Impact assessment

Self-Employment Income Support Scheme (SEISS)

Published 13 October 2022

Project objectives 

The Self-Employment Income Support Scheme (SEISS) was designed to support self-employed individuals (including members of partnerships) whose self-employment activities have been adversely affected by COVID-19.

The scheme also sought to quickly target individuals most reliant on their self-employment income who would otherwise have lost out financially due to COVID-19; enable self-employed people to remain in business; and minimise the risk of error and fraud (E&F).

There were 5 grants in total paid out between 13 May 2020 and 30 September 2021. As the scheme developed the rules were adapted to admit new groups and to ensure the grants remained targeted at those most in need of support as the pandemic progressed.  

Customer groups affected 

The UK self-employed population made up of sole traders/individuals and partners who met the eligibility criteria (approximately 3.36 million individual Self-Assessment customers). 

Design and eligibility  

The scheme was designed to support the self-employed and members of partnerships. 

The SEISS was announced on 26 March 2020 as part of the UK government’s support package for businesses and self-employed people during the coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak in early 2020.  

The scheme was open to self-employed individuals and members of a partnership who met the following criteria: 

• traded in the tax year 2018 to 2019 and submitted their Self Assessment tax return on or before 23 April 2020 for that year
• traded in the tax year 2019 to 2020
• intended to continue to trade in the tax year 2020 to 2021 
• carried on a trade which had been adversely affected by COVID-19 

A business could be adversely affected by COVID-19 if for example:

• they were unable to work because they:  
  • were shielding 
  • were self-isolating
  • were on sick leave because of COVID-19
  • had caring responsibilities because of COVID-19  
• they had to scale down or temporarily stop trading because:  
  • their supply chain had been interrupted 
  • they had fewer or no customers or clients
  • their staff were unable to come in to work

The grant was not open to limited companies or those operating a trade through a trust. 

To work out eligibility, HMRC first looked at the 2018 to 2019 Self Assessment tax return. Trading profits must have been between £0 and £50,000 and at least equal to non-trading income. If an individual was not eligible based on the 2018 to 2019 Self Assessment tax return, HMRC then looked at an average of the tax years 2016 to 2017, 2017 to 2018, and 2018 to 2019. 

The scheme allowed an eligible individual to claim a taxable grant worth 80% of three months’ average trading profits, paid out in a single instalment and capped at £7,500 in total.

The first grant opened for claims 13 May 2020 and closed on 13 July 2020.

On the 17 August 2020 applications for the second grant opened. This was a taxable grant worth 70% of three months’ average trading profits, paid out in a single instalment and capped at £6,570 in total. To be eligible the individual’s business had to be adversely affected due to COVID-19 on or after 14 July 2020. The second grant closed for claims on 19 October 2020. 

On 30 November 2020 applications for the third grant opened. This was a taxable grant worth 80% of three months’ average trading profits, paid out in a single instalment and capped at £7,500 in total. The third grant closed for claims on 29 January 2021. 

To be eligible for the third grant an individual’s business had to be impacted due to COVID-19 on or after 1 November 2020, and the individual had to declare they intended to continue to trade and either:  

• were currently trading but were impacted by reduced activity, capacity or demand due to COVID-19
• were trading but were temporarily unable to do so due to COVID-19
• had to also declare that they reasonably believed that any reduced activity, capacity or demand or inability to trade due to coronavirus during the period 1 November 2020 to 29 January 2021, would result in a significant reduction in trading profits for the year those profits were reported in, compared to what they would otherwise expect to have achieved
• that they intended to continue to trade

The government announced at Spring Budget 2021 that the SEISS would continue until September 2021, with a fourth and a final fifth grant. 

For both the fourth and fifth grants the income rules remained unchanged, and the person had to:  

• carry on a trade the business of which had been adversely affected due to COVID-19 in the qualifying period (1 February to 30 April 2021 for the fourth grant)  
• have carried on a trade in the tax years 2019 to 2020 and 2020 to 2021  
• intended to continue to carry on a trade in the tax year 2021 to 2022 
• submitted their Self Assessment tax return for 2019 to 2020 on or before 2 March 2021

On 22 April 2021 applications for the fourth grant opened. The claims window closed on 1 June 2021. As with the previous grants eligibility was based on a person’s tax returns for either: 

• the 2019 to 2020 tax year
• an average of the consecutive tax years 2016 to 2017, 2017 to 2018, 2018 to 2019, and 2019 to 2020, if a person was not eligible based on 2019 to 2020 alone

With the 2019 to 2020 tax year assessed for the first time, some individuals could claim a grant that were previously unable to do so. These individuals were either: 

• newly self-employed, meaning the individual started trading in 2019 to 2020 having not traded in any of 2016 to 2017, 2017 to 2018 or 2018 to 2019
• previously ineligible based on their tax returns, for example because their trading profit was less than their non-trading income

The fourth grant was a taxable grant based on 80% of 3 months’ average trading profits, paid out in a single instalment and capped at £7,500. 

On 29 July 2021 applications for the fifth grant opened. The person’s business had to be impacted due to COVID-19 in the qualifying period (1 May 2021 to 30 September 2021). The claims window closed on 30 September 2021. This grant introduced 2 levels of grant based on the reduction in turnover experienced between an individual’s reference year (either 2018 to 2019 or 2019 to 2020) and their pandemic year (a 12-month period starting between 1 April and 6 April 2021 inclusive). These 2 levels were either: 

• a grant of 80% of 3 months’ average trading profits capped at £7,500 for those with a turnover down by 30% or more  
• a grant of 30% of 3 months’ average trading profits capped at £2,850 for those with a turnover down by less than 30%

To be eligible for the higher grant, the individual’s turnover must have fallen by 30% or more between their reference year and the pandemic year. Newly self-employed individuals were not subject to the turnover test and could claim the higher grant. 

Specific arrangements

SEISS 1 to 3

As the scheme progressed, changes were made to include 2 previously ineligible groups: 

New parents:

Self-employed parents who were caring for a new child and who either did not submit a tax return for 2018 to 2019, or whose trading profits in 2018 to 2019 were less than their other income and were therefore ineligible for the SEISS were included in the scheme if they met the other eligibility criteria. This group were brought in for the second grant and could make backdated claims for the first grant. They were then eligible for the later grants, provided they met the specific criteria for each grant. 

Reservists:

The government also opened the SEISS to self-employed army, navy and air force reservists who were previously ineligible because of their service. Those in scope either did not file a return for 2018 to 2019 or did file a return but their salary and compensation paid by the MoD for their services as a reservist meant their trading profits were less that their other income. 

Specific arrangements allowed military reservists to calculate their eligibility and grant based on up to 2 years of Self Assessment tax returns covering the years 2016 to 2017 and 2017 to 2018, provided they had at least 90 days’ Ministry of Defence service in the tax year 2018 to 2019. As for new parents, this group were brought in for the second grant, and could make backdated claims for the first grant, and claims for later grants, provided they met all the criteria. 

SEISS 4 to 5 

For the fourth and fifth grants, the equivalent arrangements applied with reference to the tax year 2019 to 2020, and as stated above customers needed to have filed their Self Assessment tax return for the year 2019 to 2020 by 2 March 2021 to be potentially eligible.  

Consequently, some customers who were ineligible for previous grants became eligible for the fourth and fifth grant, and some who were previously eligible might have become ineligible. 

Reservists who met all other eligibility criteria were included in the potentially eligible population based on Ministry of Defence data already obtained and were invited to claim in line with the rest of the population.  

Customers who verified as new parents under the first 3 grants were included in the general population and invited to claim, providing they met all other eligibility criteria.  

For the fourth and fifth grants, guidance pointed potentially eligible new parents to the Parental Verification Route accessible through the helpline, in line with the first 3 grants. This small self-identified population was handled via a manual process, allowing for a bespoke eligibility assessment that, if successful, delivered a notification to claim.  

This screening equality impact assessment relates to the operational delivery of the SEISS. 

What customers needed to do

What customers needed to do as a result of the change

For all 5 SEISS grants, eligible self-employed customers could make a claim online or via the telephone service. All potentially eligible customers were sent communication directly via an email, SMS or letter from HMRC, with supplementary social media, agent and stakeholder engagement designed to further promote awareness.

HMRC identified the potentially eligible population based on the information from their relevant tax returns that indicated they met the eligibility criteria that were based on tax returns. Claimants were required to confirm they met the trading and affected by COVID rules at the point of claim, either by completing the relevant screens in the online service or by confirming the details to HMRC helpline staff. Both services included a declaration where the customer confirmed they were eligible for the grant.

For the fifth grant, in addition to meeting the criteria for the previous grants, customers were required to complete a Financial Impact Declaration, as explained above. This involved entering their pandemic year turnover (April 2020 to April 2021) and their reference year turnover for the tax year 2019 to 2020, or 2018 to 2019 if that was more representative of usual business performance, into the claims service. HMRC published guidance to help claimants ensure this information was accurate, and agents were able to assist with the calculations.

New parents who were previously ineligible could contact HMRC to request that their details be verified and their eligibility for the scheme be reassessed. If their eligibility changed, they were able to apply through the digital service or by telephone. 

How customers accessed this service

Customers could access a stand-alone digital service using their Government Gateway Credentials, or could call an HMRC contact centre to confirm eligibility and be taken through the application process for the SEISS grants. Claims could not be made by agents or third parties, and the claimant had to provide bank details to enable the grant to be paid. 

When customers needed to do this

Self-employed individuals needed to make their grant claims within the specific claims windows. HMRC notified customers that they were potentially eligible for a SEISS grant. For each grant, customers received an allocated personal claim date. Claims windows were open as follows: 

Scheme	Claims open	Claims close
SEISS1	13 May 2020	13 July 2020
SEISS2	17 August 2020	19 October 2020
SEISS3	30 November 2020	29 January 2021
SEISS4	22 April 2021	01 June 2021
SEISS5	29 July 2021	30 September 2021

Assessing the impact

Before the scheme started, we assessed the equality impacts on all the protected characteristic groups in line with the Equality Act and Public Sector Equality Duty and section 75 of the Northern Ireland Act:

• racial groups
• sex
• sexual orientation
• marriage and civil partnership
• people with dependents and those without
• political opinion (for Northern Ireland only)

There is no evidence to suggest any specific impacts on those customers within any of the protected characteristic groups (listed above).

The following equality impacts were identified:

Disabled and not disabled 

Impact on customers

SEISS was open to disabled and not disabled customers equally. Customers who used screen readers to access digital content or have accessibility issues were not able to instruct a third party to apply for the grant on their behalf.

Mitigation provided

HMRC’s dedicated helpline and Extra Support Team services were available for customers who could not, for whatever reason, interact with HMRC digitally or who needed additional support and reassurance to make their claim.  

Guidance was available on GOV.UK and was regularly updated. The guidance pointed to HMRC’s SEISS helpline, webchats, minicom, and translation services which were all available to provide direct support. HMRC also provided webinars and YouTube videos to support customers with the scheme and to make their claims. 

Although agents were not able to claim SEISS grants on behalf of their clients, HMRC provided support via contact centres on the completion of applications where needed. Agents were provided with information to allow them to support/prepare their clients to make these claims. Representative bodies were involved in developing the scheme communications and guidance products to ensure they were easy to understand, and they cascaded HMRC’s guidance to their members and clients.  

HMRC engages with and provides support through various products to stakeholders including agents. HMRC provides additional assistance for customers who are deaf or hearing impaired, blind or partially sighted. All GOV.UK web content adheres to national and international standards.

Gender reassignment

Impact on customers

Sensitivity is required around the provision of digital solutions that allow the use of gender-neutral titles. HMRC is, in the short term, operating a differentiated service for this customer group to satisfy data security needs. This may not be welcome to customers in this protected characteristic group who would prefer to interact digitally. 

Mitigation provided

Our customer record provides functionality to allow the use of gender-neutral titles. Secure records status was applied to individual records where the customer informed HMRC of gender reassignment. This meant that data related to this individual was tokenised. Only those with appropriate permissions and job roles could access data from secure records. 

Additionally, a process specifically for sensitive access accounts was developed to ensure those customers who have secure records were able to apply (if eligible) like all other potentially eligible customers.

Age

Impact on customers

The population potentially eligible for SEISS covers all age groups. There was no evidence to suggest there were any specific impacts on customers within this protected characteristic group. Some older generation customers may be more hesitant to engage digitally, although it was recognised this is not the case for all, particularly as many small businesses now operate online.

Mitigation provided

The main channel for application was via a new digital platform and customers who were not yet registered for the Government Gateway were contacted and asked to register digitally.

Age was not a deciding factor in prioritising that contact, and manual processes were also designed to allow customers to apply for a SEISS grant via non-digital channels.

HMRC also offered a dedicated helpline and Extra Support Team services for customers who could not, for whatever reason, interact with HMRC digitally or who needed additional support and reassurance to make their claim.

Religion or belief 

Impact on customers 

The population potentially eligible for SEISS consisted of customers with various religious beliefs. This meant the intrinsic values of some religions, such as Judaism (Sabbath) and Islam (Ramadan) may limit the times of day or week when customers in this group could interact with HMRC Services.

Some religious groups, such as the Plymouth Brethren, follow rules related to computer use that may affect access to digital services.

Mitigation provided 

Digital provision offered choice to individuals in this group to self-serve outside of traditional business hours to suit their needs.

Each claim window was open for several weeks, allowing all groups as much flexibility as possible to make their claim at a time and date that suited them.

HMRC also offered a dedicated helpline and Extra Support Team for customers who could not, for whatever reason, interact with HMRC digitally or who need additional support and reassurance to make their claim.

Pregnancy and maternity 

Impact on customers

As described above under ‘Specific arrangements’ self-employed parents, who did not submit a tax return for 2018 to 2019 or whose trading profits in 2018 to 2019 were less than their other income and were therefore ineligible for the SEISS, were included in the scheme if they met the other eligibility criteria. As HMRC is unable to determine potential eligibility for this group from Self Assessment tax returns a bespoke certification process was introduced to ensure eligible customers could claim these grants.

Mitigation provided

Specific arrangements were put in place for customers having a new child. This group were brought in for the second grant and could make backdated claims for the first grant.

These customers were able to verify their status as new parents with HMRC via a manual process. The SEISS guidance included clear instructions that this group should contact HMRC to verify that having a new child had affected their eligibility. This process required evidence of birth/adoption to be provided. Once verified this group were able to claim all 5 grants, providing they met all other eligibility criteria.

People who use different languages (Including Welsh language and British Sign Language)

Impact on customers

The population consists of a diverse range of people who use different languages (including the Welsh language and British Sign Languages). Communication in English may not always be suitable for this group.

Mitigation provided 

The SEISS project engaged with the Welsh Language Unit early ensuring letters, online services and contact with customers could be provided in Welsh in line with HMRC’s legal commitment under the 1993 Welsh Language Act. In addition, when the customer called the helpline, all the call guides started by asking if the customer needed an interpreter or a Welsh language adviser.

Opportunities to promote equalities

We have considered opportunities to promote equalities and good relations between people in each of the protected characteristic groups and those outside of that group. This was monitored via risks and issues being presented at:  

• regular project boards with key stakeholders
• regular governance board meetings to review ineligible claims 
• scheduled regular checkpoints between key stakeholders 
• customer forums and consultation with the expert panel (a group of key personnel from the main taxpayer representative bodies) allowed opportunity for feedback on the service
• feedback was provided regularly from complaints received and the Complaints Adjudicator and action taken to improve customer service as appropriate
• both media and social media were regularly reviewed to identify any significant risks in relation to the service or impact on those within the equality groups assessed, with any issues flagged at one of the project or operational governance meetings
• HMRC’s official statistics categorised users of the scheme and included some data in respect of the equality groups assessed; this data was used to monitor the effectiveness of the scheme and equality assessments   
• we reviewed our enhanced support customer control group at the midpoint of each claims window to assess the take up and consider other mitigations where there was an identified issue

A full equality impact assessment is not recommended.