6. April 2021
The second Easter in the pandemic is over and there is no end to the restrictions in sight. The only good news: not only has the bridging aid III been improved, but a new equity grant is also intended to provide more financial support to particularly stressed companies. Those announced on April 1st Rework followed after complaints from many companies and associations.
Equity grant for hardship cases
The corona crisis is pushing many companies and industries to their limits. The equity grant is intended to provide help in particular where sales have slumped by at least 50 percent after three calculated months. This applies from November 2020 to June 2021.
The additional aid is paid out in stages and calculated on the basis of the guaranteed bridging aid III. In the first two months of the loss, there is no payment in addition to the bridging allowance, from the third there is a surcharge of 25 percent. For the fourth month, an additional 35 percent is reimbursed and from the fifth it is 40 percent. Anyone who suffers a drop in sales of more than 70 percent should be reimbursed up to 100 percent of the billable fixed costs.
Rework for travel, events, and culture industries
The improvements to Bridging Aid III primarily affect the travel, event and cultural sectors and retailers, wholesalers and manufacturers. The so-called “start-up aid” for the event and travel industry is provided in addition to the general flat-rate for personnel costs of 20 percent of the wage bill. In addition, the event and culture industry can also claim downtime and preparation costs.
In addition, the special depreciation options for seasonal goods and perishable goods for retailers are being expanded to include manufacturers and wholesalers. However, the German Trade Association (HDE) still sees reason for complaint. “The owners of many smaller shops are still on their own. Because they still have no way of considering an entrepreneur’s wage in state aid. Personnel costs that are not covered by the short-time allowance are also not taken into account ”, so HDE General Manager Stefan Genth.
Solo self-employed with options
Self-employed persons and entrepreneurs are given a subsequent right to choose between restart aid and bridging aid III at the time of the final settlement. Anyone who would have received comparatively higher benefits from one or the other can now change their choice retrospectively.
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