Upcoming changes to Furlough
The Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme (furlough scheme) was put in place to support employers who are not able to operate as normal due to the pandemic. By designating employees as “furloughed”, employers have been able to recover a portion of employee wage costs up to a £2500 cap. As confirmed by the Government Budget delivered on 3 March 2021, the scheme will continue to operate until the end of September 2021 with some adjustment to funding levels from July 2021.
Until end of June 2021, the grant is 80% to a maximum of £2500 per employee per month for hours unworked. Employees on full furlough (not working any hours at all), will get 80% of their wages per month unless their employer decides to top it up to 100%. Where an employee is on flexible furlough (working only some hours), they will be paid in full by their employer for the hours they work and the grant will cover 80% of pay for their unworked hours only, subject to a cap which will be less than £2500.
Changes from 1 July 2021
As we move to 1 July 2021, the Government’s grant will reduce to 70% of furloughed employees’ wage costs for their unworked hours at a cap of £2187.50. Pay for furloughed employees must remain at a minimum of 80% at a cap of £2500 which means that employers must contribute 10% up to £312.50 from their own pocket. Further changes continue into August.
From 1 August 2021 until the scheme ends, the Government’s grant will reduce a final time to 60% of furloughed employees’ wages for their unworked hours at a cap of £1875. With the 80% rule still intact, employers will need to contribute 20% to staff wages up to £625. Therefore, from July through to the end of September, employers will have to cover a portion of the employee’s actual wages, as well as the National Insurance and pension contributions.
Supporting employees
Not every employer will be able to afford to contribute towards furloughed staff wages. Employers who have been topping up their staff wages by 20%, so that they receive all of their pay instead of just 80% of it, may be able to accommodate the contributions. However, many may not be able to, particularly smaller employers.
It may be that employees have to be brought back to work on a part-time basis (flexible furlough) to avoid making redundancies. However, this will depend on how much work is available.
It is important to note, as mental health awareness carries on making headlines, that employees may be struggling during this period. It is advisable to offer them support in the form of an employee assistance programme (EAP) or equivalent.
Protecting your business interests
Employers will need to consider how they can protect their business interests. This could, again, take the shape of bringing staff back into work or allowing them to work from home, if possible, and if work is available.
However, employers will also need to consider the following.
- Keep track of furlough contributions and payments to ensure staff are being paid correctly and that the business is not over/underclaiming (to avoid furlough fraud).
- Reduction in staff hours — employers may want to make structural changes to their workforce if possible, such as reducing the number of hours that their employees work, bringing them back on a part-time basis. Employees need to agree to this change as it will impact on the terms and conditions of their current contracts. Most importantly, employees cannot be forced to reduce their hours, but communicating with them about its necessity, if the company is under financial strain, may persuade them into forming an agreement.
- Lay-offs and short-time work — otherwise known as ‘”LOST”, these are usually considered as an alternative to compulsory redundancies, usually when there is a downturn in workload or the finance necessary to fund full-time employment. Employees may be placed on unpaid LOST where there is a contractual term entitling employers to do so. In the absence of such as contractual clause, employers will need to agree this with staff, otherwise it will breach the employees’ contracts of employment.
- Redeployment.
- Redundancy — employers should consider whether there are alternative measures that could be utilised to reduce the need for redundancies as this should be a last resort option.
Takeaway
The furlough scheme has been somewhat of a saving grace for a lot of employers while coronavirus lockdown restrictions have been in place. As these restrictions are slowly eased, based on coronavirus data, employers may find that they no longer need to make use of the scheme, or it may be that flexible furlough takes centre stage. Either way, employers will need to consider how they can accommodate the upcoming changes and support staff during this time.
- Published in Furlough scheme
Government confirms start date for Plastic Packaging Tax
The UK government has confirmed that its plastic packaging tax (PPT) will come into force on 1 April 2022.
The PPT will be charged at a rate of £200 per metric ton of chargeable plastic packaging components of a single specification.
It will apply to plastic packaging components manufactured in or imported into the UK.
Plastics covered by the tax include bioplastics, including biodegradable, compostable and oxo-degradable plastics.
The tax will not be chargeable on plastic packaging which has 30% or more recycled plastic content, or where the packaging is made of multiple materials of which plastic is not proportionately the heaviest when measured by weight.
This includes importers of packaging which already contain goods, such as plastic bottles filled with drinks and where the imported packaging already contains other goods as the tax only applies to the plastic packaging itself.
The introduction of the plastic packaging tax is designed to encourage the use of recycled rather than new plastic within plastic packaging and will in turn stimulate increased levels of recycling and collection of plastic waste, diverting it away from landfill or incineration.
Internet link: GOV.UK
- Published in Uncategorized
HMRC’s VAT Deferral New Payment Scheme to close this month
Businesses that deferred VAT payments last year have less than a month left to join online and pay in monthly instalments under the VAT Deferral New Payment Scheme, HMRC has warned.
The online portal for the new payment scheme will close on 21 June 2021.
Over half a million businesses deferred £34 billion in VAT payments due between March and June 2020 under the VAT Payment Deferral Scheme. Businesses had until 31 March 2021 to pay this deferred VAT or, if they could not afford to do so, they could go online from 23 February to set up a new payment scheme and pay by monthly instalments to spread the cost.
Jim Harra, HMRC’s Chief Executive, said:
‘Businesses that deferred paying their VAT last spring have until 21 June to join the VAT Deferral New Payment Scheme online. They should act now to avoid missing out on this opportunity to spread payment of their deferred VAT across monthly, interest-free, instalments.
‘The new payment scheme is part of the Government package of support worth over £350 billion to help protect millions of jobs and businesses during the pandemic and as we emerge on the path to recovery.
‘HMRC will continue to do all we can to help businesses as they reopen and rebuild.’
Internet links: GOV.UK GOV.UK news
- Published in VAT
Fifth SEISS grant will be open to claims from late July
HMRC has confirmed that the fifth Self-employment Income Support Scheme (SEISS) grant covering the period May 2021 to September 2021 will open to claims from late July.
To be eligible for the grant, an individual must be self-employed or a member of a partnership. They must have traded in the tax year 2019/20 and submitted their tax return on or before 2 March 2021, and also have traded in the tax year 2020/21. Claimants must either be currently trading but are impacted by reduced demand due to coronavirus or have been trading but are temporarily unable to do so due to coronavirus.
The amount of the fifth grant will be determined by how much an individual’s turnover has been reduced in the year April 2020 to April 2021.
HMRC will provide more information and support by the end of June 2021 to help individuals work out how their turnover was affected.
The online claims service for the fifth SEISS grant will be open from late July 2021. In mid-July HMRC will contact individuals who are eligible based on their tax returns to give them a date from which they can make their claim.
Internet link: GOV.UK publications
- Published in self employed scheme
New claims required for home working tax relief
Employees who are working from home will need to make new claims for tax relief for the 2021/22 tax year, HMRC has stated.
From 6 April 2020, employers have been able to pay employees up to £6 a week tax-free to cover additional costs if they have had to work from home.
Employees who have not received the working from home expenses payment direct from their employer can apply to receive the tax relief from HMRC.
HMRC has also confirmed that the £6 per week payment is available in full, even if an employee splits their time between home and the office.
The allowance is to cover tax-deductible additional costs that employees who are required to work from home have incurred, such as heating and lighting the workroom, and business telephone calls.
Last year an online portal was launched that allows employees to claim tax relief for working at home. The portal was set up to process tax relief on additional expenses for employed workers who have been told to work from home by their employer during the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic.
Internet link: GOV.UK
- Published in Home Working Tax Relief
New 95% mortgage scheme launched
On 19 April, a government-backed mortgage scheme to help people with 5% deposits get on to the housing ladder was made available to lenders.
First announced at the 2021 Budget, the scheme will help first-time buyers or current homeowners secure a mortgage with just a 5% deposit to buy a house worth up to £600,000. The government says this will provide ‘an affordable route to homeownership for aspiring homeowners’.
The government will offer lenders the guarantee they need to provide mortgages that cover the other 95%, subject to the usual affordability checks.
The scheme is now available from lenders on high streets across the country, with Lloyds, Santander, Barclays, HSBC and NatWest having launched mortgages under the scheme and Virgin Money following shortly.
Miguel Sard, Managing Director of Home Buying and Ownership at NatWest, said:
‘We welcome the government’s new mortgage guarantee scheme to give further support to those with smaller deposits. For those customers, particularly younger or first-time buyers, saving up for a big deposit can often be difficult, and we know people in these groups are some of the hardest hit by the effects of the pandemic.
‘A government-backed scheme will help segments of the market for whom homeownership has felt far out of reach in recent months.’
Internet link: GOV.UK
- Published in Uncategorized
CBI calls for extension of Kickstart Scheme as jobs market remains subdued
The Confederation of British Industry (CBI) has urged the government to extend the Kickstart Scheme to help young people who are bearing the brunt of the subdued job market.
The Kickstart Scheme was launched in September and promised to pay the wages and associated employment costs for businesses taking on 16 to 24-year-olds in receipt of Universal Credit up to six-month contract periods.
The UK unemployment rate fell to 4.9% in the three months to February, according to the latest figures from the Office for National Statistics (ONS). However, 56,000 workers were cut from company payrolls in March, which represents the first monthly drop since last November.
Around 813,000 workers have been cut from company payrolls in the last 12 months as the pandemic adversely affected the jobs market. The ONS said young people continued to bear the brunt of the crisis amid job losses in sectors such as hospitality and retail.
People under 25 accounted for more than half of the jobs lost in the year to March, it added.
Matthew Percival, Director of People and Skills at the CBI, said:
‘Evidence continues to mount that it is young people’s jobs that have been hardest hit by lockdowns. Support for jobs and training will be vital to making the UK’s economic recovery inclusive.
‘Government should confirm that the extra lockdown at the beginning of the year means that the Kickstart Scheme will remain open for longer to allow businesses the time to deliver opportunities for young people.’
Internet link: CBI website
- Published in Kickstart Scheme
Recent changes to IR35 ‘undermine the self-employed’, says IPSE
The Association of Independent Professionals and the Self-Employed (IPSE) has stated that the recent changes to the rules relating to off-payroll workers, commonly known as IR35, ‘undermine the self-employed at the worst possible time’.
The changes to IR35 took effect on 6 April 2021 and shifted responsibility for making the decision on employment status on each contract away from contractors and personal service companies (PSCs) and on to the client receiving their services. This has already been done in the public sector.
Research carried out by IPSE found that 50% of contractors planned to stop contracting in the UK once the changes took effect unless they could secure contracts unaffected by them. 24% are planning to seek contracts abroad; 12% plan to stop working altogether; 17% will seek an employed role; and 11% are looking to retire within the next year.
Additionally, 24% of contractors said their clients are planning to blanket-assess all their contractors as ‘inside IR35’.
Andy Chamberlain, Director of Policy at IPSE, said:
‘The changes to IR35 would do serious harm to the self-employed sector at the best of times, but now they are adding drastic, unnecessary damage to the financial carnage of the pandemic – undermining the UK’s contractors at the worst possible time.
‘The crucial problem with IR35 is still its complexity: in fact, it is so complex that HMRC has lost the majority of tribunals on its own legislation. And there remains serious doubts about the CEST tool HMRC designed to supposedly cut through this complexity.’
Internet link: IPSE website
- Published in IR35
Recovery Loan Scheme opens to businesses
On 6 April, the Recovery Loan Scheme (RLS) was introduced to replace the government’s coronavirus lending schemes.
The RLS provides financial support to businesses affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. The scheme gives lenders a guarantee of 80% on eligible loans between £25,000 and £10 million to give them confidence in continuing to provide finance to UK businesses.
The RLS is open to all businesses, including those who have already received support under the previous COVID-19 guaranteed loan schemes, the Bounce Back Loan Scheme, the Coronavirus Business Interruption Scheme and the Coronavirus Large Business Interruption Scheme although the amount they have borrowed under an existing scheme may in certain circumstances limit the amount they may borrow under RLS.
The RLS is initially available through a number of lenders accredited by the British Business Bank.
Internet link: British Business Bank website
- Published in Recovery Loan Scheme
Fourth self-employed grant now open for online applications
On 21 April, the online service for applications for the fourth Self-employment Income Support Scheme (SEISS) grant was opened for claims, HMRC confirmed.
All applications must be submitted by the individual self-employed worker and cannot be handled by accountants or tax advisers.
The fourth grant will be 80% of three months’ average trading profits, to be claimed from late April 2021.
Payment will be in a single instalment capped at £7,500 in total and will cover the period 1 February to 30 April 2021. The scheme has been extended to those who filed a 2019/20 self-assessment tax return prior to 3 March 2021.
Claimants must have been impacted by reduced activity, capacity and demand, or have been trading previously and are temporarily unable to do so. All claims must be made on or before 1 June 2021.
There is no requirement for an earlier SEISS grant to have been claimed to be able to claim the fourth grant.
The fifth SEISS grant will cover the period from 1 May to 30 September 2021 and will be available from July.
It will be set at 80% of three months’ average trading profits, paid out in a single instalment, capped at £7,500, for those with a turnover reduction of 30% or more.
Alternately, it will be worth 30% of three months’ average trading profits, capped at £2,850 for those with a turnover reduction of less than 30%.
Further details of the fifth grant will be provided in due course.
Internet link: GOV.UK
- Published in self employed scheme