The following information emerged today (8th April 2020) about claims under the job retention scheme:

The key points are:

  • the HMRC portal for claims is expected to go live on 20 April 2020
  • the first payments are expected to be made on 30 April 2020
  • payments are expected to be made 4-6 days after claims are submitted
  • the portal should be able to cope with up to 50,000 claims per hour
  • HMRC may check claims for fraud for a long time after claims have been made – documentation supporting furloughing must be kept for 5 years
  • employers should claim each month if they pay their staff monthly
  • further guidance on how to claim should be available next week.

If you have any questions on the above please speak to Caroline Banwell at Harmony HR Solutions Ltd.