Furlough start date extended to 19 March
Shabir Djakiodine
Chartered accountant ACA - Entrepreneur of the Year 2024, 23, 22 - Outstanding Entrepreneur 2023 - Business Person of the Year 2023, 22 - Karate black belt 2nd Dan - Goldman Sachs 10KSB alumni - Ex international Judge
Thousands more employees will able to receive support through the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme (CJRS) as a result.
The government also confirmed that the scheme is expected to be fully operational next week with the online portal due to go live on 20 April to allow businesses to start filing their returns before the crucial PAYE payroll runs.
Under the scheme announced by Chancellor Rishi Sunak on 23 March, employers can claim a grant covering 80% of the wages for a furloughed employee, subject to a cap of £2,500 a month.
To qualify and to protect against fraudulent claims, individuals originally had to be employed on 28 February 2020.
But following a review of the delivery system and to ensure the scheme helps as many people as possible, new guidance published today has confirmed the eligibility date has been extended to 19 March 2020– the day before the scheme was announced.
Employers can claim for furloughed employees that were employed and on their PAYE payroll on or before 19 March 2020.