Furlough Scheme Portal Delayed - Businesses Put At Risk

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Thousands of businesses could be at risk as the government has indicated that the Furlough Scheme could be delayed until the end of April.

It now looks as if the online portal, which employers will use to make claims, won’t be available until the end of the month, say tax and advisory firm Blick Rothenberg.

 “The government has updated their guidance and it looks as if the portal will not be ready by April 20th as promised.”

– Heather Self 

Tax Partner, Blick Rothenberg

Into May

“Employers are desperate to get the money into their bank accounts. It now looks as if there will be a further delay until at least the first week of May,” continued Self. Adding: “HMRC are working hard to get things up and running, but cashflow is critical and employers need certainty.  Let’s hope the system is ready to go – and robust – next week and is not delayed further.

Nimesh Shah, another partner at Blick Rothenberg said: “Businesses desperately need certainty from the government on the timings when the scheme will be active, as they are precariously managing their cashflow on a daily basis.  The 10-day delay will come as a blow for a number of businesses who were counting on the money to arrive sooner.

“A system like this is incredibly difficult to implement and launch and to do it within a matter of weeks was always going to be challenging for HMRC.  With the delayed launch, it’s hoped that system is accessible and is able to cope with the inevitably high demand.”

Picture: Thousands of employers will b waiting by the computer for the furlough portal to open.

www.cogitalgroup.com

Article written by Cathryn Ellis
16th April 2020

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