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Deadline nears for first tranche of self-employed grant

If you’re eligible to claim for the first stage of the Self-Employment Income Support Scheme (SEISS), you must submit your claim by 13 July 2020.

The government announced the SEISS scheme in March 2020 to help those people who work for themselves and have been adversely affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. Self-employed people can claim a taxable grant worth 80 per cent of their average profit income over the past three years, capped at £7,500, to cover the months of March, April and May 2020.

Initial grant applications opened on 13 May, and more than 2.5 million claims were made in the first two weeks of the scheme.

If you’re eligible for the scheme but you haven’t applied yet, you must do so by Monday 13 July. You can find out if you are eligible for the scheme here.

The SEISS scheme is now being extended, with a second, final grant. Chancellor Rishi Sunak said the second grant will cover the months of June, July and August 2020. Eligible self-employed people will receive a taxable grant worth 70 per cent of their average monthly trading profits, capped at £6,750, and paid out in a single instalment in August.

To be eligible for the grant, you must be self-employed or a member of a partnership, who traded in the tax years 2018/19 and 2019/20. You must have submitted your self-assessment tax return for the 2018/19 year on or before 23 April 2020. Trading profits must be no more than £50,000, and your self-employed income account for more than 50 per cent of your total income.

To make a claim for the second grant, you must confirm that your business has been adversely affected by the coronavirus on or after 14 July 2020. The second grant can be claimed even if you did not make a claim for the first grant. Directors of limited companies are not eligible for the scheme.

More information on financial support at: www.gov.uk/coronavirus

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