Updated on 1 June 2020
The Chancellor has announced a second and final grant to the self-employed who are eligible for the Self-employment Income Support Scheme (SEISS), based on 70% of earnings and capped at £6,570.
HMRC has confirmed the same eligibility criteria will be used to establish self-employed individuals’ entitlement to a further SEISS grant; the grant will be 70 rather than 80% of average earnings for three months and the maximum amount will be capped at £6,570, down from the £7,500 for the first grant. Applications will open in August and HMRC expects to publish further guidance on 12 June.
A reminder of the eligibility criteria:
Self-employed individuals, including members of partnerships, are eligible if they:
- submitted their Income Tax Self-Assessment tax return for the tax year 2018-19
- continued to trade in 2019-20 and intend to keep trading in 2020-21
- carry on a trade which has been adversely affected by COVID-19
- have average self-employed trading profits of no more than £50,000 and at least equal to their non-trading income.
Individuals can continue to work, start a new trade or take on other employment including voluntary work, or duties as an armed forces reservist.
More than 2.3 million individuals have claimed an SEISS grant, with an average award of £2,900. The first claim period nominally covered March to May and the SEISS portal will close for claims for this period on 13 July. An individual does not need to have claimed the first grant to be eligible for the second and final grant.
The government has not moved to extend the scheme to those who were not eligible for the first payment, for example those who started self-employment since April 2019.
Those claiming both the first and the second grant have to confirm that they meet the eligibility criteria, in particular that their business has been adversely affected by coronavirus. HMRC’s guidance indicates that this includes being unable to work because the taxpayer is shielding, self-isolating or is on sick leave or has care responsibilities because of coronavirus. It also includes scaling down or temporarily stopping trading because the supply chain has been interrupted, the business has fewer or no customers or staff are unable to work.