NOW 3.0: When can you, as an employer, claim this?

The NOW-scheme has been extended for the period from October 2020 – June 2021. The subsidy is lower, but there is now room for the employer to reduce the employees’ wages. The correction to the NOW-subsidy in the event of dismissal for business economic reasons has lapsed.

Temporary Emergency Bridging Measure for Sustained Employment (NOW)

Background and objective

• From March to September 2020, NOW 1.0 and NOW 2.0 were in force.
• As of October 2020, NOW 3.0 will apply, a compensation for wages over three periods of three months each (9 months total) with a decrease of 80% of the wage bill (first and second period) to 60% (third period).
• The three periods will be:
  • First period: October – December 2020
  • Second period: January – March 2021
  • Third period: April – June 2021

Application and decision

• You can apply for the NOW 3.0 allowance from 16 November 2020 up to 13 December 2020 (first period) at the Employee Insurance Agency (UWV).
• The expected application period for the second period is 15 February 2021 up to and including 14 March 2021.
• The expected application period for the third period is 17 May 2021 up to 13 June 2021.
• Both entrepreneurs who claimed a previous NOW-scheme and entrepreneurs who claim NOW for the first time can submit an application.
• The UWV pays the NOW 3.0 allowance in 3 times within a period of approximately 3 months.
• Again, you will first receive an advance payment of 80% from the UWV. Following the period in which you received the NOW 3.0 subsidy you will have to report your actual turnover loss.

Conditions

• A minimum turnover loss of 20% in the first and second period (October 2020 – March 2021).
• A minimum turnover loss of 30% in the third period (April – June 2021).
• You must inform the works council/employee representative body/staff meeting of the NOW allowance received.
• In the event of dismissal of 20 employees or more, you must comply with the obligations laid down in the Collective Redundancy (Notification) Act.
• In certain cases, you may not make a profit distribution to shareholders, pay bonuses to the management board or board of directors, or purchase your own shares.
• You must make an effort to guide your employees that are threatened with dismissal from job to job (best efforts obligation).

Calculation of wage bill

• For the entire NOW 3.0 the reference period in 2019 will apply (1/4 of the turnover in 2019 is compared with the turnover of the corresponding three months in 2020 or 2021).
• As under NOW 2.0, the wage bill is calculated with a fixed surcharge of 40%, i.e. wage bill x 3 x 1.4.
• The maximum allowance per employee in the first and second period of the NOW 3.0 is twice the maximum monthly salary (€ 9,691). In the third period of the NOW 3.0, the maximum allowance per employee is once the maximum monthly salary (€ 4,845).

Other important changes compared to NOW 2.0

• The correction to the subsidy that applied during NOW 2.0 in the event you applied for a dismissal for business economic reasons during the period in which the allowance was received, will lapse.
• In return for the reduction of the allowance, there is the possibility of gradually reducing the wage bill of your employees by 10% (first and second period) and 20% (third period of the NOW 3.0).

More information

Do you have any questions about NOW 3.0 or other government support measures? Please contact our coronavirus crisis team:

• Reinier W.L. Russell, LL.M. (reinier.russell@russell.nl)
• Jan Dop, LL.M. (jan.dop@russell.nl)

You can call us at 020 – 301 55 55 or ask your questions using the form below: