Triple Whammy?

I have seen lots of questions on whether you can be furloughed and still claim under the self employed scheme and still claim Universal Credit.

The simple answer is Yes, they are not mutually exclusive.

There are conditions to each scheme. For more details see our COVID-19 HUB page.

In brief:

Furlough

Your employer decides if they are going to furlough you. They pay you a minimum of 80% of your normal salary, which is subject to normal deductions.

Your employer will apply for and receive a grant back from the government to offset this cost ( ie 80% of normal salary plus Employers NIC & pension).

There is no cost to your employer, BUT it will affect their cash-flow, as the grant is unlikely to be paid until end of April.

Self employed Income Scheme (SEIS)

HMRC will contact you if you are eligible - see COVID-19 HUB for criteria.

You will have to complete an online form.

If eligible, you will receive a grant, to the equivalent of 3 months of your average trading profit over the last three trading years, with reference to your filed self-assessment returns for 2016-17, 2017-18 and 2018-19 .

The grant will be paid directly into your bank account some time towards the end of June.

Universal Credit

You apply for Universal Credit .

You can check your eligibility here: Eligibility

With more details available here: Universal Credit

My understanding is that your initial claim is based on your current circumstances

BUT you will need to advise them of a change in circumstances, if and when you receive the self-employed grant.

So it is possible to receive financial help under all three schemes.