Back Plans Launched for Consumer and Retail Industry
• Football Referees are Self-Employed
• Kickstart Scheme Employer Contacts
If you have any queries about this week’s content, please do not hesitate to contact me.
I hope you have a great weekend!
Best wishes,
Steve
Steven Hillman BSc (Hons) ACA
Chartered Accountant
Tel: 01934 444100
https://www.hillmans.co.uk/covid-19-updates
Business West COVID-19 Business Grants – Application Process Open
Business West, on behalf of the West of England Combined Authority, have opened the application process for the Small Business COVID-19 Business Grants.
As part of the Government’s response to the COVID-19 crisis, they have released £300,000 of European Regional Development Funding to support businesses, in the West of England LEP area.
Fully funded grants of between £1,000 and £3,000 are available to help mitigate some of the impact of the coronavirus pandemic on eligible businesses.
The grant can be used to cover up to 100% of the costs for professional, legal, financial, or other specialist advice. It can also be used on new technology and other equipment to help your business with recovery.
Some examples of what you could use the money for include (but are not limited to):
• Business coaching for strategy development
• New markets research and development
• Consultancy for a re-branding effort
• Business development support
• IT hardware to enable home working
• Purchase and implementation of a new CRM system
How to apply
To apply for a COVID 19 Business Support Grant, you will need to submit an application form to Business West. You can download the application form here: https://www.businesswest.co.uk/sites/default/files/covid-19_business_support_-_grant_application_form_v1_2.docx
You can read more information here: https://www.businesswest.co.uk/covid-19-business-support
If you're not based in the West of England you can find your Local Growth Hub here: https://www.lepnetwork.net/
Any application received after Monday 21st September will not be considered, so you need to be quick to apply.
You will need up to date financial forecast data for the application. For Hillmans bookkeeping clients please drop us a line and we can supply this for you and help you with the application.
If you are not a Hillmans client, we would advise speaking to your own accountant who should be able to provide the financial data to you. However, if you get stuck please drop us a line on 01934 444100 and we’d be pleased to help.
Bounce Back Plans Launched for Consumer and Retail Industry
A ‘bounce-back’ plan of trade measures for the consumer and retail industry has been announced by the Department for International Trade (DIT) to help support businesses impacted by Coronavirus.
These are:
• New measures to help boost exports and increase British retail firms’ readiness to sell overseas
• New plans include creation of a Consumer and Retail Export Academy to help businesses export, via a digital learning syllabus
DIT say “The new measures will offer immediate support to businesses by ensuring specialists provide advice on online retail and international marketplaces. The launch of a new Consumer and Retail Export Academy will provide businesses with the critical knowledge, skills and networks needed to increase exports. The plan will also outline long-term support for the sector as new export opportunities arise from trade deals being negotiated with the US, Japan, New Zealand and Australia.”
Further details are expected, and we will bring you the facts of the support when we receive them.
See: https://www.gov.uk/government/news/bounce-back-plans-launched-for-consumer-and-retail-industry
Football Referees are Self-Employed
Whilst many of us will be looking forward to the new football season resuming, there has been an interesting tax case recently concerning the employment status of referees.
The Upper Tier Tribunal has rejected an appeal by HMRC concerning whether referees officiating at matches in the Championship and lower leagues were employees of Professional Game Match Officials Limited (PGMOL).
Whilst referees in charge of Premier League matches are employees of PGMOL those refereeing other matches have always been treated as self-employed.
A crucial determinant was the degree of control over the individual and whether there is "mutuality of obligations" (MOO) between the parties.
This means that the employer is obliged to provide work and the employee is obliged to perform the work provided. The Upper Tribunal decided that no such obligations were present.
MOO is a key factor in determining employment status and it is considered that insufficient weighting is placed on this factor when using the Check Employment Status for Tax (CEST) software which is a cornerstone of the "off-payroll" working rules scheduled to be rolled out to the private sector from 6 April 2021.
Kickstart Scheme Employer Contacts
If you need help with the Kickstart Scheme Process, The Department of work and pensions (DWP) has listed local employer contacts regionally.
You can email:
• your local employer contact if you are located in a specific region
• the national employer contact if you are located across several regions
Please include the following information in your email:
• email subject
• company name
• main contact
• preferred contact information (for example phone or email)
• your postcode
• town or city of your proposed job placements
You will receive a telephone call from your local employer contact or the national contact within 2 working days.
England
South West: southwest.kickstart@dwp.gov.uk
South East: southeast.kickstart@dwp.gov.uk
West Midlands: westmidlands.kickstart@dwp.gov.uk
East and Central Midlands: eastmidlands.kickstart@dwp.gov.uk
London and Essex: londonandessex.kickstart@dwp.gov.uk
North Central (includes West Yorkshire, South Yorkshire, Cumbria and Lancashire):
northcentral.kickstart@dwp.gov.uk
North East (includes North Yorkshire, East Yorkshire, Humberside and North Lincolnshire): northeast.kickstart@dwp.gov.uk
North West (includes Greater Manchester, Merseyside and Cheshire): northwest.kickstart@dwp.gov.uk
Scotland
scotland.kickstart@dwp.gov.uk
Wales
wales.kickstart@dwp.gov.uk
National
national.kickstart@dwp.gov.uk
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