WFM UK: HR: Extension of the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme: October 2020

Extension of the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme

The Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme (CJRS) was due to end on 31^st October 2020 and be replaced with the Job Support Scheme (JSS).

On Saturday 30^th October, the UK Government announced that the CJRS will be extended until the end of November due to the national lockdown measures that will come into force in England on 5^th November 2020.

The Government has advised that there will be further guidance announced in due course, regarding the calculation of normal hours and how to claim the grant. Listed below is the information they have released so far.

Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme

• The extension will run up until Wednesday 2^nd December 2020
• The Government will pay out 80% of wages for the hours furloughed employees do not work. This is up to a cap of £2,500 for periods from 1^st  November. This is similar to the claims guidance from August 2020
• Employers will need to pay all Employers National Insurance Contributions and pension contributions
• Employers can choose to top up their furloughed employees' wages beyond the 80% for hours not worked, but they are not required to do so
• There will be no gap in support between the previously announced CJRS extension and this extension

How it Will Work

• Employees can work on a part-time basis and be furloughed for the rest of their normal hours, or they can be furloughed full time
• Employers can claim for the grant either shortly before, during, or after running their payroll
• There will be a short period of time when the HMRC claim portal will be unavailable whilst they update their systems

How to Check if Employees are Eligible

• Employers can claim for employees who were on their PAYE payroll on 30^th October 2020
  • The employees must be on an RTI submission to HMRC between 20^th March and 30^th October 2020, with details of a payment of earnings
• If employees were on an employer’s payroll on 23^rd September 2020 (i.e. notified to HMRC on an RTU submission on or before 23^rd September) and were made redundant or stopped working for them afterwards, they can also qualify for the scheme if they are re-employed
• Neither the employee nor employer needs to have previously used the CJRS

CJRS Extension and Fourth Products

Due to the late announcement of the extension of CJRS, there are several changes and enhancements that are required to be made to the existing furlough functionality within HR & Payroll.

Fourth is currently busy working on the following:

• Removal of the end date validation within an employee’s Furlough Period which currently restricts the user from entering a date after 31^st October 2020
• Changes to the Furlough Claim Export within the Payroll module so that it will calculate the claims for November onwards
• Adding the ability to batch-upload an additional furlough period (the current upload will only create an initial period)
• Amending the existing batch upload function to be able to remove or extend a furlough period end date

We are hoping to get these changes completed and deployed on 12^th November 2020. Please keep an eye on the Community for further details and release notes.

Further information in regard to the Extension of the CRJS and the other support available for employers can be found here.