Thousands of Cornish businesses are already benefiting from help with their employer’s National Insurance (NI) costs, but many are not getting what they are entitled to under a Government scheme.
Recent figures from the Treasury indicate that 8,400 businesses in Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly have benefited from the Government’s ‘Employment Allowance’ since it was introduced last April 2014.
The Employment Allowance allows businesses and charities to reduce their national insurance bill by up to £2k a year, and is designed to help them to sustain and create jobs.
Under the scheme, a business employing four people full-time on the National Minimum Wage will pay no employer National Insurance contributions at all, while a business employing three people on the average private sector wage would see their National Insurance bill cut by 25%.
70% of eligible businesses across the country have already claimed their Employment Allowance, but local MP Dan Rogerson is urging Cornish businesses to check if they are eligible.
He said: “It reassuring that many employers in Cornwall have already taken up and are benefitting from the Employment Allowance. Small businesses are the backbone of our local economy, so this support from the Coalition Government worth up £2k is very welcome.
“Take up of the Allowance seems to have been good over the past few months since its introduction – but I would encourage everyone who runs a business to check their eligibility for the Employment Allowance to make sure that they benefit from a reduction in their National Insurance contributions.”
For more information about the Employment Allowance and find out if your business is eligible, click here.
