A second grant is available until Monday 19 October 2020, though the government last month announced an extension to the existing Self-Employment Income Support Scheme (SEISS) as part of the Winter Economy Plan, starting in November.

Currently, the grant is worth 70% of people’s average monthly trading profits, capped at £2,190 per month for three months, so £6,570 in total.

In order to be eligible, claimants need to prove they’ve been adversely affected by coronavirus on or after 14 July 2020.

They also need to meet the following criteria:

• Traded in the tax year 2018/19 and submitted your Self-assessment tax return on or before 23 April 2020 for that year
• Traded in the tax year 2019/20
• Intend to continue to trade in the tax year 2020/21
• Trading profits must be no more than £50,000 and at least equal to your non-trading income.

It’s not available to those who trade through a limited company or a trust.

But, you can make a claim for the second grant even if you didn’t make a claim for the first grant.

SEISS extension

An initial taxable grant will be provided to those who are currently eligible for SEISS and are continuing to actively trade but face reduced demand due to coronavirus.

The initial lump sum will cover three months’ worth of profits for the period from November to the end of January next year. This will be worth 20% of average monthly profits, up to a total of £1,875.

An additional second grant, which may be adjusted to respond to changing circumstances, will be available for self-employed individuals to cover the period from February 2021 to the end of April.

The level of the second grant will be set in due course.

The grants are subject to Income Tax and National Insurance Contributions.