Corona regulations for entrepreneurs: what are you entitled to? (March-October 2020)
Prime minister Rutte said: “Our pockets run deep”, in March 2020 when he announced the “intelligent lockdown”. He announced this as a reaction to the corona-outbreak in The Netherlands. To recover from the economic implications, the government would come with a series of measures for entrepreneurs that are affected by the corona crisis. In theory that sounds great, but entrepreneurs often do not know what they are entitled to, due to the complicated nature of the measures. In this article we will list the most important current (June 2020) compensations and regulations for entrepreneurs.
Up to date
Before going into the regulations, it is important to know that the rules and possibilities are subject to a lot of change. When this article is published (June 2020) the second support package for entrepreneurs has been announced. These are the measures that will be discussed in this article. However, to be informed of the most actual affairs; check the government website or do the regulation check on the Chamber of Commerce.*
***Update October 2020: A new article that lists corona regulations per October 2020 is published here***
Deep pockets
The deep pockets that Rutte mentioned is a financial buffer of 90 billion Euro. That is a lot of money, but is it enough to limit the financial damage? This buffer, therefore is under scrutiny to see where this money is most needed. Because of that, not everyone will be compensated satisfactory.
But if for some entrepreneurs these pockets are not as deep as suggested, other entrepreneurs might be entitled to compensations they are not aware of. To prevent yourself from being excluded from these compensations, you can go through the checklist below. The most important regulations are concisely listed here. Each bullet point refers to supplemental information to claim the measures:
Financial compensations
Compensation entrepreneurs affected sectors (TOGS)
*Tegemoetkoming Ondernemers Getroffen Sectoren COVID-19
What
Compensation of one-time payment of €4.000,- (tax-free).
Who?
Entrepreneurs in sectors that have been directly affected because of the government’s measures.
When?
Applications are accepted until June 26th 2020, 17:00.
Where?
You can apply on the website of the RVO*
Compensation fixed expenses SME (TVL)
*Tegemoetkoming Vaste Lasten MKB (TVL)
What?
Successor to the TOGS. Compensation up to € 50.000,- per 4 months.
Who?
SME-businesses that has seen their revenue decrease with more than 30% during the corona crisis.
When?
From June 1st until September 1st.
Where?
The application is in preparation on RVO.nl*
Temporary Emergency Measure Bridging Employment Opportunities
Tijdelijke Noodmaatregel Overbrugging Werkgelegenheid (NOW )
What?
Compensation in payroll expenses.
Who?
Employers that has seen structural loss in revenue and meet the requirements.
When?
You can apply for the NOW since the April 6th and has since been adapted to NOW 2. With that the measures have been extended until the end of August.
Where?
You can apply at the UWV*.
Temporary bridging regulation self-employed professionals
Tijdelijke overbruggingsregeling zelfstandig ondernemers (TOZO)
What?
Income support up to €1.500 per month
Who?
Self-employed professionals that have seen their income go below welfare level.
When?
TOZO has recently been updated to TOZO and has been extended until the end of August 2020.
Where?
You can apply for TOZO through (the website of) your municipality**
Tax measures
What?
Various measures, including tax extension, lowering of provisional tax assessment and tax interest (article in Dutch).
Who?
Entrepreneurs that have been affected by the corona crisis and pay taxes in The Netherlands.
When?
A sizeable package with measures has been made with various periods.
Where?
Check the Tax Authority website* for a comprehensive overview of the measures and application procedures.
Funding and credit regulations
What?
Various measures to make loans easier and to relieve debt expenses. Among other things there is an expansion to government guarantees on loans and credits, bridging credit, interest rebate or extension of payment.
Who?
Entrepreneurs in general and start/scale ups especially.
When?
Most of the measures are without an end date.
Where?
The website of the Chamber of Commerce* has an overview of all funding and credit measures, conditions and application procedures.
Other measures
The government will also make funding and possibilities available for a number of sector and branch specific measures. For example the cultural sector, entrepreneurs in agriculture, healthcare providers and local media. The EU has also arranged an emergency package for €540 billion to help limit the economic consequences of the corona crisis. Therefore, there are other ways to be eligible for financial compensations, expense relief or extension of payment.
Want to know more?
As an entrepreneur that has been affected by the corona crisis it is important to be well-informed of the financial possibilities and regulations that apply to you. A good starting point is the corona page of the Tax Authorities** or the funding test of the RVO.*