The Statutory Sick Pay Rebate Scheme closed on 30 September 2021.
Employers have until 31 December 2021 to submit any final claims, or to amend claims they have already submitted.
Recap of the scheme
The scheme is for employers that have paid Statutory Sick Pay (SSP) to employees for sickness or self-isolation due to coronavirus.
The repayment can cover up to two weeks of the applicable rate of SSP. The weekly rate was £95.85 before 6 April 2021 and is now £96.35. Employers that pay more than the weekly rate of SSP can only claim up to the weekly rate paid.
Employers can claim from the first qualifying day an employee was off work if the period of sickness started on or after
- 13 March 2020 – if the employee has coronavirus, or the symptoms, or is self-isolating because someone they live with has symptoms;
- 16 April 2020 – if the employee is shielding because of coronavirus;
- 28 May 2020 – if the employee has been notified by the NHS or public health bodies that they’ve come into contact with someone with coronavirus; or
- 26 August 2020 – if the employee has been notified by the NHS to self-isolate before surgery.
Claimants must have
- A PAYE payroll scheme that was created and started on or before 28 February 2020; and
- Fewer than 250 employees on 28 February 2020 across all their PAYE payroll schemes.
The scheme covers all types of employment contracts, including full-time, part-time, agency, flexible or zero-hours or fixed term contracts.
Claims can be made through both the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme and the Coronavirus Statutory Sick Pay Rebate Scheme for the same employee, but not for the same period of time.
More than one claim can be made per employee, but employers cannot claim for more than two weeks in total.
Record-keeping
Employers must keep records of the SSP that has been paid and that they wish to claim back from HMRC.
The following records must be kept for three years after the date payment is received
- The dates the employee was off sick;
- Which of those dates were qualifying days
- The reason the employee was off work – if they had symptoms, someone they lived with had symptoms or they were shielding; and
- The employee’s National Insurance number.
Making a claim
Employees’ sick pay must be paid before it can be claimed back from HMRC.