Dear PAYadvice.UK,
We want to make sure you have the latest information to help your clients to complete their Company Tax Return (CT600) accurately.
How to include coronavirus support payments in your accounts and company tax return
Coronavirus grants and payments issued by HMRC to support businesses and self-employed individuals during the pandemic are taxable.
If your client needs to complete a Company Tax Return and has claimed any of the following – Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme (CJRS) grants, Eat Out to Help Out (EOHO) payments or any coronavirus support payments made by local authorities, devolved administrations or other public authorities – they’ll need to include them as income when calculating their taxable profits in the usual way.
More information on reporting coronavirus support payments is available on GOV.UK.
Your filing software should automatically tag the amounts using the new ‘Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme income’ or ‘other coronavirus grants’ tags.
More information on calculating taxable profits is available in the Company Tax Return guide.
If you’re completing a Company Tax Return on your client’s behalf, you will need to check with them what coronavirus support payments they received. This is particularly important if another agent made a CJRS claim on their behalf, or your client claimed coronavirus support payments themselves that you may not be aware of.
Additional reporting requirements for CJRS grants and/or EOHO payments
If your client received a CJRS grant and/or an EOHO payment, this will also need to be included in the specific boxes provided on the CT600.
You should:
- put taxable grants and payments in boxes 471, 472 and 647
- put CJRS or EOHO overpayments in boxes 473, 474 and 526.
These boxes were added to the CT600 on 6th April 2021. If your client received a CJRS grant or EOHO payment without completing the relevant boxes, your client’s return may need to be amended.
When to submit an amended return
If your client has already filed their Company Tax Return, they will only need to submit an amended return if:
If your client’s CJRS or EOHO overpayments have already been repaid to HMRC or have already been assessed by us before the tax return was filed, and there’s no overpayment remaining to be declared, there’s no need to amend the return. More information on this is available in the Company Tax Return guide.
- they did not declare all their coronavirus support payments as taxable income
- they have CJRS or EOHO overpayments that they need to declare.
Where can I get further support?
For more information on which support payments to report, how to report them, and what happens if your client has claimed too much, you and your clients can attend a webinar or watch this video about how to report COVID-19 taxable grants and payments.
Warning about scams
We’re sharing this additional advice to help keep you safe. Please also share it with your clients for their security.
If someone contacts you saying they’re from HMRC and wants you to transfer money urgently or give personal information, never let yourself be rushed. There are many different types of scam. Some threaten you with immediate arrest for tax evasion, others offer a tax rebate. Do not panic. We will never phone threatening you with arrest, only criminals do that.
Take your time and check HMRC’s advice about scams on GOV.UK before you do anything. You can also phone us directly, but make sure you use our contact details on GOV.UK. The National Cyber Security Centre has a helpful guide on how to stay secure online and protect yourself or your business against cyber crime, which you can find at cyberaware.gov.uk.
Yours faithfully
Jim Harra
Chief Executive and First Permanent Secretary – HMRC
PAYadvice.UK 24/2/2022
