RISHI Sunak today revealed extra help for 600,000 self-employed Brits who have been shut out of Government support during the pandemic.
The Chancellor announced that hundreds of thousands of people, many of whom became self-employed in 2019-20, will now be able to claim direct cash grants under the Self-Employment Income Support Scheme.
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Anyone who filled in a tax return in January – or is due to – will be able to get the extra help.
It means they will be able to access the £7,500 in financial assistance that others have been able to claim.
And there will be another grant over the summer too as the support package for millions of people continues.
A total of 2.7million self-employed people have been given access to help so far, and this will take the total to more than 3.3 million.
Mr Sunak also revealed in today’s Budget:
How do I apply for the self-employment grant?
EXACTLY how self-employed workers can claim the next coronavirus grant is yet to be confirmed.
For the previous grant, you made your claim via the Gov.uk website once they opened for applications.
Self-employed workers needed the following info to claim:
It’s not clear when self-employed workers will be able to claim the cash but applications could open in the coming days.
It’s likely the cash payouts will only be available to workers who meet a certain criteria to acknowledge that some businesses will have had to stay shut through the third national lockdown.
Up to three million self-employed workers were not eligible for the first three grants.
Self-employed workers who are company directors or run their businesses as limited companies were also unable to apply.
Mr Sunak said: “Our Covid support schemes have been a lifeline to millions, protecting jobs and incomes across the UK.
“There’s now light at the end of the tunnel with a roadmap for reopening, so it’s only right that we continue to help business and individuals through the challenging months ahead – and beyond.”
When the self-employment scheme was launched, the Treasury said the help was based on tax returns for 2018-2019, the most recent year for which data was available.
They said it wasn’t possible for the newly self-employed to qualify, and said it could open up the system to fraud.
But now this data is available, it means hundreds of thousands more people will be eligible for the extra help.
It will be a huge relief for the thousands who have been shut out of help for months.
Mr Sunak announced the government will continue the huge support for businesses for months to come – until they can get back up and running again over the summer.
The PM hopes all restrictions can be ditched by June 21, to get the nation back to normal.
Universal Credit’s £20 a week uplift will continue for six months until September.
The furlough scheme is extended until September with employers paying 10 and 20 per cent of wages through the summer months as the scheme winds down.
The treasury’s stamp duty holiday has been extended by three months until the end of June to support purchases delayed by the current national lockdown.
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The VAT holiday for the hospitality industry is also expected to continue, giving hard-hit firms a helping hand.
Business grants and loans will continue to be offered.
And the Chancellor will reveal more plans to help get people back into work with schemes such as the Kickstart programme and Restart.
Chancellor Rishi Sunak reflects on last 12 months ahead of Budget Day 2021 in passionate video
