’ACT today so that April wages are paid’ is the message from the Cornwall Chamber of Commerce to businesses in the county.
The Government’s Job Retention Scheme (furlough) has been extended until the end of June to allow more businesses to access the funding – great news, says the British Chamber of Commerce, which had lobbied for the extension.
The Cornwall Chamber would like to remind everyone that to receive payment by April 30 employers must complete the application by the end of today (April 22).
CEO Kim Conchie has the following tips for businesses:
• Be prepared in advance with the required information you’ll need to apply:
• Use the step by step guide for employers:
• Complete the application in one session:
• Take a screenshot of the confirmation page as there will be no email confirmation.
• More information on how to claim can be found at Coronavirus Support.
Kim Conchie comments: ’The Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme - or furlough scheme - is going to be in place and a potential saviour for your business for some weeks to come.
For HMRC to pay your business’s April wages before you have to pay staff, act today and make sure you diary the claim date for next month and for June. This is a massive scheme for the Government to get going from scratch. Let’s help them to make it work for all of us.’
HMRC says that after launching the scheme on Monday, by midnight that same day it had received 185,000 claims, covering 1.3m employees, at a value of £1.5 billion in wages.