Business assistance

Commercial tenants to be protected from eviction. Measures included in the emergency Coronavirus Bill will mean no business in England, Wales or Northern Ireland will be forced out of their premises if they miss a payment through until 30 June.

In Scotland, additional protection is provided through the protection from eviction Coronavirus Act (Scotland) 2020.  New emergency measures extend the minimum period in the warning letter from 14 days to 14 weeks, and this minimum period applies to all commercial property leases.  See the Scottish Government announcement for further information and links to business support finder.

If you cannot maintain your current workforce because of operations have been severely affected by coronavirus, you can furlough employees and apply for a grant that covers up to 80% of their usual monthly wage costs, up to £2,500 per month, plus the associated Employers National Insurance contributions and pension contributions (minimum automatic enrolment employer pension contribution) on that subsidised furlough pay.

The scheme will operate from 1 March 2020 to 31 October 2020 with employer grants of 80% of the usual employee costs payable up to 31 July 2020. From 1 August 2020 the scheme will continue, for all sectors and regions of the UK, but with greater flexibility to support the transition back to work. During this period employers will start sharing, with the government, the costs of paying people’s salaries. Further detail will follow by the end of May but the Government has committed that employees will, through the combined efforts of government and employers, continue to receive at least 80% of their salary, up to £2,500. Employers using the scheme will be able to bring furloughed employees back part-time.

In order to claim, information must be submitted to HMRC through the online portal, that went live on Monday 20 April 2020, about the relevant employees and their earnings. Businesses, and agents that are authorised to act on behalf of clients for PAYE matters will be able to submit the claim. However, file only agents, including Payroll Bureaus, will not be able access the service due to data protection reasons.

Guides for employees and employers have been published by HMRC giving more detail on the scheme. Further guidance on how to calculate a claim and a simple step-by-step guide on how to claim has now been published.

VAT payments due between 20 March 2020 and 30 June 2020 will be deferred for all UK businesses. Liabilities accrued during this deferral period require to be repaid by the end of 2020/21 financial year.

No applications are required to be made to access this deferral.

VAT returns should continue to be submitted by the normal due dates.

Where VAT is normally paid by direct debit, the direct debit instruction requires to be cancelled if the business wishes to defer its payment. This requires to be done in sufficient time for the cancellation to take effect.

VAT refunds and reclaims will continue to be repaid as normal.

Direct debit instructions will require to be re-established for subsequent periods.

There will be a Business Rates Retail Discount of 100% for one year, expanded to the leisure and hospitality sectors in England.

Businesses which received the retail discount in 2019/20 will be issued with a revised bill by their relevant local authority shortly. No action is required to be taken by the business to obtain this relief.

Guidance has been published for local authorities which provides more detailed information on the business premises which this will apply to.

A similar package has been announced by the Welsh Government, although it has decided that this will not apply to properties with a rateable value over £500,000.

There is a full year’s 100% non-domestic rates relief for retail, hospitality and tourism for 2020/21.

The Scottish Government has announced a 1.6% relief for all properties subject to non-domestic rates, effectively freezing the poundage rate for 2019/20 into 2020/21.

Extra reliefs will be available to non-domestic properties from 1 April 2020 to 31 March 2021.  This includes £120 million to extend the Small Business Grant scheme to ensure that, in addition to a 100% grant on the first property, small business rate payers will be eligible to a 75% grant on all subsequent properties.

Retail, hospitality and leisure businesses will get 100% rates relief. To get this relief, a property has to be occupied. Properties that have closed temporarily due to the government's coronavirus advice will be treated as occupied. You do not need to apply for this relief and it will be applied to your bill by your local council.

See the Scottish Government announcement and further guidance.

Employers based in the UK with fewer than 250 employees (as of 28 February 2020) will be able to reclaim Statutory Sick Pay (SSP) for employees unable to work because of coronavirus. This refund will be for up to 2 weeks per employee.

Employers should maintain records of staff absences and payments of SSP.

Employees will not require to provide a GP fit note, but if employers require evidence those with symptoms of coronavirus, or those who are living with someone that has symptoms, can get an isolation note from NHS 111.

Claims apply for periods of sickness starting on or after:

• 13 March 2020 - if the employee had coronavirus or the symptoms or is self-isolating because someone they live with has symptoms
• 16 April 2020 - if the employee was shielding because of coronavirus
• 28 May 2020 - if the employee has been notified by the NHS or public health bodies that they’ve come into contact with someone with coronavirus

The online service you’ll use to reclaim Statutory Sick Pay (SSP) will be available from 26 May 2020.

Guidance on accessing the scheme including eligibility and records that require to be maintained is available.

England

One-off grants of up to £25,000 per property will be available for businesses in the retail, hospitality and retail sectors, to help meet their ongoing business costs.
For businesses in these sectors with a rateable value of under £15,000, they will receive a grant of £10,000.
For businesses in these sectors with a rateable value of between £15,001 and £51,000, they will receive a grant of £25,000.
No action is required to obtain the grant. Local authorities will write to properties eligible for the grant.

Wales

For retail, leisure and hospitality businesses in Wales, a grant of £25,000 will be offered for businesses in these sectors with a rateable value of between £12,001 and £51,000.
For retail, leisure and hospitality businesses with a rateable value of £12,000 or less, they will be eligible for the general business grant (see Small Business Grant Scheme (E&W) below).

Grants will be administered through the Welsh local authorities. Businesses need to confirm some details through an online form.

Businesses in the hospitality, leisure and retail sector with buildings with a rateable value of between £18,000 and £51,000 can apply for a grant of £25,000.

In addition to the 100% grant on the first property, ratepayers will also be eligible for a 75% grant on each subsequent property that meets the criteria for each grant.  Applications for grants on additional properties will be open from 5 May.

Apply directly through the relevant local authority:

• Aberdeen - scroll down to "Council Services" then click on "Businesses" to download the form
• Aberdeenshire
• Angus
• Argyll and Bute
• Clackmannanshire
• Dumfries and Galloway - scroll down to "Business Rates and Associated Grants"
• Dundee
• East Ayrshire
• East Dunbartonshire
• East Lothian - scroll down to "Business Support"
• East Renfrewshire - scroll down and click on "Business Support"
• Edinburgh
• Falkirk
• Fife
• Glasgow
• Highland
• Inverclyde
• Midlothian
• Moray
• Na h-Eileanan Siar
• North Ayrshire
• North Lanarkshire
• Orkney
• Perth and Kinross
• Renfrewshire
• Scottish Borders
• Shetland - scroll down to the "Businesses" section to download the form
• South Ayrshire
• South Lanarkshire
• Stirling
• West Dunbartonshire
• West Lothian

England

One-off grants of £10,000 to businesses eligible for small business rate relief (SBBR) or rural rate relief (RRR) to help meet their ongoing business costs.

No action is required to obtain the grant. Local authorities will write to properties eligible for the grant.

Wales

The Welsh Government package also provides a £10,000 grant to all businesses eligible for Small Business Rates Relief with a rateable value of £12,000 or less.
Grants will be administered through the Welsh local authorities. Businesses need to confirm some details through an online form.

Funding has been announced for local authorities in England and Wales can provide grants of up to £25,000 to businesses with under 50 employees who have experienced a significant drop in income due to COVID-19 restrictions. Local authorities have been asked by the Government to prioritise businesses in shared spaces, regular market traders, small charity properties that would meet the criteria for Small Business Rates Relief, and bed and breakfasts that pay council tax rather than business rates but local authorities may choose to make payments to other businesses based on local economic need. The allocation of funding will be at the discretion of local authorities.

£10,000 grants for small businesses in receipt of the Small Business Bonus Scheme or Rural Relief as well as those in receipt of Nursery Relief, Disabled Relief, Business Growth Accelerator, Charitable Rates Relief, Sports Relief, Enterprise Areas Relief or Fresh Start but eligible for SBSS.

In addition to the 100% grant on the first property, ratepayers will also be eligible for a 75% grant on each subsequent property that meets the criteria for each grant.  Applications for grants on additional properties will be open from 5 May.

Apply directly through the relevant local authority:

• Aberdeen - scroll down to "Council Services" then click on "Businesses" to download the form
• Aberdeenshire
• Angus
• Argyll and Bute
• Clackmannanshire
• Dumfries and Galloway - scroll down to "Business Rates and Associated Grants"
• Dundee
• East Ayrshire
• East Dunbartonshire
• East Lothian - scroll down to "Business Support"
• East Renfrewshire - scroll down and click on "Business Support"
• Edinburgh
• Falkirk
• Fife
• Glasgow
• Highland
• Inverclyde
• Midlothian
• Moray
• Na h-Eileanan Siar
• North Ayrshire
• North Lanarkshire
• Orkney
• Perth and Kinross
• Renfrewshire
• Scottish Borders
• Shetland - scroll down to the "Businesses" section to download the form
• South Ayrshire
• South Lanarkshire
• Stirling
• West Dunbartonshire
• West Lothian

The Scottish Government has announced grants of £3,000 for creative, tourism and hospitality companies not receiving business rates relief. Larger grants up to £25,000 will be available where it can be demonstrated that additional support is required.

To be eligible a business must meet the following main criteria:

• no more than 49 employees
• experienced at least a 50% loss of current or projected revenue
• was not a ‘business in financial difficulty’ before 31 December 2019
• not in receipt of other government support (other than Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme)

This fund will be managed by the local Enterprise Agencies in partnership with Creative Scotland and VisitScotland.

Applications opened on 30 April and eligible recipients are expected to receive funds within 10 working days from application.

Further information on eligibility and operation of the scheme.

The Scottish Government has announced a £45m fund for vulnerable SME firms who are vital to the local or national economic foundations of Scotland.

Pivotal means different things in different regions and detailed guidance is available on what is required to be demonstrated as part of the application process.

This fund will be managed by the local Enterprise Agencies. The support and grants available will depend on the specific need of the business and be developed by the relevant enterprise agency with wraparound business advice and support.

To be eligible a business must meet the following criteria:

• less than €50 million turnover or balance sheet total of €43 million
• have no more than 249 employees
• was successfully trading prior to COVID19
• the business was not an ‘undertaking in distress’ before 31 December 2019
• are a fair work employer (or working towards becoming a fair work employer)
• can demonstrate that the funding will support the business to be viable

Applications opened on 30 April and eligible recipients are expected to receive funds within 10 working days from application. Where an offer is made this must be accepted within 3 working days for the payment to be made.

Further information

UK government support for start-ups consists of two pots of funding totalling £1 billion of government money.

The first is a £750 million expansion of Innovate UK’s funding for the most R&D intensive small and medium-sized businesses. This will be made up of grants and loans, and while the bulk of it is reserved for businesses who are already receiving Innovate UK funding, over £200 million will be offered to new firms.

The second pot is a £250 million fund, called the Future Fund, which will be administered by the British Business Bank (BBB) and will invest between £125,000 and £5 million in high-growth UK companies. The investment will take the form of a convertible note, and the main eligibility criteria that have been announced so far are the following:

• The investment will be made on a 50:50 matched basis with private sector investment. So companies will need to raise the private sector money first before they are eligible for the government funding
• In the past five years, the company must have raised at least £250,000 from third-party investors (excluding any funding that is part of the match).
• The company must be an unlisted UK registered company.

Further details - see Innovate UK and the launch of Future Fund. See also the Future Fund launch announcement 20 May 2020.

The Coronavirus Bounce Back Loan Scheme was announced on 27 April 2020 and opened for applications through participating lenders on 4 May.

The scheme is available to UK based businesses which has been adversely affected by COVID19 and was not an ‘undertaking in difficulty’ on 31 December 2019.

Businesses which are already claiming under the Coronavirus Business Interruption Loan Scheme or are banks, insurers and reinsurers, public sector bodies, grant funded further education establishments and state funded primary or secondary schools are not able to apply. Businesses which have received a loan under the Coronavirus Business Interruption Loan Scheme (see below) can arrange with their lender to transfer the loan to a Bounce Back Loan until 4 November 2020.

The scheme will provide businesses with a loan from £2,000 up to £50,000 or 25% of turnover (whichever is the smaller). Under the scheme the Government will pay the interest and any fees on the loan for the first 12 month period. The interest rate for has been fixed at 2.5% for any remaining term.

Finance terms are up to six years with no repayments due within the first 12 months. Early repayment is permitted without early redemption fees.

Businesses remain liable for the capital repayment but the Government shall provide the participating lender with a 100% guarantee.

Businesses applying will not require to be assessed for future viability.

Lenders may not take personal guarantees and no recovery action can be taken over a principal private residence or principal private vehicle.

A new Coronavirus Business Interruption Loan Scheme, delivered by the British Business Bank, to support businesses to access bank lending and overdrafts, interest free for an initial 12-month period. The government will provide lenders with a guarantee of 80% on each loan (subject to a per-lender cap on claims) to give lenders further confidence in continuing to provide finance to SMEs.

Applications are through any of the 40 accredited finance providers (not the British Business Bank).

The full rules of the scheme and the list of accredited lenders are available on the British Business Bank website.

The Coronavirus Large Business Interruption Loan Scheme (CLBILS) will enable banks to make loans of up to £200 million to firms with an annual turnover greater than £45 million. The government will provide lenders with an 80% guarantee on individual loans for businesses that would be otherwise unable to access the finance they need. The scheme opened for application on 20 April and will support a wide range of businesses to access finance products including short term loans, overdrafts, invoice finance and asset finance. Businesses will remain responsible for repaying any facility they may takeout.

Businesses with turnover greater than £45m to £250m will be able to borrow up to £25m

Businesses with turnover greater than £250m will be able to borrow up to £50m

From 26 May the maximum loan available increased to the lower of £200m or 25% of turnover

To be eligible, businesses must:

• be UK-based in its business activity
• have an annual turnover greater than £45 million
• be unable to secure regular commercial financing
• have a borrowing proposal which the lender:
  • would consider viable, were it not for the COVID-19 pandemic
  • believes will enable you to trade out of any short-term to medium-term difficulty

From 26 May, Companies borrowing more than £50m will be subject to certain restrictions including:

(i)            Dividends: Borrowers cannot make any dividend payments other than those that have already been declared
(ii)           Share buyback: Borrowers agree not to make any share buybacks
(iii)          Executive pay: Borrowers cannot pay any cash bonuses, or award any pay rises to senior management (including the board) except where they were

a) declared before the CLBILS loan was taken out,
b) is in keeping with similar payments made in the preceding 12 months, and
c) does not have a material negative impact on the borrower’s ability to repay the loan.

Businesses from any sector can apply, except for banks and building societies, insurers and reinsurers (but not insurance brokers) and public-sector organisations, including state-funded primary and secondary schools.

There will be a Corporate Financing Facility from the Bank of England which will buy short-term debt from larger companies.

From 19 May, facilities with repayment terms beyond 12 months will be subject to certain restrictions including:
(i)            Dividends: Borrowers cannot make any dividend payments other than those that have already been declared
(ii)           Share buyback: Borrowers agree not to make any share buybacks
(iii)          Executive pay: Borrowers cannot pay any cash bonuses, or award any pay rises to senior management (including the board) except where they were

a) declared before the CLBILS loan was taken out,
b) is in keeping with similar payments made in the preceding 12 months, and
c) does not have a material negative impact on the borrower’s ability to repay the loan.

The loan scheme will provide short-term support for landlords where tenants are having difficulty paying rent as a result of the impacts of COVID-19.

The interest free loan, up to the value of 6 months rental income for a single property, is available for PRS landlords who:

• were, or had applied to become, registered before 1 February 2020;
• are not classified as businesses;
• have 5 or less properties available for rent in Scotland that are classed as being within the private rented sector (as per the terms of the 2006 Housing Act)
• have lost rental income as a result of tenants facing difficulty in paying rent as a result of the COVID-19 situation or where a rental property became vacant on or after 1 February 2020 and the landlord is unable to get a new tenant because of the restrictions currently in place.

Landlords will be able to apply for a loan covering rental income not received backdated to 1 March 2020. An initial payment of half of the agreed amount will be available and landlords will be asked to verify the continued loss of income before the second instalment is paid.

Loan repayments will be deferred until October 2020, with the loan being repaid in 12 monthly instalments.

The loan is intended to provide an option where other forms of financial support are unavailable to the landlord. Where a landlord is eligible for other forms of support – for example the Coronavirus Self-Employment Income Support Scheme or would be able to obtain a mortgage repayment holiday from their lender - then they would be expected to take these up rather than apply for this loan.

Further information and online application.

Housebuilders which operate within Scotland will be able to apply for short-term loans from £50,000 of up to £1 million from a £100m loan fund set up by the Scottish Government.

Applicants should be a SME housebuilder with a turnover of £45 million or less per year and building five or more homes per annum. They should only apply for funding that is necessary for the short term (3 months liquidity support). They will be asked to explain why existing support mechanisms are not sufficient for their business.

Loans are capped at £1 million, most loans are expected to be repaid within two years with interest rates set at 2%. Capital and interest payment may be deferred for the first 12 months and security on loans will be assessed on a case by case basis. The minimum loan amount is £50,000.

Applications for loan support will be available from 14:00 on Monday 18 May on the Scottish Government website. Full details on the criteria for the Fund will be available at that point.

Further information and application

All businesses and self-employed people in financial distress, and with outstanding tax liabilities, may be eligible to receive support with their tax affairs through HMRC’s Time To Pay service.

Contact HMRC or call the HMRC helpline for advice on +44 (0)800 0159 559.

A business rates holiday will be given to nurseries in England for 2020/21 where the property is occupied by providers on Ofsted’s Early Years Register or which are wholly or mainly used for the provision of the Early Years Foundation Stage.

Guidance for local authorities which provides more detailed information on the business premises which this will apply to is available in the nursery discount guidance.

No action is required to be taken by the business to obtain this relief. Revised bills will be issued by the relevant local authority shortly.

The Scottish Government has announced funding of over £5m will be offered to over 650 seafood fishing companies through a Sea Fisheries Hardship Fund. An initial payment of 50% of two months’ average earnings will be made to owners of all full time Scottish registered fishing vessels of 12 metres in length and under.

An additional £3.5m has been announced for shellfish fishing vessels over 12m in length. Up to £21,370 will be available per vessel and businesses operating more than one vessel will have payments capped at £42,740.

Support is also available for the onshore processing industry and others in the shellfish growing sector.

The Self-employment Income Support Scheme (SEISS) will support self-employed individuals (including members of partnerships). The scheme will provide a taxable grant to self-employed individuals or members of partnerships, worth 80% of their average profits up to a cap of £2,500 per month. The grant will be paid out in a single instalment covering 3 months, and capped at £7,500 altogether.

The average profits will be calculated from tax returns in 2016-17, 2017-18 and 2018-19. The scheme will be open to those for whom the majority of their income comes from self-employment and who have average profits of no more than £50,000. The scheme will be open for an initial three months with people able to make their first claim by the end of May.

To be eligible for the scheme, the relevant person must meet all the criteria below:

• Be self-employed or a member of partnership;
• Have lost trading/partnership trading profits due to COVID-19;
• File a tax return for 2018-19 as self-employed or a member of a trading partnership. Those who have not yet filed for 2018-19 will have until 23 April to do so;
• Have traded in 2019-20; be currently trading at the point of application (or would be except for COVID 19) and intend to continue to trade in the tax year 2020 to 2021
• Have trading profits of no more than £50,000 and at least equal to your non-trading income. This can be with reference to at least one of the following conditions:
  • Your trading profits and total income in 2018/19
  • Your average trading profits and total income across up to the three years between 2016-17, 2017-18, and 2018-19.

You can use this online tool to find out if you’re eligible to make a claim. You will need you Self-Assessment Unique Taxpayer Reference (UTR) number and your National Insurance number. The eligibility checker will use data already held by HMRC to assess whether an individual is eligible.

If they are eligible, HMRC will put them in a queue to make an application. Applications are expected to start from 13 May 2020. HMRC will pay the grant directly to eligible claimants’ bank accounts within 6 working days of an approved application.

The Scottish Government has announced grants of £2,000 targeted at newly self-employed people (became self-employed on or after 6 April 2019) facing hardship and who are ineligible for other Scottish Government or UK Government schemes. The scheme does not include those who operate through a limited liability company.

The grants will be managed by local authorities with applications to be open from 30 April 2020. Eligible applicants are expected to receive payment within 10 working days.

• To be eligible, the following criteria must be met (self declared):
• you became self-employed on/after 6 April 2019 (did not submit a tax return including income from self-employment for 2018-19)
• over 50% of your individual income is from self-employment
  your trading profits were below £50,000 in financial year 2019-20
• you have lost business due to coronavirus and are suffering financial hardship as a result
• you are ineligible for other COVID-19 related business support
• you do not receive working age benefit payments or have applied for but not yet started receiving Universal Credit
• you trade as self-employed, not as a limited company.  If in a partnership, you are self-employed for pay and tax purposes
• you have taken steps to limit costs and expenditure (including through schemes such as VAT deferral and seeking a mortgage payment holiday)
• you do not have access to sufficient savings or other sources of income to meet basic needs

Find further information here.

The Office for the Secretary of State for Scotland has started to publish a ‘You Said, We Did’ tracker. This reports how your insights and feedback is being used to inform policy on areas such as CBILS, Job Retention scheme etc. across government during the coronavirus pandemic.

Please continue to share your insights with ICAS – email us.