Claims Open for Second Self-Employed Grants

The government has re-opened claims for the self-employed income support scheme (SEISS), allowing self-employed workers to claim a second emergency coronavirus grant worth up to £6,570.

The grant is to help those who work for themselves if their income has been negatively impacted by the coronavirus and subsequent lockdowns, reports the BBC.

Under the SEISS, the government will cover up to 70 per cent of your trading profits over three months. It is capped at £2,190 a month, meaning the maximum claim total is £6,750

The government has also introduced further measures to help self-employed workers and businesses during the pandemic.

• Income-tax deferrals: Self-assessment income tax payments, that were due in July, can be deferred to the end of January next year.
• Rent support: Businesses who are struggling to pay their rents are protected from eviction until the end of June.
• Coronavirus business interruption loan scheme: SMEs can getloans and overdrafts of up to £5million for up to six years and the government will guarantee up to 80 per of these.
• Grants of up to £10,000: Small firms can get grants of up to £10,000 to help with ongoing business costs.
• VAT payments: VAT payments can be deferred for three months.
• Tax bill help: SMEs that cannot afford their tax bills can ask HMRC for a “time to pay” arrangement so any debt collection is suspended.
• Business rates holiday: A 12-month business rates holiday has been introduced for many businesses.

The grant does not need to be repaid, but it is subject to income tax and self-employed national insurance.

To be eligible to claim, self-employed workers need to prove they have been adversely affected by the coronavirus on or after 14 July 2020 and must have filed a tax return for 2018/2019, therefore have been self-employed previous to 6 April 2019.

You can make your claim via the Gov.uk website, and you will need your unique taxpayer reference (UTR), National Insurance number, your Government Gateway ID and password, and your UK bank details. The deadline for claims is 19 October 2020.

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