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Is the self-employed government grant scheme going to get extended like furlough to October?

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MILLIONS of self-employed workers are relying on the Government to cover their income during the coronavirus crisis.

Under the self-employment income support scheme (SEISS) self-employed workers can claim up to £7,500 to help cover costs if they’re unable to work because of the pandemic.

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Young Asian entrepreneur working from her laptop in her storeCredit: Getty Images – Getty

Chanceller Rishi Sunak launched the initiative after the Government promised help for PAYE workers through the furlough scheme.

The scheme opened on May 13 and by midnight on May 24, a total of 2.3million self-employed workers had claimed cash worth £6.8billion.

Only those who made less than £50,000 in profit are eligible to claim the funds, and payments are based on 80 per cent of your average earnings – up to £2,500 a month – over the past three years, including losses.

But the scheme has been criticised for excluding limited company directors.

Those who’ve applied for the emergency cash should have already received the life-line, but many are still worried about what will happen when the scheme ends.

Self-employment grant: who can claim?

YOU can claim if you’re a self-employed individual or a member of a partnership and you:

  • have submitted your self assessment tax return for the tax year 2018/19
  • traded in the tax year 2019/20
  • are trading when you apply, or would be except for coronavirus
  • intend to continue to trade in the current tax year (2020/21)
  • have lost trading profits due to coronavirus.

When does SEISS end?

SEISS covers three month’s worth of income but is paid in one lump sum.

The scheme ends in May meaning that the emergency cash covers wages in March, April and May.

But as of midnight on Sunday, self-employed workers will no longer be able to claim help through SEISS.

While some workers may be able to return to work as the Government looks to ease lockdown rules, many won’t, including hairdressers and those in the leisure industry.

Will it be extended?

When the Chancellor told the Commons that he will be extending the furlough scheme until the end of September, there was speculation over whether he would do the same for self-employed workers.

So far, no further support for self-employed workers has been announced but it hasn’t been completely ruled out either.

On the GOV.UK website, it says that even though it’s a temporary scheme, “it may be extended.”

And at the Liaison Committee yesterday, the Prime Minister said that the scheme remains “under review”.

What other help is there for self-employed workers?

The Government has also introduced the following measures to help self-employed workers and businesses during the coronavirus outbreak:

  • 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 get loans and overdrafts of up to £5 million for up to six years and the government with guarantee up to 80 per of these loans.
  • 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.

If you’re still struggling to make ends meet during the coronavirus outbreak, you can ask for a three month repayment holiday on things like your credit card and personal loans.

You can also ask for one on your mortgage, which you may be able to take for longer if necessary.

But you should be aware that taking a payment break could stop you from getting a mortgage in the future, even if they don’t affect your credit scores.

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