DEADLINES for many coronavirus financial aid schemes are scheduled for this month, including the self-employment grant and the ban on rental evictions.
Here are all the key dates you should be aware of in June, and what impact they could have on your wallet.
SEISS grant deadline – June 1
The deadline to apply for the fourth self employment income support scheme (SEISS) grant is today.
Make sure you don’t miss out on the payment – worth up to £7,500 – if your earnings have taken a hit due to Covid-19.
The scheme is intended to replace lost earnings between February and April due to the impact of the pandemic.
The government should have already contacted everyone who is eligible to claim the latest grant.
To make a claim you will need your Self Assessment Unique Taxpayer Reference (UTR), National Insurance number, Government Gateway user ID and password and UK bank details.
Payment should be made within six working days once the grant has been given the green light, although it could take up to 10 days.
It’s important to keep hold of relevant paperwork, such as the amount you have claimed and references.
What will change for businesses this month?
THERE are several key dates coming up for businesses this month, including loan repayment deadlines and changes to business rate support…
First wave of Bounce Back Loan repayments -June 1
Some businesses will be due to start repaying their Covid-19 Bounce Back Loans from today.
The financial support scheme, which launched in May last year, allowed firms to borrow between £2,000 and £50,000.
The government paid the 2.5% interest on the loans for the first year, but one year on, some businesses will now be expected to begin repaying their banks and building societies.
End of business rates holiday – June 30
Retail, hospitality and leisure firms were granted an extension to the business rates holiday which was due to end March 31, due to the impact of Covid-19 restrictions on those sectors
The break will now end on June 30, with tapered support following that deadline.
From July onwards, businesses that were forced to close will be eligible for rates to be discounted to one third of the normal charge for the rest of the financial year – up to a maximum of £2m.
You should also keep any evidence that your business had reduced activity, capacity or demand due to the pandemic at the time you made your application.
This could include business accounts, records of reduced or cancelled contracts or appointments or records of dates when you had reduced demand or capacity due to government restrictions.
However, if your business recovers after you have claimed, your eligibility won’t be affected.
Eviction notice for renters down from six months to four -June 1
Between August last year and 31 May, landlords needed to give tenants six months’ notice before starting the eviction process – except in the most serious circumstances.
Those cases were in relation to anti-social behaviour, domestic abuse, rent arrears worth more than six months’ rent, where the tenant has passed away or does not have a right to rent under immigration laws.
From today, landlords can evict tenants with just four months’ notice, including where the tenant has less than four months’ of rent arrears.
This will be reduced to two months from August 1.
Evictions for rent arrears -June 1
Restrictions on bailiff enforcement also ended yesterday, and from today bailiffs are able to send out eviction notices.
No evictions are expected until mid-June and bailiffs have been asked not to carry out evictions if tenants have Covid-19 symptoms or are self-isolating.
If you are worried about being evicted due to rent arrears you should contact Citizens Advice for information on what to do next.
The service recommends speaking to your landlord as the first step and trying to get them to agree to a repayment plan.
If that is unsuccessful, there could be benefits you can apply for to help you cover rental costs.
Help to Buy equity deadline – June 1
Today is also the cut off point for homeowners using Help to Buy to complete their purchase.
Homebuyers using the scheme which closed to new applicants in December last year, were given extra time to legally complete and get the keys to their home due to delays to construction work during the pandemic.
It was forecast to end on 31 March this year but the government extended the deadline by two months to avoid deals falling through.
When it announced the extension in February, it confirmed that there would be no more extensions and asked housebuilders to “continue to build at pace”.
If the development is severely delayed, homebuilders must unconditionally release buyers from their contracts.
However this could result in buyers losing thousands of pounds.
Government to make decision on June 21 unlocking – June 14
The government is expected to announce whether all Covid-19 restrictions can be lifted from 21 June later this month.
Doubts over the unlocking have been raised due to the rapid spread of the Covid Indian variant, which transmitting quickly across the country.
If the easing of restrictions goes ahead as planned and life returns to pre-pandemic routines, consumer finances could take a hit.
The scrapping of the work from home rule will cause travel costs to rise, even if your employer allows you to work remotely some of the time.
The reopening of night time entertainment and mass gatherings, such as festivals and sports, could also eat into your finances.
Many people that have continued to work during the pandemic have built up a cash reserve due to mainly staying home for more than a year.
However it is important to budget for the extra costs that could return as the country eventually goes back to normal.
Lockdown rules expected to change – June 21
If the government gives the go-ahead to the final stage of its plan to end lockdown restrictions, the UK could return to pre-pandemic life from June 21.
This stage of the roadmap will see social distancing measures scrapped, allowing pubs and restaurants to trade at full capacity, the return of events such as live sport and music, and the reopening of nightclubs.
Stamp duty relief to end – June 30
The chancellor extended the stamp duty holiday in the March Budget, but the deadline for buyers to take advantage of the break is the end of this month.
The temporary stamp duty holiday for homes worth up to £500,000 was due to expire on March 31, but have been extended by three months until June 30.
From July, the tax-free threshold will drop for home buyers to £250,000 until September, and then return to its normal limit at £125,000 from October.
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