Coronavirus Statutory Sick Pay Rebate Scheme guidance updated

HMRC has updated its Coronavirus Statutory Sick Pay Rebate Scheme guidance to clarify the evidence that employers can require from their employees to establish the employer’s eligibility to claim under the scheme.

Eligible employers can use the scheme to claim back up to two weeks of coronavirus-related statutory sick pay (SSP) per employee. HMRC’s guidance has been updated to clarify that, although employees do not need to provide a doctor’s fit note for employers to make a claim, they can request either:

•    an isolation note from NHS 111 – if the employee is self-isolating and cannot work because of coronavirus, or
•    a “shielding note” or a letter from the employee’s doctor or health authority advising them to shield because they are at high risk of severe illness from coronavirus.

The scheme applies where employees are unable to work (including from home) because they:

•    have coronavirus symptoms
•    are self-isolating because someone they live with has symptoms
•    are self-isolating because they’ve been notified by the NHS or public health bodies that they’ve come into contact with someone with coronavirus
•    are shielding and have a letter from the NHS or a GP telling them to stay at home
•    have been notified by the NHS to self-isolate before surgery for up to 14 days.

Employers can make more than one claim per employee, but they cannot claim for more than two weeks of SSP in total for that employee.