Navigating COVID-19 Across the Pond

NAVIGATING COVID-19
ACROSS THE POND
CITRIN COOPERMAN WEBINAR
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THURSDAY, APRIL 9, 2020
12:30 – 1:45 PM EDT
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PRESENTED BY: Leon Dutkiewicz, Michael Hayes
Nicola Horton, Richard Cummings

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evolution WELCOME / KEY REMINDERS / USING ZOOM
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• The webinar is 1 hour and 15 minutes based on your participation, you can
earn 1.5 CPE credits.
• You must reply to 4 polling questions to receive the full credit.
• You have joined in listening mode only.
• You will have the opportunity to submit questions to our presenters by typing
your questions into the Q&A icon on the Zoom panel.
• An evaluation will be sent at the conclusion of the webinar.
• This session is being recorded and a playback link will be sent.

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COVID -19 UPDATE
TITLE
• TBD
WELCOME &
INTRODUCTION
Leon Dutkiewicz, CPA
PARTNER, PRACTICE LEADER
INTERNATIONAL TAX
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Citrin Cooperman is an independent member firm of Moore North America, which
is itself a regional member of Moore Global.
Because of our relationship with Moore Global, one of the world’s major accounting
and consulting networks, we are able to provide our clients with the comfort of
working with a firm that has a deep understanding of the local markets in which
they do business. Each member firm of Moore Global is successful in their
geographic region and highly rated by their peers.
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614
OFFICES
112
COUNTRIES
30,168
PEOPLE

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COVID -19 UPDATE
TITLE
• TBD
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SPEAKER | Michael Hayes, TAX PARTNER
Mike has more than 27 years’ experience of advising businesses and their
owners on a wide range of taxation issues. He works with entrepreneurial
businesses of all sizes. His particular focus is on business structures,
corporate and property transactions, share schemes and capital gains tax
planning for owner-managed businesses across various sectors. But his
special emphasis is on property and media and marketing services.
Much of Mike’s time is spent advising UK and US businesses on setting up
in the ‘other’ country. Mike presents in the US on ‘Doing business in the
UK’ and works closely with associated firms in major US cities.

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COVID -19 UPDATE
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• TBD
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SPEAKER | Nicola Horton, Principal, Corporate Finance
Nicola has over twenty years’ experience providing corporate finance
lead advisory services to a wide variety of quoted and private companies.
She has advised on public offers, flotations, private company acquisitions
and disposals, management buyouts and the raising of debt,
development and venture capital, across a variety of sectors, with a
particular focus on the media sector.

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COVID -19 UPDATE
TITLE
• TBD
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SPEAKER | Richard Cummings, Managing Director, HR Consultancy
Active in HR and management for over 25 years, Richard Cummings is an
HR professional, advising businesses across multiple sectors in all aspects
of human resource management.
Richard is heavily involved in designing and managing bespoke selection
campaigns, creating financial schemes that incentivise individuals and
developing corporate HR strategies for clients. A generalist and a
specialist, Richard measures performance to ensure clients benefit from
improved employee retention, productivity and engagement.

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AGENDA
• Welcome and Introduction
• Help for business
• Loans from banks
• Business rates and grants
• Self-employed relief measures
• Financial FAQS
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POLLING QUESTION

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• Launched on 11 March 2020
• 2,000 call handlers waiting for your call – but still expect delays
• Agreements can be made to defer payment of any business tax liabilities:
• Corporation Tax
• VAT (but automatic deferral also available…)
• PAYE
• Hotline number is Tips of negotiation Time-to-pay at:
• https://www.icaew.com/insights/tax-news/2020/mar-2020/covid19-support-on-
negotiating-time-to-pay
CORONAVIRUS – TAX PAYMENTS
CORONAVIRUS TIME-TO-PAY HOTLINE – 0800 024 1222

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AUTOMATIC DEFERRAL OF VAT PAYMENTS
• If you have a VAT payment due between 20 March 2020 and 30 June 2020, you
have the option to defer the payment until 5 April 2021
• HMRC will not charge interest or penalties on any amount deferred
• You will still need to submit your VAT returns to HMRC on time
• If you pay by direct debit, you must cancel this to benefit from deferment

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DEFERRAL OF JULY 2020 SELF-ASSESSMENT PAYMENT ON ACCOUNT
• If you’re due to pay a self-assessment payment on account by 31 July 2020 then
you can choose to defer payment until January 2021
• You do not need to be self-employed to be eligible for the deferment (e.g. this
applies to buy-to-let landlords as well)
• This is an automatic deferral with no applications required
• No penalties or interest for late payment will be charged if you defer payment
until 31 January 2021

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LOANS FROM BANKS
CORONAVIRUS BUSINESS INTERRUPTION LOAN SCHEME (CBILS)
• CBILS is intended to provide financial support to SMEs that are seeing their
cashflow disrupted, as a result of the COVID-19 outbreak
• British Business Bank operates CBILS via its accredited lenders (incl. Barclays,
HSBC, Lloyds, Metro, NatWest, etc..)
• The government gives the lender a guarantee for 80% of the value of the loan to
encourage more lending
• The borrower remains fully liable for the debt, but if in default, only 20% of the
outstanding facility can be recovered under any personal guarantees given.

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LOANS FROM BANKS
• Your business must:
• Be UK-based in its business activity and borrowing to support this activity
• Have a borrowing proposal which the lender:
• would consider viable, were it not for the COVID-19 pandemic
• believes will enable you to trade out of any short-term to medium-term
difficulty

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LOANS FROM BANKS
• The maximum value of a facility provided under the scheme is £5 million for
businesses with up to £45m turnover, or £25 million for businesses with turnover
between £45m and £500m, but the facility amount should not exceed:
• Twice the annual wage bill of the company; or
• 25% of total turnover of the company in 2019; or
• The liquidity requirement of the company for the next 18 months

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LOANS FROM BANKS
• Term debt and asset finance facilities can be taken over a period up to six years.
Overdraft and invoice finance facilities will be for up to three years
• No fees and interest free for 12 months for loans of up to £5 million

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LOANS FROM BANKS
• Security:
• No lender is allowed to take personal guarantees as security for lending < £250,000
• Primary residential property cannot be taken as security under the scheme
• Recovery under personal guarantees is limited to 20% of the outstanding facility in
default

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LOANS FROM BANKS
Expect to be asked the following as part of the credit application:
• How has Covid-19 impacted your business specifically?
• What is the plan for your business now for the short-medium term?
• Are there any fundamental changes to your business model and/or industry as a
result of the virus?
• How have you arrived at the funding figure requested and will it be enough to
sustain the business if the virus doesn’t subside in the short-term?
• Are you able to provide a cashflow forecast for the next 12 months to support your
application?

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POLLING QUESTION

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BUSINESS RATES AND GRANTS
• Check your rateable value at:
• https://www.tax.service.gov.uk/business-rates-find/search
Are you eligible for
Small Business Rates
Relief? (i.e. rateable
value < £15,000)
Yes
Relief continues to be available +
£10,000 grant payable to your
business by local authority
Do you operate in the
leisure, hospitality or
retail sector?
No help provided by government with
business rates or grants
100% Relief from
Business Rates for
2020/21
Is the rateable value of
your premises <
£51,000?
No grant available
Grant of £25,000
payable to your
business by local
authority
No
Yes
Yes
No
No

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HELP FOR THE SELF-EMPLOYED
SELF-EMPLOYED INCOME SUPPORT SCHEME
• This scheme will allow self-employed individuals to claim a grant worth 80% of
their trading profits up to a maximum of £2,500 per month for the period from 1
March to 31 May 2020
• This scheme does not apply to:
• Individuals operating through Personal Service Companies; or
• Landlords

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SELF-EMPLOYED INCOME SUPPORT SCHEME – CONDITIONS (1)
• The individual must have:
• submitted their tax return for the tax year 2018-19 which included self-employed
income (or if submitting late, submit by 23 April)
• traded in the tax year 2019-20
• continued to trade when the application is made, or would be except for COVID-
19

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SELF-EMPLOYED INCOME SUPPORT SCHEME – CONDITIONS (2)
• intend to continue to trade in the tax year 2020-21
• lost trading/partnership trading profits due to COVID-19
• trading profits of less than £50,000 and have more than half of their income come
from self-employment for either:
• The tax year 2018-19; or
• On average for the tax years 2016-17, 2017-18, and 2018-19

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SELF-EMPLOYED INCOME SUPPORT SCHEME
• HMRC will be inviting self-employed individuals to claim these payments around
June/July 2020
• Any payments due will be paid as a lump sum by bank transfer
• The grant will be taxable income for the self-employed individual

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POLLING QUESTION

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CORONAVIRUS EMPLOYER FAQS
FINANCIAL FAQS
• What does furlough mean?
• How long does the government scheme last for?
• Is there a minimum period of furlough?
• If employees worked in March, can we claim for this period?
• How do we claim the 80%?
• What do we need to make a claim?
• How is it paid?
• Is it a loan?
• Is it 80% of £2,500?

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FINANCIAL FAQS
• Do employees retain the whole 80% up to £2,500?
• Do we have to top it up?
• Is the 80% based on current salary? What about employees with variable pay, i.e.
zero-hour contracts?
• Is overtime or commission included?
• Do we pay employees or does the government pay them?
• Do employees still make pension contributions?
• Do employees still salary sacrifice?
• If an employee is working reduced hours and/or on reduced pay, can we still
access the scheme?

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FURLOUGH FAQS
• An employee has more than one job, can we still furlough them?
• Can we simply tell them they are being furloughed?
• Can furloughed employees work, i.e. pick up emails?
• Can furloughed employees volunteer or undertake training?
• How do we pick who should be furloughed if we want to keep some employees?
• Are directors eligible?
• Can furloughed employees take holiday?
• Can we bring someone back early if business picks up?
• If we bring someone back and business dries up again, can we put them back on
furlough?

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THOSE NOT CURRENTLY AT WORK
• Can those on long-term sick be furloughed?
• Can furloughed employees call in sick?
• Are employees who are shielding placed on sick pay or furlough?
• Can those on maternity leave be furloughed?
• What about those about to go on maternity leave, can they be furloughed?
• Can employees on unpaid leave be furloughed?

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REDUNDANCY
• We’re in redundancy consultation now, can we furlough those employees?
• What if the redundancy consultations are connected to Coronavirus?
• If an employee was made redundant but they were employed on 28 February
2020, should we reinstate them and put them on furlough?
• Can you start redundancy consultation during a furlough period?

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STAYING IN TOUCH WITH YOUR EMPLOYEES
• Can we contact employees who are furloughed?

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POLLING QUESTION

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Q & A
Please submit questions to our presenter by typing your questions into the Q&A icon
on the Zoom panel.

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THANK YOU!

Navigating COVID-19 Across the Pond

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