Due to the uncertainty surrounding the new virus variant, the cabinet announced a lockdown last Saturday. This lockdown took effect immediately on Sunday, December 19, 2021. Entrepreneurs had little chance to adjust their business operations in time due to the short notice between the announcement and the implementation of the lockdown. Therefore, the cabinet is expanding the economic support package for the fourth quarter of this year to provide additional support and security for workers and entrepreneurs.

The maximum revenue loss for which wage support (NOW) is provided is increasing from 80% to 90%. Additionally, entrepreneurs will be eligible for the Compensation for Fixed Costs in the fourth quarter with a 20% revenue loss instead of 30%. The cabinet is allocating an additional 590 million euros for the expansion of the support package.

The maximum revenue loss for which employers can receive compensation for wage costs via the NOW is increasing to 90%. This means that when calculating the amount of the subsidy for the fourth quarter of 2021 and the first quarter of 2022, a maximum revenue loss percentage of 90% will be used (currently it is still 80%). Since subsidy applications for the current quarter are already ongoing, the payment of advances is still based on a maximum revenue loss of 80%. The final determination will be based on 90%.

The cabinet is lowering the revenue loss threshold of the TVL in the fourth quarter of 2021 from 30% to 20%. This also helps companies affected by this acute lockdown in the last weeks of the quarter.

The cabinet will not introduce a stock compensation for the hospitality and retail sectors. Such a scheme is poorly implementable and does not allow timely support to be provided.

Entrepreneurs with a revenue loss between 20% and 30% in the current fourth quarter can immediately apply for TVL. RVO will hold the applications until the European Commission has approved this new amendment to the TVL. The application period runs until January 28, 2022.

The Temporary Bridging Regulation for Self-Employed Entrepreneurs (Tozo) states that self-employed entrepreneurs must start repaying the Tozo loan for business capital from January 1, 2022. Due to the stricter measures, this is difficult for many self-employed entrepreneurs. Therefore, the start of the mandatory repayment will begin six months later, on July 1, 2022. This deferral applies to all Tozo loans, regardless of the time of provision. Additionally, the term for all Tozo loans will be extended by one year from 5 years to 6 years. This is the period from the time of provision to the time when it must be repaid. No interest needs to be paid for the months of January 2022 through June 2022.

The after-school care is only open for emergency care of children of at least one parent/caregiver in a crucial profession and children in a vulnerable position until January 9. Childcare for children aged 0-4 years and daycare for children remain open. The cabinet urges all parents who normally use after-school care to continue to pay the full invoice for childcare, even if they cannot currently make use of care. The cabinet aims for a similar compensation as during previous closure periods. Therefore, parents will receive compensation that approximately corresponds to their own contribution from December 21 until January 9, 2022. This also applies to parents in crucial professions who are forced to use emergency care.

Due to the announced measures, the last part of the cultural sector has also been shut down. Museums and open monuments are closed, and matinees can no longer take place. In addition to the previous support package for culture, the cabinet is releasing 5.6 million euros for the period of mandatory closure to support museums through the Mondriaan Fund.

The cabinet reserves 10 million euros to ensure animal welfare and the social value of zoos during the mandatory closure until January 14, 2022.

The support package keeps companies and jobs afloat. At the same time, corona support is disruptive to the economy and tax money does not always reach the right places. More and more regular revenue fluctuations are being compensated with the broader support package, which is not the intention. The support measures also place a significant burden on public finances. As the corona pandemic continues longer, the cabinet is therefore working on a new balance between business risk and government support. The cabinet aims to have a long-term vision on the design of the support package ready by the end of the first quarter of 2022.

For questions about the corona support and recovery package, companies and workers can check rijksoverheid.nl/steunpakket. Entrepreneurs can also visit the website of the Chamber of Commerce for more questions: kvk.nl/corona. If the answer to your question is not listed, call the advisory team at 0800 - 2117. Workers and job seekers can also go to hoewerktnederland.nl.