Job Retention Scheme Date Change

HMRC has just announced that the qualifying date for employees to have been on the employer’s payroll to be eligible to be furloughed is now the 19th March 2020. 

This has changed from the previously published 28th February and is now one day prior to when the Chancellor announced the job retention scheme.

The Government have listened – although sometime later – but it now means that a number of people who previously fell out of scope for the scheme can now be included. 

The full guidance is updated on Gov.UK:

Claim for your employees’ wages through the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme

It is worth a read and a refresh. 

Other amends include the way you calculate the amount of salary for the furlough pay.

The 80% claim is now based on their salary as in their last pay period prior to 19 March 2020.

For employers who have already calculated claims based on their employee’s salary as of 28 February 2020, they can choose to still use this calculation for their first claim.