Following on from the first Self-Employment Income Support Scheme (SEISS) grant that was paid in June fo this year, the second tranche of the grant is opening for eligible people to claim.
This week HMRC will be writing to self-employed people who may be eligible. The scheme will open for claims on 17 August and tax payers have been given a date to make a claim. They can claim any time between their allocated date and the 19 October 2020.
The eligibility criteria for the second grant is exactly the same as the first grant – so self-employed people who were eligible for the first SEISS grant will be eligible for the second grant, so long as their business has been adversely affected since 14 July 2020. This typically means that their business has experienced lower income and / or higher costs because of coronavirus (COVID-19) since 14 July. There is no minimum threshold over which a business’s income, costs or activity need to have changed by, but applicants will be asked to keep appropriate records as evidence of how their business has been adversely affected.
The second taxable grant is worth 70% of average monthly trading profits, a reduction from the 80% available under the first grant. This will be paid out in a single instalment and will be based on three months’ worth of trading profits and capped at a maximum of £6,570.
Eligible Parents
Self-employed parents whose income may have been affected if they took time out to have children will also now be able to claim if they meet the eligibility criteria. There’s more information for new parents, including an online form on GOV.UK, and in the video below.
As with the first grant, accountants and tax advisers cannot make a claim for a client. This is because it will trigger an alert and that leads to delays in payment reaching people who need the money to support their business. However, we can help you to understand your eligibility and level of entitlement.
Making an application online is the quickest and easiest way to claim whilst helping HMRC prioritise those that most need extra help. It takes most people less than 5 mins to claim online using their Government Gateway account. There are also new webinars and a short video on HMRC’s YouTube channel that you can use to ensure you know how the process works.
Once people have completed a claim, they will receive payment within 6 working days.
Full details of the grant, together with the video links mentioned earlier may be found on the HMRC website here: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/claim-a-grant-through-the-coronavirus-covid-19-self-employment-income-support-scheme
