reports have been made stating that employees have been forced to work whilst placed on furlough or have been informed that they are on furlough when they have received a reduced payslip.
HMRC has stated that it will be cracking down on these instances and has encouraged employees to make reports directly to them. HMRC has also recently stated that it will offer an amnesty to claimants who report the fraud themselves. Previous legislation stated that a claimant has 30 days to inform HMRC that they have knowingly or mistakenly committed furlough fraud. An amendment to the Finance Bill has been issued extending this period to 90 days. Under this amendment, claimants will be given a 90-day window to admit their mistake and report the error directly to HMRC. The amendment will also extend the powers that HMRC holds to check coronavirus-related grants made to claims and ensure that they have been used correctly. This means that the grant payments which have been made in relation to the furlough scheme have been applied to the pay of workers and will ensure that they have not been overpaid in any way. The 90-day extension will also cover claims made under the Self-Employment Income Support Scheme (SEISS), the coronavirus Statutory Sick Pay rebate scheme, the coronavirus business support grant scheme, and any other COVID- 19 grant schemes. Claimants are reminded that, under the rules, any organisation caught deliberately using grant money for anything other than the original purpose it was intended, could face financial penalties. It has been reported that for every £1 claimed incorrectly, HMRC has the power to convert it into £1 of tax liability, meaning 100% claw back.
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Latest Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme claim figures 30 July 2020
HMRC has released the latest figures relating to the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme (CJRS), as of 26 July 2020. Data compiled from that date highlights the fact that 9.5 million jobs have been furloughed, by 1.2 million employers, resulting in total claim figures to date of £31.7 billion. This demonstrates the fact that companies are still utilising the scheme, as claim figures have increased by £1.9 billion since the week before, on 19 July 2020, when they stood at £29.8 billion. The scheme will continue to run until the end of October 2020, but massive changes to its rules were applied from the start of July, when employers were able to bring employees back to work on a part-time basis, and to operate ‘flexible furlough’. Throughout July, the government committed to paying 80% of wages up to a monthly cap of £2,500 for any ordinary hours not worked, along with the associated employer National Insurance (NI) and pension contributions. In August, they will still pay 80% of wages but employers must pay the employer NI and pension contribution amounts on any ordinary hours not worked that an employee has been placed on furlough. In September, the government will pay 70% of wages, with the employer contributing 10%, and in the scheme’s final month, in October, the government will pay 60% of wages with the employer accounting for 20%.
There are still calls for the scheme to be extended beyond October, but Chancellor, Rishi Sunak, confirmed in his Summer Economic Statement that the government did not intend for this to happen.
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HMRC confirms how to submit complaints in relation to the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme 30 July 2020
HMRC has confirmed how customers who have utilised the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme (CJRS) can submit complaints, should they feel that any mistakes have been made or if they have had to suffer unreasonable delays.
The Chartered Institute of Payroll Professionals
Payroll: need to know
cipp.org.uk
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