The Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme (CJRS) was announced on 20 March 2020 to support employers in paying their employees throughout the pandemic.
The CJRS has now been open for eighteen months, and after supporting a total of 11.6million jobs through its furlough scheme for at least part of its duration, is due to close on 30 September 2021.
The latest figures show that on 30 June 2021, there were 540,000 employers using the CJRS scheme, with 1.9 million employees still on furlough – a decrease of 590,000 from 31 May. The number of employees on furlough were at their highest in January at 5.1 million and have steadily decreased since then following the easing of restrictions.
Key dates as the CJRS ends
- All claims for furlough days in August must be made by 14 September 2021;
- All claims for furlough days in September must be submitted by 14 October 2021; and
- Any amendments to claims must be made by 28 October 2021.
After you have claimed
It is important to remember that after you have made a claim, a copy of all records must be kept for six years, including details of the amount claimed and the claim period for each employee.
The associated employee tax and National Insurance contributions must still be paid to HMRC.
Payments received under the scheme must also be included as income when calculating taxable profits for Income Tax and Corporation Tax purposes.
When the scheme ends
When the CJRS closes on 30 September employers will need to make the decision to either bring furloughed employees back to work on their agreed terms and conditions or terminate their employment (normal redundancy rules will apply).
Any changes to the terms and conditions of employment will need to be agreed with employees. See details here on changes to an employment contract.