Final month to claim self-employed income support scheme

The fifth SEISS grant: what you need to know

If you are self-employed, you may be aware of the Self-Employment Income Support Scheme (SEISS) grant. Applications for the fifth (and final) grant are currently open but will close on 30 September 2021. If you are eligible to receive the grant and have not yet completed your application, now is the time to act. In this article, we provide the key information you need to know about the grant.

When can I apply for the fifth SEISS grant?

If you are self-employed and eligible for the grant, you may have been contacted about your personal claim date, or to provide more information to the government about your eligibility. Claim dates have been staggered to ensure a smooth process, but with the grant closing at the end of the month, if you have not yet made your claim you should apply as soon as possible after you have been given a claim date.

Am I eligible to claim the fifth SEISS grant?

Eligibility for claiming the fifth SEISS grant is the same as it was for claiming the previous grant. In order to make a claim, you must be self-employed or a member of a partnership.

You must also have traded in the tax year 2019-20 and completed a tax return on or before 2 March 2021. You must also have traded in 2020-21.

In addition, one of the following statements must apply to you:

• You are currently trading, but you have been impacted by reduced demand as a result of Covid-19.
• You have been trading, but you are temporarily unable to do so as a result of Covid-19.

HMRC will look at your 2019-2020 self-assessment tax return to assess whether you are eligible. Your trading profits must not exceed £50,000 and must be at least equal to your non-trading income.

In some circumstances, you may not be eligible based on your 2019-20 tax return and HMRC must look at your tax returns for 2016-17, 2017-18, 2018-19 and 2019-20.

Making declarations about your situation

When you submit your application, you will be asked to make certain declarations about your situation. These are:

• That you intend to continue to trade
• You have a reasonable belief that you will suffer a significant reduction in your trading profits. This reduction must be as a result of reduced capacity, business activity, ability to trade or demand for your product or services as a result of the pandemic for the period May 2021 to September 2021.

How much can I claim for the fifth SEISS grant?

The amount of the fifth grant will be determined by how much your turnover has been reduced in the year April 2020 to April 2021.

If your turnover was reduced by 30 per cent or more in the year April 2020 to April 2021, you will be eligible to receive 80 percent of your average trading profits for three months, to a maximum value of £7,500. If your turnover was reduced by less than 30 per cent in the year April 2020 to April 2021, you will receive 30 percent of three months' average trading profits, up to a maximum value of £2,850.