Interpretation around furloughing yourself as a Director of a Limited company and being able to claim under the CJRS scheme is coming to light. There is no doubt that to qualify for CJRS you must stop any income-generating activity. However, we understand that statutory duties can be carried out during your furlough period but if you continue to work, albeit, with reduced hours/productivity, you will not qualify. How this relates to a Finance Director (or Company Secretary) who would never generate income is currently unclear. You must also remember that the minimum furlough period is 3 weeks and is not something that can be opted into or out of on a daily or weekly basis.
The scheme will be unlikely to be as generous as the self-employment income support scheme previously announced as it only relates to salary. Many Directors take the majority of their income via dividends, which unfortunately will not be included in the calculations made by the Government.
It is also important to note that the scheme will not be available to your business if you do not have a payroll or if you haven’t previously received a salary from the company. As well as the point previously mentioned, that you must stop working for the company beyond your statutory obligations.
If you would like to discuss furloughing yourself, fellow directors or your employees, please click here to discuss this further with a member of our experienced team. We remain working from home and will keep up with the latest developments regarding all schemes set in place by the Government during this time.