Cabinet expands support packages after new lockdown

The caretaker government has relaxed the conditions for the various economic support packages that entrepreneurs can apply for in the fourth quarter. The government is doing this because of the strict lockdown that has been introduced.

The outgoing ministers Stef Blok (Economic Affairs, VVD) and Wopke Hoekstra (Finance, CDA) have announced the extension. Entrepreneurs who apply for the NOW scheme can have their wage costs reimbursed up to 90 percent. Previously, this was a maximum of 80 percent.

For the TVL scheme, the Fixed Costs Allowance, companies can already submit an application in the fourth quarter with a 20 percent loss of turnover. The threshold for previous TVL packages was still 30 percent. The application period runs until January 28, 2022.

A stock compensation for the catering and retail trade is not an option. According to the government, such a scheme is difficult to implement.

Adjustments to Tozo

The Temporary Bridging Scheme for Self-Employed Persons (Tozo) states that self-employed persons must start repaying the Tozo working capital loan from 1 January 2022. Due to the lockdown, this is difficult for many self-employed persons. The start of the mandatory repayment will therefore begin on 1 July 2022, six months later. The term, the period from the moment of provision until the moment at which it must be repaid, has also been extended by one year from 5 years to 6 years. Furthermore, users of the Tozo scheme do not owe any interest between January 2022 and June 2022.

In total, the government is allocating an additional 590 million euros to the expansion of the support package. However, the government says that the support packages can be disruptive to the economy and that the money would not always end up in the right places. In order to formulate new policy in the ongoing corona crisis, the government wants to formulate a new long-term vision on the support packages in the third quarter of next year.

More information about the various support packages can be found on Rijksoverheid.nl.