A START-Up Grant scheme to support self-employed people who fall outside the UK Government’s Self Employment Income Support Scheme (SEISS) because they only started trading in 2019, has been launched by the Welsh Government.

The aim is to provide a lifeline to people who set up their business after March 31 2019, and help them to continue trading through the Covid-19 outbreak through immediate cash flow support.

The scheme is worth £5 million, and will provide eligible businesses with a grant of £2,500 each. It is predicted that around 2,500 businesses will be supported, with grants made on a first come first served basis.

Businesses are able to apply now, and the scheme will close when the fund is fully committed.

The grants will be administered by councils, and the aim is to process each application within a 30-day period.

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Businesses can check their eligibility for a Start-Up Grant using the Economic Resilience Fund eligibility checker on the Business Wales website https://fundchecker.businesswales.gov.wales/.

To be eligible for a start-up grant, businesses must be operating in Wales, and have started trading between April 1 2019 and March 1 2020.

Forecast annual turnover must be less than £50,000, and businesses must not be in receipt of the Self Employment Income Support Scheme, Economic Resilience Fund or the Business Rate Grant.

They must also have one or more of the following - HMRC Unique Taxpayer Reference (UTR) Number, VAT Registration Number or a VAT exemption certificate, written correspondence confirming registration with HMRC.

Businesses must have experienced a drop in turnover greater than 50 per cent as a result of the Covid-19 outbreak between April and June this year, and must aim to maintain employment for 12 months.