What Is The UK’s Self-Employed Income Support Scheme?

There have been many questions regarding the Self-Employed Income Support Scheme. What it is and who qualifies for it are the two most popular. Keeping that in mind, the tax experts from British American Tax are here to answer these and any other tax-related questions you might have.

Self-Employed Income Support Scheme Extension

      The UK government set up the Self-Employed Income Support Scheme (SEISS) for self-employed professionals, who have been trading in recent years as sole traders or partners for the 2018/2019 tax year. Recently, the SEISS was extended to provide support for military reservists, eligible self-employed individuals, and their partners.

Two Different Grant Payments

     Under the scheme, there are two grant payments with different amounts. For people who meet the eligibility conditions, they may apply for each one. The first grant is available for businesses adversely affected by the pandemic on or before 13 July 2020. Another grant is for businesses adversely affected by the pandemic on or after 14 July 2020. For military reservists and people with parental responsibilities, the scheme is applied between 17 August to 19 October 2020.

Eligibility 

     Another SEISS scheme extension was announced on 24 September to provide assistance for those who were eligible for the two previous SEISS grants. That’s because, many professionals are still struggling due to the reduced demands following the coronavirus pandemic. The first extension will be from 1 November 2020 to 31 January 2021. The second extension will be from 1 February 2021 to 30 April 2022.

To be eligible for the upcoming SEISS scheme assistances, the following must apply:

• ‘Self-Assessment tax return for the 2018/2019 tax year has been properly submitted by April 2020.
• You were self-employed for the previous 2019/2020 tax year and you traded in that tax year.
• You are planning to continue trading in the current 2020/2021 tax year. 
• Your business operations have been struggling due to the impacts of COVID-19 pandemic.
• You meet the profits test. HMRC will examine your tax return report for 2018/2019 tax year. You are eligible for the upcoming extensions if your annual self-employment profits were below £50,000. If you don’t meet this test, HMRC will calculate the average profits over three tax years, 2016/2017, 2017/2018 and 2018/2019. You are eligible for SEISS extensions if the average profit was less than £50,000.’

Contact British American Tax

     To learn more about the Self-Employed Income Support Scheme and to see if you qualify, contact British American Tax today and consult with an expert tax advisor who can answer any questions you might have about taking a pro-active approach to your tax planning.

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