Burnetts Bitesize Bulletin

Question: Has the deadline changed for making claims for furlough pay?

Short answer: Yes! After November, the deadline is much shorter. Employers have only 14 calendar days to file their claims for the previous month unless there is “a reasonable excuse for failing to make a claim in time”.

Explanation: In our previous Bitesize Bulletin we mentioned this (new) shorter deadline for claims from the end of the November claim period. The Government has revised its original Guidance (well it is Friday after all!) giving examples of those “reasonable excuses” for missing the deadline. Here they are:

• your partner or another close relative died shortly before the claim deadline
• you had an unexpected stay in hospital that prevented you from dealing with your claim
• you had a serious or life-threatening illness, including Coronavirus related illnesses, which prevented you from making your claim (and no one else could claim for you)
• a period of self-isolation prevented you from making your claim (and no one else could make the claim for you)
• your computer or software failed just before or while you were preparing your online claim service issues with HMRC online services prevented you from making your claim
• a fire, flood or theft prevented you them from making your claim
• postal delays that you could not have predicted prevented you from making your claim
• delays related to a disability you have prevented you from making your claim
• a HMRC error prevented you from making your claim

And those deadlines for your diary:

Claim for wages through the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme