Further support for self-employed dental practitioners

The Chancellor, Rishi Sunak, has unveiled the Winter Economy Plan, which outlined the additional government support to self-employed dental practitioners. Part of this plan is to extend the Self Employment Income Support Scheme (SEISS) which will provide critical support to the self-employed dental sector.

The grant will be limited to self-employed individuals who are currently eligible for the SEISS and are actively continuing to trade but are facing reduced demand due to COVID-19.

The eligibility criteria for the SEISS grant states that you must have been adversely affected by COVID-19 and that average self-employed earnings (from all sources) over the last three tax years have not exceeded £50k pa. HMRC have confirmed that if part of a dental practitioners’ income (private income) reduces, but another part remains the same (NHS income), it is legitimate for a claim to be made in full and retained.  Please note that there is no requirement for the practitioner to have made a claim for the previous SEISS grant.

The extension will provide two grants and will last for six months from November 2020 to April 2021. Grants will be paid in two lump sum instalments each covering a three-month period.

The first grant will cover 3 months’ worth of profits from the start of November until the end of January. It will be worth 20% of average monthly profits and will capped at £1,875 in total. The second grant will cover a three-month period from the start of February until the end of April. The Government will review the level of the second grant and set this in due course.

Please remember that the grants are subject to Income Tax and National Insurance Contributions.

HMRC will provide full details about the claiming and application process in due course but if you have any questions or want to discuss your own circumstances, please please email our EQ Healthcare team on healthcare@eqaccountants.co.uk or call 01382 312100.