Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme – receiving grants you were not entitled to

Posted on 13th August 2020 by Streets

HM Revenue & Customs has produced a factsheet which contains information about the recovery of, and potential penalties relating to, overclaimed Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme (CJRS) grants.

An overclaimed CJRS grant includes any amount of a CJRS grant you were not entitled to receive, or any amount of a CJRS grant you were no longer entitled to keep after your circumstances changed, for example, if your employee is no longer employed by you but you continued to receive the CJRS grant for them after they left.

If you’ve made an error in a claim that has resulted in receiving too much, you must pay this back to HMRC. If you do not plan to submit further claims, you should contact HMRC to let them know about the error and they can help you to pay this back. Further information on what to do if you have made an error in your claim is available in the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme guidance.

HMRC will not charge you a penalty if you did not know you had been overpaid CJRS grant at the time you received it, or at the time that circumstances changed meaning that you stopped being entitled to it and if you have repaid it within the relevant time period. If you’re a sole trader or a partner, the relevant time period ends on 31 January 2022. If you’re a company, the relevant time period ends 12 months from the end of your accounting period.

The factsheet also includes guidance on:

Notification of overpaid amount of grant
Assessment of Income Tax charge
Provisions specific to companies that become insolvent
Provisions specific to partnerships

For the full information and guidance included in the factsheet please visit https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/904535/CC-FS48.pdf

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