Additional “Re-start Week” available for businesses

by | Nov 30, 2020 | General

The Minister for Finance, Paschal Donohoe, announced last week, an addition to the Covid Restrictions Support Scheme (CRSS).

Businesses can now claim for an additional week’s payment to assist them in reopening after a period of 3 weeks or more of Covid restrictions. Once the restrictions are lifted, the claim will be paid the week following.

To make a claim

The qualifying business must first register for CRSS on ROS and then complete a claim in respect of a claim period(s).

The details of the scheme have been published in Finance Bill 2020 and the key features of the scheme are:
  • CRSS is designed to assist those businesses, who as a direct result of the restrictions as set out in the Government’s ‘Living with Covid-19’ Plan, have been forced to temporarily close or been significantly impacted in operating from their premises;
  • The scheme will generally operate when Level 3 or higher is in place and will cease when restrictions are lifted;
  • The scheme will apply to businesses where Government restrictions prohibit or reduce access by customers to their business premises;
  • Qualifying businesses can apply to the Revenue Commissioners for a cash payment in respect of an advance credit for trading expenses for the period of the restrictions;
  • To qualify under the scheme, a business must be able to demonstrate that, because of the Covid restrictions, the turnover of the business in the period for which the restrictions are in operation, and for which a claim is made, will be no more than 25% of an amount equal to the average weekly turnover of the business in 2019 (or average weekly turnover in 2020 in the case of a new business) multiplied by the number of weeks in the period for which a claim is made;
  • The scheme will operate from 13 October 2020 to 31 March 2021 and there is provision for the Minister for Finance to vary aspects of the scheme by Ministerial Order.
This is a further support to businesses to assist with the costs and time on re-opening once restrictions are lifted.

Read more of our Covid Updates here