Limited Company Director’s Support Scheme

29 January 2021

Limited Company Director's Support Scheme

Receive £3,500 from the Limited Company Director’s Support Scheme to provide financial support to company directors who have personally been adversely impacted by COVID-19.   

The Minister for the Economy Diane Dodds has announced details of the Limited Company Director’s Support Scheme (LCDSS), designed to provide financial support to company directors who have personally been adversely impacted by COVID-19.

The scheme is administered by Invest NI on behalf of the Department for the Economy.

What support is available?

The LCDSS will offer a one-off taxable grant of £3,500 to eligible company directors who meet the criteria below. Please note only one application is allowed per person.

Applications opened on Thursday 21 January 2021, and will close at 6pm on Thursday 18 February 2021.

Who is eligible?

To be eligible for the scheme you (the Director) must meet all of the following criteria:

  • You are a resident of Northern Ireland.
  • You are a Person with Significant Control (PSC) for the company/companies listed in your application (i.e. you hold more than 25% of shares in the company).
  • You must work in the company/companies named in your application.
  • At 31 March 2020, you must have been paid remuneration (salary via PAYE) or dividends which exceeds £4,375 per annum, from the company/companies listed in your application.
  • At 31 March 2020 (prior to COVID-19) at least 50% of your income came from your director’s remuneration (salary) and dividends.If you are a director of more than one company then your remuneration (salary) and dividends from all companies must represent at least 50% of your total income.
  • Your projected remuneration (salary) and dividends from the company for the 2020/21 financial year is 40% lower than it would have been in the absence of coronavirus. If applicable, this should include any furloughed income received.
  • Your total projected taxable income for 2020/21 is less than £50k.

The company/companies in which you are an eligible director must:

  • Be currently trading but impacted by reduced demand due to coronavirus, or previously trading but temporarily unable to due to coronavirus.
  • Be based  and  operating in Northern Ireland.
  • Have been trading at 1 March 2020 (i.e. prior to the COVID-19 pandemic).
  • Intend to continue trading.

Who cannot apply?

As a Company Director, you will not be eligible for the Limited Company Director’s Support Scheme if:

  • You are eligible for the Newly Self-Employed Support Scheme.
  • You are a Director of investment companies or property companies, unless you hold other qualifying directorships.
  • You are a Director of companies that only started trading after 1 March 2020.
  • You are a Director who finances the business but does not work in it.
  • The PSC is a trust or limited company, i.e. only individuals who are PSCs can apply.
  • You have failed to comply with a COVID-19 prohibition notice, served by the Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI), under regulation 7 of The Health Protection (Coronavirus, Restrictions) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2020(b).
  • The grant to be paid from the Limited Company Director’s Support Scheme will result in the company that has paid your PAYE Salary, exceeding its applicable European Union ‘de minimis’ ceiling.

Find more detail on state aid rules here.

How do I apply?

You can check your eligibility for the Limited Company Director’s Support Scheme through the online checker here. The checker will bring eligible applicants to the Invest NI portal – MyINI, where you must register to complete the application form.

Further information on the LCDSS can be found by accessing the FAQs and guidance notes here.

If you have any further queries on eligibility or applications, please do not hesitate to contact us.