Tier 2 (Closed) FAQs

The Tier 2 LRSG (Closed) scheme is available to pubs and bars that were required to close because they did not serve a substantial meal when selling alcohol. The business must be responsible for paying business rates for that building.

Businesses can apply for a grant of up to approximately £2,500 per 24-day period.

The Tier 2 (Closed) Scheme payment thresholds are:

If you received a November National Lockdown payment then you will be contacted directly with a declaration form to confirm your business is still trading.

Grant income received by a business is taxable, therefore the support grant will be subject to tax. Only businesses that make an overall profit once grant income is included will be subject to tax.

 In line with government guidelines, the council needs to confirm that recipients of grant funding comply with all the scheme conditions, including eligibility, State aid/subsidy control requirements, and the provision of information to the local authority to support monitoring and assurance. This will ensure financial support continues to reach the right businesses.

By accepting the grant each recipient confirms that they are eligible for the scheme.

If a local authority subsequently finds that this self-declaration is incorrect it will be able to take action and the business would be liable for clawback.

Log in to your MyHuntingdonshire account.

Once signed in, click on 'Track my requests'

Click on the 'Complete' tab and then click on the arrow for the declaration.

This will then open as below - click on the 'Notes' tab to view any updates.

We will notify you here that it has passed and moved on to payment.

If there are no Notes here your application may have been sent for review by the team, which we aim to complete within 3-5 working days of submission.

The business must have been trading the day before restrictions came into force. For Tier 2 (Closed) this date is 1 December 2020.

Eligible businesses that are within the relevant local authority area required to close will receive a Tier 2 (Closed) grant for each eligible hereditament. Businesses will be able to claim for all eligible hereditaments within the area established by local restrictions that were on the rating list on the first full day of local restrictions.

However, businesses must remain within the financial thresholds set by State aid/subsidy control law, which may be reached if businesses have previously received State aid/subsidy control funding. Please see the State aid/subsidy control section for more information.

Each hereditament will only have one registered ratepayer. They will take receipt of the grant.

Yes, they could fall under non-essential retail and can apply if they have a Business Rates number. Please note that when applying you will need to upload evidence of your Charity Commission number.

Yes, any town and parish councils that qualified and received a Local Restrictions Support Grant will be eligible for this funding.

 A business may decline the grant.

Any changes to the rating list – both to the rateable value and the details – made after the first full day of localised restrictions, including changes that have been backdated to this date, should be ignored for the purposes of eligibility.

Only in cases where it was factually clear to the local authority on the first day of restrictions that the rating list was inaccurate on that date, local authorities may withhold the grant and/or award the grant based on their view of who would have been entitled to the grant had the list been accurate. This is entirely at the discretion of the local authority and only intended to prevent manifest errors.

These grants have been created to provide support to active businesses. Businesses will need to confirm they are not in liquidation in order to receive the grant.

There is no appeals procedure. It is the role of local authorities to administer the schemes in line with government guidance.

The local authority will investigate any suspected fraudulent attempt from a business or individual to claim a grant to which they are not entitled and take appropriate action to recover any incorrectly paid grants. 

 Yes. State aid/subsidy control applies to these schemes, and all recipients are required to comply with the maximum permitted funding under the relevant rules.   – €200,000 over three years under the De Minimis Regulation, or €800,000 under the COVID-19 Temporary Framework for UK Authorities (lower thresholds apply to agriculture, fisheries and aquaculture business). The De Minimis aid and the Temporary Framework can be combined to bring the aid per company to up to €1 million. Any business that has reached the limits of payments permissible under the De Minimis and the UK Covid-19 Temporary State Aid Framework will not be able to receive further grant funding.

Excluding small and micro undertakings (fewer than 50 employees and less than €10 million of annual turnover and/or annual balance sheet), a business receiving grant paid under the Temporary Framework must also confirm that they were not an undertaking in difficulty on 31 December 2019. This exemption for small and micro undertakings does not apply if the undertaking is subject to collective insolvency proceedings under national law, has received rescue aid that has not been repaid, or is subject to a restructuring plan under State aid rules.

Grants provided under the Local Restrictions Support Grant scheme can be made under either the De Minimis Regulation (where the relevant conditions are met), or under the COVID-19 Temporary Framework for UK Authorities where for example, the De Minimis threshold has been reached. Local Authorities must ensure all relevant State aid law requirements are complied with including any relevant reporting requirements to the EU Commission under State aid rules.