Your business may eligible for COVID-19  Support Payments, a Small Business Cashflow Scheme "top-up" loan and flexibility around tax payment dates if your revenue has been affected by the Omicron response. Read on for an update around the key dates.

Covid Support Payments  

Applications have already opened for the first and second COVID-19 Support Payments (CSPs) and the third payment will open on 28 March.

For the first CSP:

• Businesses must show their income is 40% lower in a seven-day period between 16 February 2022 and 4 April 2022, compared to a typical week between 5 January and 15 February in 2021 or 2022

For the second:

• Businesses must show their income is 40% lower in a seven-day period between 7 March 2022 and 4 April 2022, compared to a typical week between 5 January and 15 February in 2021 or 2022

For the third:

• Businesses must show their income is 40% lower in a seven-day period between 21 March 2022 and 4 April 2022, compared to a typical week between 5 January and 15 February in 2021 or 2022

See our earlier article for more details on the criteria.

Businesses with highly seasonal revenue may select a seven-day comparison period that fell prior to  5 January 2022. It must reflect your typical revenue and can be from a past year.

Self-employed people who have received the Ministry of Culture and Heritage’s one-off emergency grant for self-employed people can apply for the second and third CSPs.

For more details, click here.

Small Business Cashflow Scheme ‘top-up’ loan

Applications for the Small Business Cashflow Scheme “top up” loan will open on 21 March. To make this change, the current application process will close at 5pm on 18 March and reopen at 8am on 21 March. See here for more details.

Changes to the timing of disclosures

Inland Revenue has discretion to vary some timeframes or procedural requirements to help customers manage the impacts of COVID-19.

It has extended the time to file 2021 tax returns until May 31 and made changes to the timing of the following disclosures:

• Filing controlled foreign companies (CFC) and foreign investment fund (FIF) disclosure forms
• Subvention payments for the 2021 tax year
• Look-through company (LTC) elections for new companies or companies that were previously non-active

See here for details of all the variations. Further variations are expected, so keep checking the link for updates.

Meanwhile, please contact your Baker Tilly Staples Rodway advisor if you want more details about what assistance is available.