Circular – 20th April

The Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme Portal is now open

HMRC, who are responsible for administering the scheme, have issued guidance on how to calculate your claim and this can be found at:

https://www.gov.uk/guidance/work-out-80-of-your-employees-wages-to-claim-through-the-coronavirus-job-retention-scheme

They have also issued a step by step guide on how to claim.  This can be found at:

https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/880092/Coronavirus_Job_Retention_Scheme_step_by_step_guide_for_employers.pdf

One very important change in recently published Treasury Guidance is that the Employer and Employee must have a written agreement that the employee will cease work.  This is a critical change from the previous guidance which only required written notification.  We can only assume that the written agreement can be dated after the date of furlough provided that previous directions have been adhered to.  However, written agreement should be obtained at the earliest opportunity.

The Furlough agreement and details of how claims have been calculated should be kept for a minimum of 5 years.

The scheme has also been extended to 30^th June from it’s previous end date of 31^st May.