Chancellor Rishi Sunak has set out a comprehensive package of support to help the self-employed. The Coronavirus Self-Employed Income Support Scheme allows you to claim a taxable grant worth a percentage of your trading profits. The first scheme opened in May, with a second scheme opening in August.
You can continue to claim these grants and continue to do business. The scheme is open to those with trading profits of up to £50,000 a year, who make a majority of their income from self-employment. To minimise fraud, only those in self-employment, who have a tax return for 2019 can apply. If you are eligible, HMRC will contact you with an online form, and pay the grant straight into your bank account.
The self-employed can also access the Coronavirus Business Interruption Loans, and Income tax payments that are due in July can be deferred until the end of January 2021.
Scheme Extension
On 29th May, the Chancellor Rishi Sunak announced an extension to the Coronavirus Self-Employed Income Support Scheme.
- Individuals can continue to apply for the first Self-Employed grant until 13 July. Under the first grant, eligible individuals can claim a taxable grant worth 80% of their average monthly trading profits, paid out in a single instalment covering three months’ worth of profits, and capped at £7,500 in total. Those eligible have the money paid into their bank account within six working days of completing a claim.
- Applications for the second grant will open in August. Individuals will be able to claim a second taxable grant worth 70% of their average monthly trading profits, paid out in a single instalment covering three months’ worth of profits, and capped at £6,570 in total.
- The eligibility criteria are the same for both grants, and individuals will need to confirm that their business has been adversely affected by coronavirus. An individual does not need to have claimed the first grant to receive the second grant: for example, they may only have been adversely affected by COVID-19 in this later phase. Further guidance on the second grant will be published on Friday 12 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.
- 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:
- Your trading profits and total income in 2018/19
- Your average trading profits and total income across up to the three years between 2016-17, 2017-18, and 2018-19.
How do I access it?
HMRC will use existing information to check potential eligibility and invite applications, they will then pay the grant directly to eligible claimants’ bank account.
