Self Employed Income Support Scheme (SEISS) - Upcoming Second Instalment
Hi there,
I hope that all is well with you and yours today.
With so much information being bombarded onto us all from all types of news sources, it is difficult to sometimes keep track of what is and isn’t relevant/important to you at the moment. With this is mind we wanted to get in touch to remind you of the upcoming availability to apply for the second and final SEISS grant.
It is important to understand straight away that if you were not eligible for the first instalment, you will unfortunately still not qualify for the second, but there is still the possibility of help available- and so see point 4 below. To repeat the very broken record, please do get in touch with your team member if you have any questions at all about the benefits etc that you are/are not eligible for, and we can talk you through your options and our recommendations for you.
For those fortunate enough to be eligible, please find below some FAQ’s that we hope will make answer most of the questions that you may have at this time:
As a recap, you are entitled to the SEISS grant if:
· Crucially, you became self employed before 6th April 2019
· Trading profits were (per individual if a partnership) below £50,000 in 2018/19 tax year OR below £50,000, on average, over the three years of 2016/17, 2017/18 and 2018/19 tax year
· And at least half of your taxable income must come from self employment
1) When can I apply from and how do I apply for the second grant?
· The earliest that this can be applied from is 14th August, with the final deadline being 19th October 2020
· If you have already received the first instalment- log into the Government gateway using your unique username/password, and apply from there
· If you did not apply for the first instalment- you will need to create a Government gateway username and password, and apply from there. Please see our blog post/previous email (https://www.blue-skies.tv/blue-skies-blog) for a step by step guide as to how to set this up. Once you have the code (which can take up to a week or two), you will then be all set to apply. We recommend that you apply for the code now, so that you can apply for the second instalment straight away without delay
2) How much am I entitled to?
· This final instalment will equate to 70% of your average earnings over the previous three tax years - which is 10% less than the first instalment
· If your trading profit was between £37,500 to £49,999- You will get a maximum of £2,187.50 per month (70% of £37,500 on monthly basis)
· If your trading profit was up to £37,500- You will get proportionately less- being 70% of your average trading profit
3) Work has picked up somewhat since the start of COVID-19, but I still do not have the level of work that I would have had ordinarily on a ‘normal’ year- can I claim?
· A wise question. You ARE allowed to claim for this grant even if you have received income. However, your business MUST HAVE BEEN adversely impacted financially as a direct result of COVID-19 (this is important- see below)
· Some examples listed below:
- Contract originally worth say £50,000, and due to COVID this contract was then shortened and so you only received £40,000, you are adversely impacted and so could claim.
- Contract originally for 5 days per week, but now shortened to 4 days per week (again directly due to COVID)- you are adversely impacted
· There will be plenty of scenarios, and so if you are in any doubt at all please get in touch and we’ll discuss your individual situation
4) Apart from the FINAL SEISS GRANT paid in August, what financial help can I expect from the Government?
· The Government have made it very clear that the second instalment of the SEISS will absolutely be the final grant paid to those that are self employed, and you should not expect any further financial aid from the Government
· Please check our earlier email (CLICK- BLOG LINK) that details all of the benefits available to you, such as UNIVERSAL CREDIT, and the subsequent criteria attached to them. Originally, many self employed individuals were unsuccessful in applying for Universal Credit due to having more than £16,000 in a savings account. This barrier no longer exists if you are able to demonstrate to the DWP that the savings account relates to TAX/VAT savings
· Please check our earlier email (CLICK- BLOG LINK) that details the headline points surrounding the BOUNCE BACK LOAN. This loan has, for the vast majority of those who have applied for it, done exactly what it promised and the feedback has been very positive. Before applying for this loan, please do read our initial email, and then get in touch with us so that we can talk you through any points that you are uncertain about
· Please check our earlier email (CLICK- BLOG LINK) that details the headline points surrounding CHILD BENEFITS. If you are not already receiving this benefit but do have children- now is a very good time to re-assess eligibility for a number of reasons that we detail in the post
· IMPORTANT FOR ALL- CHECK YOUR OVERDRAFT CHARGES. Without going into the nitty gritty, changes to legislation relating to your overdraft ‘officially’ came into play from April 2020, which would have resulted in many people paying significantly more interest on their overdraft than they had previously. However, due to COVID-19, many banks temporarily suspended these charges in order to help people that were going through financial difficulties. Be aware that banks are/soon will lifting the temporary suspension on bank interest/charges, and so it is important to check your account to see what rates of interest you are paying, and if there are cheaper alternatives to finance than your current set up
The various grants and bailouts afforded by the Government to try and keep businesses afloat throughout this pandemic have already cost untold £billions, and so it is not shocking to expect that future generations of those living in the UK will be, in some way and form, will be paying back this debt over multiple decades.
It is no surprise then, that as you can expect based on the gravity of our economic situation, any false/fraudulent claim will be met with significant penalties by HMRC, ranging anywhere between 30% to 100%. The Government (even pre COVID) has invested £millions into tax investigation and tax recovery departments, and so we fully expect to see increased investigations focusing on the self employed in the coming years. This should not stop you claiming, but please ensure that you fully understand the criteria set out above before doing so. If you do not already have a tax assurance policy in place I would strongly recommend that you consider doing so; it does not cover any additional tax liabilities/penalties etc payable that may arise from a tax investigation, but it will cover you against accountancy fees (as we effectively then bill the insurance company). Not obligatory by any means, but based on the current state of play we would recommend that you think about this.
By continuing to regularly monitor any and all Government changes/announcements, and by working closer than ever with unions such as BECTU (who have had some particularly good results with the Government over the course of the past few months for the creative industry), agencies and other key industry players, we are in a position to be able to offer you specific, tailored advice relevant to your personal situation- and so please use it! As mentioned we are only a phone call or email away, and so please just give us a shout- be that to discuss any of the above email, or anything else that is on your mind.
Best Wishes
Team Blue Skies