The second and final round of the Self-Employed Income Support Scheme, or SEISS as it is more commonly known, opened for applications on 17th August. If you have yet to apply, applications can be made up until the end of October and if you are debating whether to apply or not, here are some points you may wish to consider.
Eligibility
Emphasis for round two is very much on being able to prove that your business has been adversely affected by COVID19 restrictions. Essentially this means whether or not you have been able to continue working normally throughout. If you have, then you are ineligible for this grant. However, a reduction in the hours you worked, clients leaving or ‘pausing’ work or you were advised to shield, could all be credible reasons to apply for the grant. HMRC has a more comprehensive list here.
Once you have identified that you are eligible to claim, you now need to look at what point you were eligible. Claims for round two are only for those businesses adversely affected after 17th July 2020. So, for example, if you claimed through the first round but your business was back to normal on or after 17th July, you are no longer eligible to apply. Conversely, if your business suffered a delayed reaction to the lockdown measures and you weren’t eligible for the first round, you can still submit an application for the second round.
Submitting a Claim
If you usually use a tax agent, it is important to remember that they cannot submit an application on your behalf. Ask their advice by all means, but the application will need to be done by you personally. In order to do this you will need:
• Government Gateway ID (check out our video on how to get one)
• Self-Assessment UTR (Here’s how to find it)
• National Insurance Number
• Bank details of where you would like the payment to go
Once you have submitted your claim, HMRC will let you know the amount you should expect to receive, which is 70% of three months’ worth of your average monthly trading profits from previous tax years and is capped at £6,750.
If you need any advice, get in touch to see how we can help on email@smithbutler.co.uk or call 01274 588115.