HMRC have recently announced that the portal via which you can make the claim for your grant, will be open on 20 April. It is anticipated that first payments will be made by 30 April. They have been busy testing the portal and have managed to cope with 450k claims per hour – so fingers crossed that this continues!
It will likely take 4-6 days to make payments. You can make one claim per pay period – recognising that there will be different pay periods e.g. monthly, weekly, etc. It is anticipated that a high proportion of the initial claims will be those backdated to 1 March. There are no plans to extend the scheme to those who started on PAYE after 28 February. A detailed guidance document will be issued from HMRC next week.
IMPORTANT: HMRC reserve the right to check claims; you must retain the written records of the CRJS for 5 years.
There is likely to be further guidance coming out shortly with regards annual leave. It will likely clarify that employees can take, and can be required to take, annual leave during furlough. However, their pay must be made up to full pay for the duration of their holiday but you won’t be able to claim that top up back from HMRC. You will therefore need to know when staff are taking holidays so that you can alter their pay accordingly. You will note that the ACAS guidance (www.acas.org.uk/coronavirus) has been recently updated with regards holiday – particularly important as we approach the Easter weekend which for many will be a time of annual leave and/or bank holiday leave.
Also, be aware of the recent change with regards carry forward of annual leave. The Government recently announced changes in the WTR to allow staff to carry forward their statutory annual leave entitlement (i.e. just 4 weeks) for 2 years if they can’t take it because of coronavirus. More information on that here.
Where can I go for additional support and information. You might find the following places helpful:
- ACAS.org.uk – advice for employers and employees.
- The Mental Health Foundation has put together some tips to help you, your friends and your family to look after your mental health while you have to stay at home.
- MIND has released a guide for coronavirus and well-being, which is really useful if you are feeling the effects of being isolated and a lot of anxiety about your finances and the situation in general. The guide has a number of really helpful tips and resources including a checklist for preparing for self-isolation.
Watch this space for further updates.
Take care
Caroline