Please also seek assistance from the Law Society. The Crisis Practice Support initiative was recently set up to provide sole practitioners and other small practice proprietors with personalised supports, information, and guidance on COVID-19 challenges. Support is available via the Law Society website.
COVID-19 payments
Self-employed people who are in financial difficulty are encouraged to apply for financial support from the Exchequer, primarily through the COVID-19 Pandemic Unemployment Payment. This support involves a new social-welfare payment of €350 per week – to be paid for up to 12 weeks.
To qualify, a person must meet several criteria, which include two stipulations that may cause difficulty for many self-employed solicitors:
- You must have stopped trading as self-employed due to the pandemic. This requirement seems to rule out solicitors who have closed (or effectively closed) their offices, but who are still doing occasional work to keep matters progressing and to care for clients.
- There is also a rule that you cannot claim the COVID-19 Pandemic Unemployment Payment if you are continuing to receive income from your employment.
There is a lot of uncertainty about how the rules will be applied to self-employed people.
For instance, the Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection provides quite a contrasting perspective on their website when they advise that “you may, if your trading income has collapsed to the extent that you are available to take up other full-time employment if it was offered to you, receive a payment of €350 per week for so long as you are available to take up other work”.
The best advice is to submit an application if you need financial support – and do not delay in doing this.
If Intreo (the public employment service and single point of contact for all employment and income supports) considers some other initiative more appropriate for you, let it make that call. What you should focus on is making a credible application before the financial challenges spiral out of control.
Jobseeker’s Benefit
Jobseeker’s Benefit (Self-Employed) is a weekly payment from the Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection to people who lose their self-employment. If you don’t qualify for Jobseeker’s Benefit (Self-Employed), you may qualify for Jobseeker’s Allowance. However, Jobseeker’s Allowance is means tested.
To qualify for Jobseeker’s Benefit, you need to have paid the required number of Class S PRSI contributions. For both supports, you need to be not currently engaged in self-employment. Both supports are not normally paid in a temporary shutdown situation, but this rule seems not to apply in the current COVID-19 crisis.
Self-employed people who have a dependent spouse and/or children may be able to access more money on Jobseeker’s Benefit than on the Pandemic Unemployment Payment.
Short Time Work Support
Self-employed solicitors can qualify for Short Time Work Support if they work three days or less a week. This is a form of Jobseeker’s Benefit/Allowance and is subject to the same qualifying rules as outlined above (Class S PRSI contributions for a benefit payment, and a means test for the allowance).
This scheme may work for a solicitor who is, for instance, working just one day a week. If judged eligible, they will qualify for a payment equal to 80% of their Jobseeker’s Benefit or Allowance.
Wage-subsidy scheme
The Temporary COVID-19 Wage Support Scheme provides financial assistance for qualifying businesses that continue to employ staff.
However, it is important to note that no support is provided within this initiative for the business owner(s) themselves, regardless of how bad a financial position they may be in. This initiative just supports employers to keep on staff – it does not assist the employer.
The scheme pays employers 70% of the gross money paid to staff, to a maximum of €410 a week. Employees paid over €38,000 a year by their employer are subsidised on a reducing rate. Someone paid €76,000 and above is not subsidised at all.
Employers have to be experiencing significant economic disruption due to COVID-19 and need to be able to demonstrate that their turnover, or orders coming in, have reduced by a minimum of 25%. There was a requirement that the business had to be unable to fully pay normal wages and normal outgoings. However, this requirement appears to have been abandoned.
Business support grants
This initiative (Business Continuity Voucher) is aimed at businesses that employ up to 50 people across all business sectors. The voucher is worth up to €2,500 and covers third-party consultancy costs. These vouchers can be used by businesses to develop short-term and long-term strategies to respond to the pandemic.
Rates deferral
The Government has agreed support for businesses affected by COVID-19 through commercial rates deferral.
Working capital supports
The Credit Guarantee Scheme supports loans up to €1 million for periods of up to seven years. Applications can be made to AIB, BOI and Ulster Bank. Eligibility criteria apply.
Micro-enterprises can access COVID-19 loans of up to €50,000 from MicroFinance Ireland. The terms include a six months’ interest-free and repayment-free moratorium, with the loan then repaid over the remaining 30 months of the 36-month loan period. Businesses can apply through their Local Enterprise Office.
Law Society crisis support
We at the Law Society understand that this is a worrying and difficult time for our members. Our Crisis Practice Support service was recently set up to provide sole practitioners and other small practice proprietors with personalised support, information, and guidance on COVID-19 challenges. Support is available at:
We hope to be of assistance during this uncertain time to help navigate the range of COVID-19 supports that are available. Please do not hesitate to contact us at the above web address.