27 October 2021
The Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme, the UK government’s scheme through which the lesser of 80% or £2,500 of the monthly wages of each furloughed employee can be claimed from the government, ended on 30 September 2021; the final deadline for claims was 14October.
However, there are still issues that should be considered after the end of this support measure.
Can I still submit for this support measure?
You may make a claim after the deadline if:
you have a reasonable excuse for failing to make the claim in time, and
you submitted your claim as soon as you were able to.
What if I have claimed too much?
If you’ve claimed too much in CJRS grants and have not already repaid the overclaimed amount, you should inform HMRC, and make a repayment online by card or bank transfer.
You must repay the money by the latest of whichever date below applies:
90 days from receiving the CJRS money you’re not entitled to;
90 days from the point circumstances changed so that you were no longer entitled to keep the CJRS grant.
If you don’t, you may have to pay interest and a penalty.
Do I need to keep the information about CJRS grants I have received?
Yes, keep records for 6 years.
Reporting coronavirus grants on your tax return
Grants to support businesses and self-employed people during the pandemic are taxable. If you claimed CJRS grants, or other COVID-19 grants, you need to include these as income on your tax return.
Depending on your business type you’ll need to report this as income on your company tax return (CT600), partnership return (SA800) or the self-employment pages of your individual tax return (SA103).
Extended period to appeal ended
A three-month extended window to appeal against tax decisions and penalties if the delay in making the appeal was due to coronavirus. This ended on 30 September 2021. You should follow the normal process and times for appealing decisions dated from 1 October 2021 onwards.
What you need to do now
The CJRS ended on 30 September 2021, but you need to keep in mind following key points:
repay the money if you have claimed too much;
keep records for 6 years supporting the grants you claimed, in case HMRC need to check them;
include grants as income on your company tax return, partnership tax return or the self-employment of your individual tax return for the tax year of your reciept, depending on your business type.
For further information on any of the points above contact
Mikita Makayou at mikita@lexefiscal.com, or
Dr. Frank at clifford.frank@lexefiscal.com.