Newly Self-Employed Hardship Fund

Post Author:

Anne Melville

Date Posted:

February 11, 2021

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Coronavirus

The Newly Self-Employed Hardship Fund has been designed to help alleviate financial hardship for Scottish newly self-employed people whose status as being newly self-employed makes them ineligible for the UK Government’s Coronavirus (Covid-19) Self-employment Income Support Scheme.

Am I eligible?

To be eligible for the Newly Self-Employed Hardship Fund, you must be able to demonstrate that you:

  1. became self-employed on or after 6 April 2019 but before 17 March 2020 (and are therefore ineligible for the UK Government’s Self Employment Income Support Scheme because you did not submit a tax return including income from self-employment for 2018-19)

Or

  1. became self-employed between 1 October 2018 and 6 April 2019 but are ineligible for the Self Employment Income Support Scheme (SEISS) because you were not self-employed for a sufficient period of time in the 2018/19 Financial Year to demonstrate that you derived 50% of your income from self-employment

In addition, you must confirm when submitting your application that you:

  • are ordinarily resident in Scotland
  • are registered with HMRC as self-employed and have a valid Unique Taxpayer Reference (UTR) number
  • operate a business that is located in Scotland
  • are self-employed and do not trade as a limited company
  • derive over 50% of your income from self-employment
  • reported trading profits of less than £50,000 in the financial year 2019-2020
  • started your business before 17 March 2020 and have continued to operate after 1 April 2020 (unless you are operating in a sector subject to ongoing Covid-19 restrictions which have forced the closure of your business)
  • have lost business income due to coronavirus restrictions and are experiencing personal financial hardship as a result
  • are ineligible for other Covid-19 related business grant support, including the Strategic Framework Business Fund, Covid-19 Temporary Restrictions Closure and Hardship Funds, Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme, Mobile and Home-Based Close Contact Services Fund, Wedding Sector Support Fund, Hardship Fund for Creative Freelancers and Local Authority Discretionary Fund
  • have taken steps to limit costs and expenditure, including through schemes such as VAT deferral and seeking a mortgage payment holiday
  • do not have access to sufficient savings or other sources of income to cover your basic living costs
  • have not breached Covid restrictions in place for businesses in Scotland

If you received funding through the first round of the Newly Self-Employed Hardship Fund launched in April 2020, you are still able to apply for support. This is a follow-on from that scheme and recognises the need for further help with living costs.

How much is the grant?

There will be a one-off payment of £4,000

What information do I need to apply?

All supporting information must be submitted electronically (online).

HMRC Unique Taxpayer Reference (UTR) number

A UTR number may also be referred to as a “tax reference” number. It is a 10-digit number that should be on official tax documents from HMRC or on your account page on the HMRC web portal.

You will need to provide a recent screenshot or photo of your business tax account page from the HMRC portal clearly showing your full name and Unique Taxpayer Reference number, or another form of official communication from HMRC with your name and UTR shown.

Other information

In addition to core information on yourself and your business, such as name and address and name of business, you will also need to provide:

  • Your bank account details for this business including the sort code, account number and branch location. You may provide a personal account, as long as you can clearly show that it has been used for business purposes.
  • We are unable to pay more than one grant award into a bank account. Joint account holders that are eligible to apply in respect of different businesses should provide alternative bank account details to avoid being rejected as a duplicate application.
  • A bank statement clearly showing evidence of business transactions. One month’s bank statement is required showing business activity from anytime during the period between 17 March 2019 and 17 March 2020. You will need to make sure your uploaded document or screenshot clearly shows the account name, bank name, account number and sort code.
  • Your National Insurance Number
  • Your business website address and/or social media web links such as Facebook or Instagram (if you have these)

Applications which contain inaccurate information or data that cannot be authenticated will be rejected.

Any information that you give about your business, such as your registered name and address, must match the information held by official bodies such as HMRC. This will be checked and verified.

In addition to the verification checks, applications will be audited. Any applicants who are found to have provided false information will be expected to return their awarded grant immediately and could face criminal proceedings.

How do I apply?

The fund is open to applications and closes at 5pm on 16 March 2021

https://findbusinesssupport.gov.scot/coronavirus-advice/newly-self-employed-hardship-fund

https://www.bizsupport.scot/

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FHl28Q5HXcU&feature=youtu.be

The information in this blog provides only an overview of Scottish Government guidance and legislation in force at the date of publication and no action should be taken without consulting the detailed Scottish Government guidance and legislation or seeking professional advice.  Therefore no responsibility for loss occasioned by any person acting or refraining from action as a result of the material contained in this blog can be accepted by the firm.

Photo by Boris Debusscher on Unsplash

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