Covid-19 Update

Recently many of our clients have been questioning Reverse Vat and how it affects them. As a result, we have decided to use the latest additon to our blog as a chance to explain Reverse Vat.

Since the end of the 2020/2021 tax year, we have noticed a number of clients are experiencing delays in receiving their rebates. After contacting Her Majesty Revenue And Customs (HMRC) through their agent helpline and speaking to multiple different people, we have been advised the delays are due to HMRC having to check for any SEISS grants claimed and make sure they have been included in the tax return. We understand that HMRC will have a new programme up and running by the 19th June 2021 and have also been advised that all rebates currently waiting to be processed should be released on or before the 5th July 2021. We can only apologise for the delay and can assure you that every measure has been taken to get your rebate to you as quickly as possible. This last year has been very alien to everyone, HMRC are no different. I am sure this is just teething problems and once the proposed new system is up and running things should hopefully begin to run a lot more smoothly. Any questions, please don’t hesitate to call on 01438 313111 or email me directly Jacob@toas.co.uk .

The grant explained The Self-employment Income Support Scheme (SEISS) will support self-employed individuals (including members of partnerships) whose income has been negatively impacted by COVID-19. The scheme will provide a grant to self-employed individuals or partnerships, worth 80% of their profits up to a cap of £2,500 per month. HMRC will use the average profits from tax returns in 2016-17, 2017-18 and 2018-19 to calculate the size of the grant. The scheme will be open to those where the majority of their income comes from self-employment and who have profits of less than £50,000. The scheme will be open for an initial three months with people able to make their first claim by the beginning of June. Can I claim? From what we know right now, in order to be eligible you must meet the following criteria. Be self-employed or a member of partnership. Have lost trading/partnership trading profits due to COVID-19. Have a tax return filed for 2018-19 as self-employed or a member of a trading partnership. Those who have not yet filed for 2018-19 will have an additional 4 weeks from this announcement to do so. Have traded in 2019-20; be currently trading at the point of application (or would be except for COVID 19) and intend to continue to trade in the tax year 2020 to 2021 Have trading profits of less than £50,000 and more than half of your total income come from self-employment. This can be with reference to at least one of the following conditions: Your trading profits and total income in 2018/19 Your average trading profits and total income across up to the three years between 2016-17, 2017-18, and 2018-19. How and when can i claim? Do NOT contact HMRC. HMRC will use existing information to check potential eligibility and invite applications once the scheme is in place. HMRC will then pay the grant directly to eligible claimants’ bank account. HMRC is urgently working to deliver the scheme; grants are expected to start to be paid by the beginning of June 2020. This time is needed to ensure that the scheme is both deliverable and fair.

Businesses have been given an additional three months to file accounts with Companies House during the current Covid-19 pandemic, the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy has confirmed. From today (25 March), all businesses will be able to apply for the three-month extension following a joint initiative between the government and Companies House. The government stated that the move will allow businesses to prioritise their management of the impact of coronavirus without receiving penalties. Following the agreement, companies will still have to apply for the three-month extension to be granted, but those citing issues regarding Covid-19 will be “automatically and immediately granted an extension”. All applications can be made through a fast-tracked online system by using the following link. https://beta.companieshouse.gov.uk/extensions?_ga=2.150179638.1289762745.1585144155-124908634.157797...

We hope that everyone is safe and sound. I want to just say that Tony Orphanou & Associates is still open for business. For CIS queries please email cis@toas.co.uk any other self-assessment queries please use Selfassessment @toas.co.uk For general business queries please use enquiries@toas.co.uk as normal. We will endeavour to respond to your email with 48 hours but please bear with us as some queries may take longer to respond due to the reduced staff. Thank you for your patience during these difficult times.