Supporting Jobs
Also announced in the July Statement on 8 July 2020, the Chancellor has announced a raft of plans to support jobs that employers will want to take note of, including:
● A Job Retention Bonus to be introduced to help firms keep furloughed workers. UK Employers will receive a one-off bonus of £1,000 for each furloughed employee who is still employed as of 31 January 2021.
● A new £2 billion Kickstart Scheme will be launched to create hundreds of thousands of new, fully subsidised jobs for young people across the country. Those aged 16-24, claiming Universal Credit and at risk of long-term unemployment, will be eligible. Funding available for each six-month job placement will cover 100% of the National Minimum Wage for 25 hours a week – and employers will be able to top this wage up.
● Businesses will be given £2,000 for each new apprentice they hire under the age of 25. This is in addition to the existing £1,000 payment the Government already provides for new 16-18-year-old apprentices and those aged under 25 with an Education, Health and Care Plan.
● The rate of VAT applied on most tourism and hospitality-related activities will be cut from 20% to 5%.
The Chancellor has also confirmed that the government is “introducing a new income tax and NICs [national insurance contributions] exemption from income tax for employer-provided Covid-19 antigen tests.”
Previous guidance had suggested that “Coronavirus testing kits or tests carried out by a third party which have been purchased by you to provide to your employees are treated as a taxable benefit in kind on the employee.”
See the full guidance (and history) here.
Posted on 07/09/2020 by Ortolan
