Government puts Job Support Scheme on indefinite hold as furlough scheme extended

Following the Government's announcement of a further lockdown on 31st October, the Job Support Scheme, designed to support employers facing lower demand or legal closure due to coronavirus restrictions, to keep their employees in work, has been placed on indefinite hold and may even be scrapped. Instead, the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme will be extended until at least 31st March 2021. 

Jobs Support Scheme – at a glance

The scheme will contain two levels of support:

• Job Support Scheme – Open
• Job Support Scheme – Closed

Employers using the Job Support Scheme will also be able to claim the Job Retention Bonus if they meet the eligibility criteria.

Open Scheme

• To be eligible, employees will need to work a minimum of 20% of their usual hours.
• For every hour not worked, the Government will pay 61.67% of the shortfall of the employee’s usual pay, with the employer paying 5%. The Government’s contribution will be capped at £1,541.75 per month, with the employer contribution subject to a £125 cap per month. The employer can pay more if they wish to.
• Employees using the scheme will receive at least 73% of their pay, where the Government and Employers' contributions have not been capped.
• Employers must put in place written agreements with their employees regarding the temporary working arrangements.

Closed Scheme

For each employee not able to work due to forced business closure, the Government will reimburse the employer for 67% of the wages, subject to a maximum of £2,083.33 per month.

General information about the Job Support Scheme

• An employer can make claims under both the Open and Closed schemes, but not for the same employee at the same time.
• Employees must be on an employer’s PAYE payroll  between 6th April 2019 and 23rd September 2020. This means a Real Time Information (RTI) submission notifying payment to that employee to HMRC must have been made at some point between 6th April 2019 and 23rd September 2020. Also, employers can only claim for employees that were in their employment on 23rd September 2020.
• Employers cannot claim for an employee who has been made redundant, or is serving a redundancy notice during the claim period.
• When introduced once the Job Retention scheme ends, the Job Support Scheme will run for six months and will be open to all employers with a UK bank account and a UK PAYE scheme.
• Employers with 250 or more employees will need to satisfy additional eligibility criteria.

We can help 

There are several ways in which we may be able to help. It’s always important to get good advice and that’s particularly true in turbulent times. If you need help, please talk to us on 0203 9713 659 or use our online enquiry form. We can offer initial consultations, advice and support over the phone if you have any concerns about face-to-face meetings. 

Date published 24 Sep 2020 | Last updated 5 Nov 2020