Wage Subsidy Scheme “Mark of honour for employers who did the right thing"

The Chairman of the Revenue Commissioners Niall Cody has urged more businesses to sign up for the government's Covid-19 wage subsidy scheme, which will see employees receiving between 75% - 100% of their wages rather than laying people off.

He assured employers that they will not be deemed insolvent if they avail of the government's Covid-19 wage subsidy scheme, in fact he said it will be a “Mark of honour for employers who did the right thing".

Concerns had emerged that an unpaid wages declaration would effectively be an admission that employers were trading while insolvent.

The key criterion is an employer's declaration that disruption brought about by the pandemic has resulted in sales being cut by 25%.

The Chairman of the Revenue Commissioners Niall Cody said that he does not believe it will be a challenge for employers to prove that their income has been reduced by more than 25% during this crisis.

Chartered Accountants Ireland has recommended that employers keep any supporting records to demonstrate the negative impact so they can clarify issues with Revenue, should they arise.

The Revenue Chairman has however urged employers to be careful when filling out applications for the Government's Covid-19 wage subsidy scheme to ensure that they fill their details in correctly. 

Niall Cody said there are 26,000 employers in the scheme already but there is still a small number, in the hundreds, that entered incorrect bank details. 

Mr Cody said this means Revenue is "sitting on money" that it wants to pay out to companies. 

He told Morning Ireland that €8m was paid to the scheme yesterday and €9m will be paid today.

He added that he believes that number will continue to rise. 

Niall Cody said employers should not worry about being published on the list of companies who applied for the scheme and as mentioned previously he said it will be "a mark of honour for employers who did the right thing". 

Mr Cody said Revenue guidelines show that even if a company has cash reserves for debt or future expansions they can still qualify for the scheme. 

The purpose of the scheme, he said, is to support employers and leave them in a position to be a valid business when the recovery comes.

Mr Cody said businesses applying for the scheme will have an ongoing relationship with Revenue and he does not anticipate that many businesses will need to be reviewed at the end of the scheme.

The purpose for the scheme is to leave companies in a position to be a viable business when we get through COVID-19.

Hear his full interview on this link HERE