Corona support measures for businesses
The government is lifting the final corona restrictions on Wednesday, 23 March. The basic rules and advice (such as washing your hands and coughing/sneezing into your elbow) will continue to apply. But you’ll no longer need to wear a face mask on public transport. The advice to work from home half the time, if possible, may also be ending with immediate effect. So, step by step, the Netherlands has been opening up again in recent weeks. And this phasing-out of restrictions also means changes in the support available to businesses.
Supportmeasures from Q2 2022
The government will stop providing corona support measures from the start of the second quarter. Businesses will then no longer be eligible for the Temporary Emergency Bridging Measure for Sustained Employment (NOW) or the Reimbursement of Fixed Costs Scheme (TVL) and will also no longer able to postpone tax payments.
But although the package of support measures is ending, various schemes for specific types of businesses will remain available after the end of the first quarter. These are the guarantee scheme for the events sector, the temporary Small Credits Guarantee (KKC) scheme, and the Business Loan Guarantee (GO-C) and Extended SME Credit Guarantee (BMKB-C) schemes. Meanwhile the Qredits bridging facility will continue until 30 June this year.
Repayment schemes
The past two years have been difficult for many employers (and employees). That’s why the government has provided various schemes to help businesses spread their payments. These include allowing an extended period of five years for paying off tax debts. Help is also available through local municipalities for businesses experiencing debt-repayment problems. On top of that, the government is helping healthy businesses with high levels of debt to survive by making it easier for them to reschedule or restructure. And specifically by the tax authorities agreeing to accept the same payout percentage as other creditors between 1 August 2022 and 30 September 2023, whereas the rate normally applying is double the percentage.
Looking ahead
Although the impact of the currently dominant variant of corona seems to be on a downward trend, there are still a lot of uncertainties going forward. That’s why, this month, the government will be announcing a long-term plan for dealing with the virus and a long-term outlook on the support that may be needed. This is expected to include proposals for dealing with business debts.
