Personal Tax Update – 29/05/20

Keep up to date with the key announcements made this past week.

Coronavirus (COVID-19): job retention scheme

HMRC have provided further updates on the coronavirus job retention scheme (CJRS) for employees and employers to:

• explain that employers will be asked to detail separately the amounts for NIC, pension and wages they are claiming for
• state that employee authorised salary deductions can be made from grant payments provided that these deductions are not administration charges, fees or other costs in connection with employment

The illustrative examples have been updated to show that the amount claimed for NIC cannot be more than 13.8% of the grant claimed for employee’s wages.

Coronavirus: home office equipment

Regulations which have been introduced and are effective from 11 June 2020 provide for a new temporary tax exemptions and Class 1 NIC earning disregard on home office equipment where employees purchase the equipment and are reimbursed by their employer.

HMRC have now confirmed that it will not collect tax and NIC due on any reimbursements made between 16 March and 11 June 2020.

Coronavirus: Guidance on statutory sick pay (SSP)

The online COVID statutory sick pay rebate scheme service for small and medium-sized employers to recover the SSP, is now open. Qualifying employers can now apply online to recover the costs of paying coronavirus-related SSP for two weeks.

Employers will receive the money through the scheme within six working days.

Finance Bill 2020 ― committee stage amendments

The Government has tabled amendments to Clause 15 and Clause 17 of Finance Bill 2020 in relation to the disguised remuneration loan charge. Clause 15 (election for loan charge to be split over three tax years) is amended so that the date by which such an election must be made can be extended by regulations, rather than on a case-by-case basis, in recognition of the potential impact of the coronavirus outbreak. As currently drafted, the case-by-case extension may be impracticable if it becomes necessary to agree to later election dates for a wider group of loan charge taxpayers.

Clause 17 (relief from interest on tax payable as a result of the loan charge) is amended so that the current 30 September 2020 filing and payment deadline can be amended by regulations. This amendment is required to enable interest disapplication to reflect any amended filing and payment concessions, should the Government decide it is necessary to amend these in response to the coronavirus outbreak.

Source – Lexis Nexis via Tolley Guidance