You may remember that in his budget on 17th March 2020, the Chancellor anounced a raft of measures to support businesses through the CODIV-19 crisis.
Among these measures was the fact that if you were off sick or self-isolating because of COVID-19, from Friday 20th March Statutory Sick Pay (SSP) could now be paid from day 1 instead of day 4, and that employers could now claim it back.
The mechanism with which you can claim back the SSP is now available. It can be claimed online on the gov.uk website through your PAYE online account, or your agent can claim it back on your behalf.
What you can claim
The repayment will cover up to 2 weeks Statutory Sick Pay starting from the first day of sickness, if an employee is unable to work because they:
- have coronavirus symptoms
- cannot work because they are self-isolating because someone they live with has symptoms
- are shielding and have a letter from the NHS or a GP telling them to stay at home for at least 12 weeks
You can claim for periods of sickness starting on or after:
- 13 March 2020 – if your employee had coronavirus or the symptoms or is self-isolating because someone they live with has symptoms
- 16 April 2020 – if your employee was shielding because of coronavirus
The weekly rate was £94.25 before 6 April 2020 and is now £95.85. If you’re an employer who pays more than the weekly rate of Statutory Sick Pay you can only claim up to the weekly rate paid.
