HMRC have published their Employer Bulletin for February 2021. We summarise the key content for you, with links to our detailed guidance on the topics covered.

CJRS

Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme (CJRS)

  • The UK Government will pay 80% of employees’ usual wages for the hours not worked, up to a cap of £2,500 per month, until the end of April 2021.
  • Claims can be made before, during or after you process your payroll. If you can, it is best to make a claim once you are sure of the exact number of hours your employees will work. This will mean you will not have to amend your claim at a later date.
  • Key deadlines to be aware of:
    • January claims must be submitted no later than Monday 15 February 2021.
    • February claims must be submitted no later than Monday 15 March 2021.
  • If you have already submitted your claims for January 2021 but find you need to make a change because you did not claim enough, you can do this until 1 March 2021. 

Furloughing employees due to caring responsibilities

  • If an employee asks to be furloughed because they have caring responsibilities resulting from Coronavirus, such as caring for children who are at home as a result of school or childcare facilities closing, you can place them on furlough and claim for them under the CJRS.

How to access HMRC online services

  • To make a CJRS claim, employers will need to be registered and have the required access, password or activation code for HMRC online services. 
  • Activation codes may take up to 10 days to arrive. You should take this time into account if you plan to make a claim.

Publishing information on claims

  • In January 2021 HMRC published a list of employers’ names who have claimed CJRS for periods from December 2020 onwards.
  • From 25 February 2021 HMRC will publish the names, an indication of the value of claims and company registration numbers (for those who have one) of employers who make CJRS claims for periods starting on or after 1 December 2020. The published value of your claim will be shown within a banded range.
  • HMRC will not publish details of employers claiming through the scheme if they can show that publicising these would result in a serious risk violence or intimidation to individuals, or those living with them. There is an online application form to request that your details not to be published.
    • If you need to do this, HMRC will not publish your details until a decision has been made and you have been told. You will only need to apply once, as the decision will cover all CJRS claim periods starting from 1 December 2020. Employers must make the application themself, it cannot be made by an agent on their behalf.
  • From 25 February 2021, employees will also be able to check if a CJRS claim on their behalf through their online Personal Tax Account. 
  • Details of CJRS claims will now be published monthly as part of HMRC’s commitment to transparency and to deter fraudulent claims.

More support

  • You can sign up to receive regular email updates from HMRC, to keep up to date with the latest information on our COVID-19 schemes. You can simply register and add the subscription topics you’re interested in.
  • Thousands of people have also joined and benefited from HMRC's live webinars which offer more support on changes to CJRS and how they affect employers.

See COVID-19: Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme (CJRS) from 1 November 2020


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