I’m self-employed but no longer working. What can I do?
The government announced that self-employed workers can claim 80% of their monthly earnings, averaged over the last three years, and capped at £2,500 a month.
What if I’ve been self-employed for less than 3 years?
If you’ve been self-employed for less than three years, the average monthly earnings will be calculated from the entire time you have been self-employed.
Is everyone eligible?
Not quite. You must have an annual income of less than £50,000 and more than half of it must be from your self-employed work. You also must have filed a tax return for the 2018/19 tax year.
How do I apply?
HMRC will contact everyone who is eligible and you’ll have to complete an online form. See more details here.
The money should be paid at the beginning of June. The figure will cover March, April and May earnings.
What can I do in the meantime?
If you’re self-employed with no work, you can apply for Universal Credit, which is being increased. You can do this online.
What about taxes for this financial year?
Self-employed workers will be able to defer payments for 2019/20 until January 2021, giving you longer to pay.
I own my own business. What can I do?
The government wants to support business owners during this time, so new schemes and measures are in place.
The government has introduced a business interruption loan scheme. This involves small businesses applying for loans, overdrafts and more via their lender online.
All hospitality and leisure businesses will not pay business rates for the 2020/21 tax year. Some of these businesses may also get a grant. Businesses don’t need to do anything right now as the local authority will automatically apply the business rate holiday and contact your business if you qualify for the grant.
Some small businesses are also eligible for grants of £10,000. These are only available if you operate from a property and are based in England.
Businesses that qualify must pay little or no business rates because of small business rate relief, rural rate relief, or tapered relief. Local authorities will write to businesses who qualify.
If you own a small business, find out more about the grants available and what you can do on this dedicated government website.
What if my employees are off sick?
If your employees took time off due to the Coronavirus, it’s now possible for them to get SSP for two weeks. All those with UK businesses with under 250 employees can qualify for this. The process is currently a work-in-progress.