Monthly deadline approaching for furlough claims

09 Dec 2020

HMRC has reminded employers that there are now monthly deadlines for claims for furloughed staff under the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme (CJRS).

Chancellor Rishi Sunak extended the CJRS until the end of March 2021. The CJRS was supposed to have ended after being scaled back to cover 60% of salaries during October.

However, following the second national lockdown for England, the Chancellor confirmed that the CJRS will pay up to 80% of an individual's wage, up to £2,500 per month. Mr Sunak said that the government will review the scheme in January.

HMRC has stated that claims must be submitted within 14 calendar days after the month they relate to, unless this falls on a weekend, in which case the deadline is the next weekday. This means employers must submit November claims no later than 14 ‌‌December.

In his November statement to Parliament, the Chancellor said: 'The furlough scheme will not be extended for one month – it will be extended until the end of March. The government will continue to help pay people's wages, up to 80% of the normal amount.

'All employers will have to pay for hours not worked is the cost of employer national insurance contributions (NICs) and pension contributions.

'We'll review the policy in January to decide whether economic circumstances are improving enough to ask employers to contribute more.'