Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what further steps he plans to take to support people in receipt of Self-Employment Income Support Scheme grants who are facing difficulties in paying their taxes.

The Government has supported UK households throughout the pandemic with nearly £400 billion of COVID support, including through the Self-Employment Income Support Scheme (SEISS) which provided over £28 billion in grants to 2.9 million individuals.

The Government does not think it is right to allow SEISS recipients to alter the rate of tax paid on that income over time. When announcing the scheme on 26 March 2020, and in subsequent SEISS guidance throughout the life of the scheme, the Chancellor set out that these grants are taxable: https://www.gov.uk/government/speeches/chancellor-outlines-new-coronavirus-support-measures-for-the-self-employed

The SEISS was designed to support those whose income had dropped temporarily due to COVID-19. Like self-employed income, SEISS grant payments are subject to Income Tax and self-employed National Insurance contributions at the recipient’s rate of Income Tax in the year they were received. This ensures fairness for recipients of support across various schemes, and for the taxpayers who are funding the schemes. Taxes help to fund public services from which we all benefit, such as the NHS.

The Government has implemented an unprecedented package of support for taxpayers struggling with paying tax liabilities. HMRC has scaled up its longstanding Time to Pay policy, which allows any business or individual in temporary financial difficulty to schedule their tax debts into affordable, sustainable, and tailored instalment arrangements. Anyone experiencing difficulties paying their tax bill can discuss payment options with HMRC. HMRC are committed to supporting taxpayers through difficult times and will do everything possible to help. There are further details available on GOV.UK or by calling the Self-Assessment payment helpline.