March/April marks a change of financial year for many, and with it the coming and going of various funds and budgets.
It’s a time when posts are closed and people move through a redundancy process into the next stage of their careers. Hence our monthly Beyond Redundancy: Setting up as a Sole Trader courses.
This year feels more poignant than most, as the effects of Brexit and Conservative policies are landing in parts of the creative industries. And that’s even before we look at the effects of the pandemic.
There are three types of freelancer in the creative industries. This post looks at how announcements made by Chancellor Rishi Sunak on 3 March 2021 affect each type. It focuses on coronavirus support.
For an outline of each type of freelancer, go here >
Now that the formalities of leaving the European Union are behind us it’s time to unpick the practical effects and what it means for people who freelance in the creative industries.
The third coronavirus support grant for sole traders is available from today (30 November 2020) until 29 January 2021. See full details on: gov.uk >
This grant covers three months and, like grant 1, is based on 80% of average monthly profits calculated on sole trader profits between 2016 and 2019.
Much has been made of the fact that the eligibility criteria haven’t changed. If you were helped by the first two grants you’re probably eligible for this one too. Cold comfort for all those who’ve had no support since March.
And just to state the obvious, none of the SEISS grants support single directors of limited companies. In government-speak, directors of limited companies do not fall within the definition of a ‘sole trader’.
Less well publicised has been the addition of further restrictions. These take the form of declarations and predictions that a sole trader now has to make.
From April 2021 the decision on whether someone is truly working for themselves – or is simply an employee in disguise – shifts from the freelancer to the end client in some circumstances.
If you run a limited company this could mean changes to the way tax is paid for some of the jobs you do.
