The government have announced further support to small and medium-sized businesses affected by Covid-19 in the form of a Bounce Back Loan.
The Bounce Back Loan scheme is due to be launched on 4th May 2020 and will help small and medium-sized businesses to borrow between £2,000 and £50,000. The government will guarantee 100% of the loan and there won’t be any interest or fees to pay for the first 12 months. The terms of the loans will be up to a maximum of 6 years. No repayments will be due during the first 12 months. The government are working with lenders to agree a low rate of interest for the remaining period of the loan.
Eligibility for these loans will be far more streamlined than the Coronavirus Business Interruption Loans (CBILS) previously offered to businesses, with the criteria being as follows:
- Your business is based in the UK
- Your business has been negatively affected by Covid-19
- Your business was not ‘undertaking in difficulty’ on 31st December 2019
The following businesses are not eligible to apply:
- banks, insurers and reinsurers (but not insurance brokers)
- public-sector bodies
- further-education establishments, if they are grant-funded
- state-funded primary and secondary schools
You cannot apply if you are already claiming under the Coronavirus Business Interruption Loan Scheme (CBILS), however, if you have already received a loan of up to £50,000 under CBILS and would like to transfer it into the Bounce Back Loan scheme, you can arrange this with your lender until 4th November 2020.
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