New details of help and assistance for businesses aimed at mitigating the financial impact of COVID are appearing every day. We wanted to outline some of the measures which have been put in place (as of this morning) which might impact business owners.

For further information, you can always contact your local AIMS accountant.

The Government has introduced a variety of measures to assist small businesses including:

• Statutory Sick Pay (SSP) covers necessary self-isolation as well as actual sickness. And the Government has announced that in some cases employers with fewer than 250 staff can reclaim up to 14 days SSP per employee
• Small Business Rate Relief has been increased to 100% for small businesses below a rateable threshold (£15,000).
• Additional grants will be available and businesses will be contacted by their local authority
• A 12-month business rates holiday for businesses in the retail leisure and hospitality sectors
• The announcement of the Coronavirus Business Interruption Loan Scheme, providing government backed loans of up to £5million for small businesses, with a 6-month interest free holiday.
• A new helpline (Time to Pay) to assist small business with problems paying taxes to HMRC
• The Government has also announced that they have postponed the extension of IR35 into the private sector for a year. This was due to start on 6^th April.

If you want to find out more about any of the above measures, speak to your local AIMS accountant.