Further to our Government Support guide the British Business Bank have now issued their guidance as to eligibility criteria for businesses wishing to access the Coronavirus Business Interruption Loan Scheme (CBILS) as follows:
The British Business Bank qualifying criteria for the loan scheme mean businesses must:
• Be UK based, with turnover of no more than £41 million per annum
• Operate within an eligible industrial sector (a small number of industrial sectors are not eligible for support; see below)
• Be able to confirm that they have not received de minimis State aid beyond €200,000 equivalent over the current and previous two fiscal years
• Have a sound borrowing proposal, but insufficient security to meet the lender’s requirements
The interest free period was extended from 6 months to 12 months on 20 March.
There are certain companies that are not eligible to make the claim (https://www.british-business-bank.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/Ineligible-and-Restricted-Eligibility-Sector-2017.pdf). More eligibility criteria will be published in the coming days and we will provide relevant updates as soon as it is released.
To apply for the funding, a business will need to approach one of the 40+ accredited lenders (https://www.british-business-bank.co.uk/ourpartners/coronavirus-business-interruption-loan-scheme-cbils/accredited-lenders/) directly rather than through the British Business Bank.
As we understand the guidance it is proposed that the scheme will be available to apply for from early next week (w/c 23 March).
We will continue to update our support guide in the coming days, weeks and possibly months in line with further announcements of government measures. Given how fast moving the situation is, we would strongly advise you to keep up-to-date daily and follow the advice from the government and other organisations we have listed in our guide.
See link https://www.nrbarton.co.uk/news/blog/coronavirus-planning-for-business-recovery/ for full details of the options available to businesses from the Government.
See link https://www.nrbarton.co.uk/news/blog/responding-to-coronavirus-covid-19/ for a summary of the key issues for a business to consider as part of the COVID-19 issue.
