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Budget 2021
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For businesses and employers
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* An extension of the Coronavirus Job Retention Support
Scheme (CJRS)
to September 2021 across the UK. The scheme will remain
unchanged
until July when the government will ask businesses to
provide a
10% contribution to employees’ pay, which will rise to 20%
in
August and September.
* Small and medium-sized employers in the UK will continue
to be
able to reclaim up to two weeks of eligible Statutory Sick
Pay
(SSP) costs per employee from the Government.
* An extension of the UK-wide Self Employment Income
Support
scheme (SEISS) to September 2021. This will include a
fourth
grant for three months support at 80% of average
profits,
continuing until April – then 50% commencing from May
onwards,
for businesses where turnover has fallen by 30% or
more.
Businesses, where turnover has fallen less than 30% will
receive
a 30% grant.
* The rate of Corporation Tax will increase to 25% from
2023.
Businesses with profits of £50,000 or less will continue
to be
taxed at 19% and a taper above £50,000 will be introduced
so that
businesses with profits greater than £250,000 will be
taxed at
the full 25% rate.
* Restart Grants will be brought into play in April,
following
the end of existing grant programmes in March.
Non-essential
retailers, which will open first, will receive grants of
up to
£6,000 per premise; hospitality and leisure business,
which will
open later and be more heavily impacted by restrictions,
will be
able to claim up to £18,000.
* A UK-wide Recovery Loan Scheme will replace the
Coronavirus
Business interruption Loans Scheme (CBILS). Through to the
end of
2021, businesses of any size can apply for loans from
£25,000 to
£10 million and the Government will provide a guarantee
for 80%
to lenders.
* The Government will extend the temporarily reduced rate
of VAT
of 5% for hospitality, holiday accommodation, and
attractions
until 30 September 2021. This will be followed by
the
introduction of a new reduced rate of 12.5% from 1 October
2021
that will be in effect until 31 March 2022 at which point
it will
revert to the standard rate.
* Business rates relief gives eligible business property
with
values below £51,000 100%. Pubs with a value below
£100,000 will
get a £5,000 discount.
In recognition of the fact many small businesses occupying
very
small properties pay little or no business rates due to
Small
Business Rates Relief (SBRR) the Government is also
providing
£2.2 billion of funding to local authorities in England
to
distribute as grants of £3,000 to around 700,000
businesses
currently eligible for SBRR or Rural Rate Relief.
* Extension of the apprenticeship hiring incentive in
England to
September 2021 and an increase of payment to £3,000.
* The availability of incorporated and unincorporated
businesses
to carry-back trading losses up to three years (rather
than just
one) will be extended.
A maximum of £2,000,000 of unused trading losses made in
each of
the tax years 2020 to 2021 and 2021 to 2022 will apply
to
unincorporated businesses. For corporations, the
£2,000,000
maximum applies separately to unused trading losses in
relevant
accounting periods ending between 1 April 2020 and 31
March 2021
and between 1 April 2021 and 31 March 2022.
* Companies investing in qualifying new plant and
machinery
between 1 April 2021 and March 2023 will benefit from
new
first-year capital allowances. Investments in main-rate
assets
will be relieved by a 130% super-deduction, whilst
investments in
assets qualifying for special rate relief will benefit
from a 50%
first-year allowance.
* Eight new English Freeports will be based in East
Midlands
Airport, Felixstowe & Harwich, Humber, Liverpool City
Region,
Plymouth, Solent, Thames and Teesside. The Enhanced rate
of SBA
of 10% will be made available to the designated tax sites
for
corporation tax and income tax purposes. To qualify,
the
structure or building must be brought into use on or
before 30
September 2026. Stamp Duty Land Tax relief will be made
available
for purchases of land or property on these areas, subject
to that
land or property being acquired and used for qualifying
purposes
and subject to a control period of up to 3 years.
* New Help to Grow schemes. Help to Grow Digital for small
and
medium-sized businesses will provide free online
technology
advice and 50% discounts on approved software. Help to
Grow
Management Training will also cover areas such as
marketing and
financial management for these businesses.
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For individuals
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* The income
tax Personal Allowance and higher rate threshold will
be
maintained from April 2022 until April 2026. The 2021/22
increase
of the Personal Allowance to £12,570 and basic rate limit
to
£37,700 will be set to remain for 2022/23, 2023/24, 2024/5
and
2025/26. The higher rate threshold will therefore be
£50,270 for
these years.
* Inheritance tax thresholds will be maintained at their
current
levels until April 2026. The nil-rate band will continue
at
£325,000, the residence nil-rate band will continue at
£175,000,
and the residence nil-rate band taper will continue to
start at
£2 million.
* The Lifetime Allowance will be maintained at its current
level
of £1,073,100 until April 2026.
* The adult ISA annual subscription limit for 2021-22 will
remain
unchanged at £20,000.
* There will be a six-month extension of the £20 per
week
Universal Credit uplift in Great Britain, with the
Northern
Ireland Executive receiving additional funding to match
the
increase. A one-off payment of £500 will be made to
eligible
Working Tax Credit claimants across the UK.
* The stamp duty holiday on properties worth up to
£500,000 will
be extended from the end of March until the end of June
and then
there will still be no duty on homes worth up to £250,000
for
another three months. After that, the threshold returns to
the
usual level of £125,000 from October
* A new mortgage guarantee scheme will enable all UK
homebuyers
to secure a mortgage up to £600,000 with a 5%
deposit.
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