In July 2020, Chancellor Rishi Sunak delivered his summer statement to aid the UK economy's recovery from the impact of the coronavirus pandemic, and includes the Job Retention Bonus.

Key information 

• The Job Retention Bonus is a one-off payment to employers of £1,000 for every employee who they previously claimed for under the scheme, and who remains continuously employed through to 31 January 2021.
• Eligible employees must earn at least £520 a month on average between the 1 November 2020 and 31 January 2021.
• Employers will be able to claim the Job Retention Bonus after they have filed PAYE for January and payments will be made to employers from February 2021.

Qualifying criteria for employers

• An employer will be able to claim the Job Retention Bonus for any employees that were eligible for the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme and they have claimed a grant for.
• You should ensure you have:
  • Met obligations to pay and file PAYE accurately and on time under the Real Time Information (RTI) reporting system for all employees.
  • Maintained enrolment for PAYE online.
  • A UK bank account
  • Your payroll up to date and accurate.

Which employees an eligible employer can claim for

Employees who:

• Have up-to-date RTI records for the period to the end of January.
• Have been continuously employed by the relevant employer from the time of the employer’s most recent claim for that employee until at least 31 January 2021.
• Were furloughed and had a Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme (CJRS) claim submitted for them that meets all relevant eligibility criteria for the scheme. 
• Have been paid an average of at least £520 a month between 1 November 2020 and 31 January 2021. A total of at least £1,560 across the 3 months. The employee does not have to be paid £520 in each month, but must have received some earnings in each of the three calendar months that have been paid and reported to HMRC via RTI.
• Aren't serving a contractual or statutory notice period, that started before 1 February 2021, for the employer making a claim.

Employers can claim the Job Retention Bonus for all employees who meet the above criteria, including office holders, company directors and agency workers, including those employed by umbrella companies.

Earnings that can be included in the £520 average minimum earnings threshold

• Only earnings recorded through HMRC Real Time Information (RTI) records counts towards the £520 a month average minimum earnings threshold.
• For an employee to be eligible, employees must have been paid at least £520 a month on average between 1 November 2020 and 31 January 2021.
• HMRC will publish detailed guidance in September 2020.

How to claim

• From February 2021, employers will be able to claim the Job Retention Bonus through GOV.UK.
• HMRC will publish more detail about this process in their guidance by the end of September 2020.

What employers should do now if they intend to claim the Job Retention Bonus

• You should ensure your employee records are up-to-date, including accurately reporting your employee’s details and wages on the Full Payment Submission (FPS). 
  • Find out how to reconcile your submissions in Sage 50 Payroll >
• You should also make sure all of your Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme (CJRS) claims are accurately submitted.
  • Check you're using the latest Job Retention Scheme module >