Corona virus

Entrepreneurs who have lost more than 30% of their turnover as a result of the corona crisis can claim an allowance under this scheme. The maximum compensation for SME companies will be EUR 550.000. For non-SME companies, the maximum is slightly higher at EUR 600.000. The requirement of a maximum of 250 employees per company has been released since 1 January 2021, which makes it possible for every company to request TVL.

For the first quarter of 2021 the subsidy rate was raised to 85%. The subsidy will be calculated as follows:

Subsidy = normal revenue x revenue loss in % x proportion of fixed costs in % x 85%. For the second quarter of 2021 the subsidy rate will be raised to 100%.

For the first quarter of 2021, SME companies could request for an allowance until 18 May 2021. Non-SME Companies can request for an allowance for the first quarter of 2021 until 10 June 2021. For the second quarter of 2021, it is expected that the TVL scheme can be requested as of the second part of June 2021.

The subsidy granted under this scheme is not intended to cover wage costs. Companies can claim a subsidy for wage costs under the NOW-scheme 

What are the conditions?

• The company has lost more than 30% of its turnover due to the corona crisis;
• Based on the quarterly turnover and the percentage belonging to the SBI code of the company, the company must have at least EUR 1,500 fixed costs for the quarter in question.
• The main activity must correspond to one of the established Standard Industrial Classification codes (SBI codes in Dutch);
• The business must be incorporated and listed at the Chamber of Commerce on 15 March 2020;
• The company has an establishment in the Netherlands;
• At least one establishment of the company has an address other than the private address of the owner/owners. Or the establishment is separated from the private residence and has its own entrance or access;
• The business is not bankrupt or has not filed a petition for a suspension of payments with the district court;
• The business is not a public enterprise within the meaning of the Dutch Competitive Trading Act (Mededingingswet);
• The company is not a financial institution;

How can you apply?

TVL can be requested from the Netherlands Enterprise Agency (RVO) via E-Recognition level 1 (or higher) or DigiD. Within 8 weeks you will be informed whether your application has been approved.

Tozo in brief

If you, as a self-employed entrepreneur, have run into problems as a result of the coronavirus crisis or if you foresee problems, you can claim support based on Tozo. Care providers are the only group not covered by this scheme.

Tozo 1 expired at the end of May and Tozo 2 at the end of September. Tozo has been extended to 1 July 2021. Tozo 3 runs from 1 October 2020 to 1 April 2021 and Tozo 4 will run from 1 April to 1 July 2021. 

What are the conditions?

• In order to be able to claim this support, you must have started your business before 17 March 2020;
• Your company is still economically active, unless this is not possible due to the Covis-19 crisis;
• You fulfill the hours criterion: minimally 1.225 hours working in your own company or self-employed. If you started after 2019, you must have worked an average of at least 23.5 hours per week on/in your company in the period between registering with the Chamber of Commerce and submitting the application;
• You are registered with the Chamber of Commerce;
• U are living in the Netherlands and you have a company located in the Netherlands, another EU-country, Norway, Iceland, Liechtenstein or Switzerland.

What kind of support can you receive under Tozo?

• Income support: if you can demonstrate that your income during the next three months will not exceed the social minimum, you can claim an amount of up to EUR 1,620.74, depending on age and family situation, for a maximum period of three months. The partner’s income is subject to review too. In case the household income exceeds the social minimum, you will not be entitled to a subsistence allowance.
  • As of the 1^st of Februari 2021 it is possible to apply for TOZO retroactively up to the month preceding the starting date.
• Working capital: in the event of liquidity problems, you can also apply for a working capital loan of up to EUR 10,517 at a 2% interest rate, the interest will start to accrue at Juli 1^st 2021. The working capital loan, requested under Tozo 1 or Tozo 2, does not have to be repaid until January 2021. The loan has a maximum term of 3,5 years. In case you have made a previous application for working capital under the Tozo scheme, but not for the maximum amount, you can request for additional support until the total amount of support is EUR 10.517.

In case you require a working capital over EUR 10,157, you can apply for support under the regular Decision on assistance for the self-employed (Besluit bijstandsverlening zelfstandigen) or claim support under the Corona Small Credit Guarantee Scheme (KKC).

Where can you apply for Tozo?

You can apply for support based on this scheme from your municipality where you live. The way in which applications are submitted may vary from one municipality to another, but the municipalities try to arrange this digitally as much as possible.

As an entrepreneur, can I request a postponement for the payment of tax?

If you run into payment problems as a result of the coronavirus crisis, you can request a deferral of payment from the Tax and Customs Administration until at least 1 July 2021 with regard to income tax, health insurance law, corporation tax, turnover tax and wage taxes (VAT), insurance tax, gambling tax, landlord levy, environmental tax, domestic excise and consumption tax non-alcoholic drinks. You can request a deferral of payment for more taxes at once.

In case a tax deferral of three months has already been granted, you can still request an extension until 1 July 2021. For entrepreneurs who had already received an extension earlier this year the postponement is now automatic until 1 July 2021.

A request for tax deferral in case of a tax debt that is higher than EUR 20.000 requires a third-party expert statement. This can for example be a statement by a tax consultant or accountant. The statement must show that the financial problems were mainly caused by the corona crisis. In addition, the statement should include a liquidity forecast.

The special deferral arrangement expires on 1 July 2021 at the latest. Tax obligations that arose on or after that date must be paid. After 1 July, you will receive a proposal for a payment arrangement for the debt accrued during the deferral. This debt can be repaid from 1 October 2021 to 1 October 2024.

Do you pay a provisional income tax or corporation tax assessment and do you expect a lower profit due to the coronavirus crisis?

In that case, you can change the provisional assessment by changing the previously entered income. If the amount of the new provisional assessment is subsequently lower than the tax you have already paid, the difference will be refunded. When your income increases again, you also have to change your provisional assessment.

BMKB(-C) in brief

The SME Credit Guarantee Scheme (BMKB) exists to meet the liquidity needs of businesses. Under this scheme, SME entrepreneurs can obtain a guarantee for part of a bank financing arrangement. The Ministry of Economic Affairs and Climate (EZK) is the guarantor for this part. The scheme enables entrepreneurs to borrow more than they could obtain based on their collateral security. This measure has been extended as a result of the coronavirus crisis (BMKB-C).

What does the extension mean in practice?

• Under the old scheme (BMKB), the credit guarantee amounted to 50% of the credit provided by the financier;
• Under the new scheme (BMKB-C), the credit guarantee amounts to 75% of the credit provided by the financier;
• The government guarantee amounts to 90% of this credit guarantee;
• The measure is intended to provide a bridging loan or overdraft facility with a financier, with a maximum duration of four years;
• The maximum loan has been increased to EUR 1.5 million;
• Fees under BMKB amounted 3,9%. This has now been lowered to 2% in case of funding with a duration of up to 8 quarters and 3% in case of funding with a duration of between 9 and 16 quarters;
• The duration of funding was originally 2 years. This has now been expanded to 4 years.

What are the conditions?

• The business must fall within the definition of an SME. In short, the conditions are: a maximum of 250 employees (FTEs) with an annual turnover of up to EUR 50 million or a balance sheet total of up to EUR 43 million (note that specific conditions apply to groups of companies!);
• The following sectors and funding targets are excluded: private individuals, large companies, fisheries, agriculture and horticulture, publicly insured healthcare, companies in the financial sector and real estate. These sectors have their own support bodies and regulations;
• The financier (bank) must be associated with the BMKB(-C);
• The financier does not assess if the business has sufficient securities;
• The financier assesses whether the financing goal fits within the BMKB;
• The business owes a one-off commission;
• The BMKB(-C) can be provided only by one financier;
• Extra favorable conditions may apply to start-ups and innovative entrepreneurs.

How can you apply?

The application is made via the business’ own financier. In general, the application is largely processed digitally. The information required may vary from one financier to another. Needless to say, the annual figures and income tax return forms for 2018 and 2019 will be requested.

Qredits in brief

The Qredits Microfinance Netherlands Foundation (Qredits) provides assistance to existing businesses (not starters) by providing bridge loans of a maximum of EUR 25.000. The loan is intended to bridge the period of the coronavirus.

Financing by Qredits

A bridge loan by Qredits is maximized to EUR 25.000 and will only be granted to existing businesses. The loan has a maximum duration of 48 months. There is no obligation to repay the loan in the first 6 months. This period can be extended to 12 months. The interest amounts 2% over the first year, after which it will be 5,75%. The treatment costs are EUR 275.

How can you apply?

The application is made via Qredits: https://mijn.qredits.nl/krediet/aanvraag/

Which information does Qredits need?

• The final annual figures for 2019 and figures for 2020;
• The interim figures for 2021;
• An overview of your private financial situation: overview of the monthly charges;
• A short description of the situation of your company before the crisis and your expectations during and after the crisis;
• A list of government measures you have used or intend to use; and
• A succinct justification of the desired financing amount.

KKC in brief

Are you a small business in need of a relatively small financing of EUR 10.000 to EUR 50.000 as a result of the corona crisis, but the bank cannot meet the need or meet it in full? In that case, the government can facilitate the required financing by means of a state guarantee.

What are the conditions?

• You’re a small entrepreneur: micro, small or SME;
• Your business was sufficiently profitable and financially stable before the corona crisis;
• An entrepreneur has to provide a guarantee in private of 10% of the loan in case an application is done by a legal entity;
• You must be able to meet the repayment obligations; and
• Your business was registered at the Chamber of Commerce before 1 January 2019.

When can entrepreneurs submit an application?

You can request the KKC from the financier in question up to and including 30 June 2021.

What does KKC involve?

This scheme is intended for businesses that were profitable before the coronavirus and which are registered with the Chamber of Commerce before 1 January 2019. Under this, the government guarantees 95% of bridge loans ranging between EUR 10.000 and EUR 50.000. Financiers bear the remaining 5% of the risk. It is possible to claim under this scheme up until the maximum of EUR 50.000 is reached.

KKC involves loans with a duration of 5 years and an interest of a maximum of 4%. You have to pay a one-off premium of 2% to the government as compensation.

Loans granted since 7 May 2020 can be refinanced under the terms of the KCC in case these loans meet the conditions as set out under the KKC-scheme.

How to apply for a KKC-loan?

In order to be able to use this scheme, the financier in question must be associated with the scheme.

The following banks are associated with the KKC scheme:

• ING-Bank
• Rabobank
• Kredietunie Groningen
• New10 (ABN-AMRO Bank)
• Volksbank
• Triodos Bank

COL 3.0 in brief

In practice, it became clear that several types of businesses could not qualify for support measures provided for by the government. In order to also provide assistance to startups, scaleups, innovative small and medium-sized enterprises and small and medium-sized enterprises without bank financing, the government decided to provide for a facility of EUR 300 million that can be called upon by the aforementioned types of businesses. In January 2021 an amount of EUR 35 million of this facility remained unused. It is for this reason that the government decided to extend the COL facility until 17 May 2021.  

Applications for a loan under the COL scheme are currently no longer possible.

How can you apply?

The application does not go through the Regional Development Institutions, but by means of a specially designed web portal, namely: https://www.techleap.nl/content/bridgefinancing-portal/

What are the conditions?

• The Bridge Loan can only be utilized to provide for additional liquidity. It cannot be utilized to pay-off pre-existing loans or other banking facilities.
• The borrower has to indicate the loan is going to be spend on investment costs or working capital.
• The business has to have been affected by the Corona crisis. This requires the company to show that its revenues have been affected.
• De business has to provide Financial Statements of 2018 and 2019, and if available the budget of 2020.
• The business has to indicate what cost saving measures are taken.
• The business has to indicate which government schemes they have already claimed.
• The business has to prove that it can repay the loan after 1 year and that the debt can be repaid in full within 3 years.

Loans under the COL-scheme

Depending on the amount of the loan, different terms and conditions apply. However, a 3% annual interest-rate is applicable to all loans. For loans higher than EUR 250.000, co-financing for an amount of 25% is required and for loans between EUR 500,000 and EUR 2,000,000, 2% per year applies on top of the interest rate. More information can be found here: https://www.rom-nederland.nl/qena/#type

For whom is this scheme intended?

• Startups: this concerns unlisted companies that have not come into being by means of a merger and which has been in business for 5 years prior to the application.
• Scale-ups: this concerns businesses with 10 to 250 employees that have seen a 60% growth in business or employees in the past five years respectively business that expect such growth in the coming 5 years.
• Innovative small and medium-sized enterprises: this concerns businesses with up to 250 employees where research and development is conducted aiming to provide for a financial and social return.
• Small and medium-sized enterprises without bank financing: this concerns small and medium-sized enterprises that are predominantly financed by means of own funds. This group can also apply to this scheme, but only on the condition that funds cannot be acquired on the basis of the BMKB-Scheme or GO-C scheme.

SOL in brief

This scheme is intended for start-ups located in the province of Noord-Brabant, more specifically: start-ups located in the middle and the west of Noord-Brabant. The scheme provides for assistance to startups that find themselves under pressure due to the corona crisis. In order to provide for this assistance, the Province of Noord-Brabant and the municipalities of Breda and Tilburg raised funds in order to provide for bridge loans.

How can you apply?

You can apply for SOL via Starterslift. Through this form you will be connected to a business developer in order to discuss available options. Applications under this scheme can be made until 30 June 2021.

The facility under SOL

• The facility has a duration of 3 years and ranges from a minimum of EUR 5.000 to a maximum of EUR 50.000, depending on the circumstances.
• The loan is redemption and interest free until 30 August 2021, after which a monthly redemption and interest of 5% is due.
• The loan under SOL concerns a personal loan for which you bear personal liability.

What are the conditions

• The startup has to be registered at the Chamber of Commerce or will be registered soon;
• De startup is not older than 6 years;
• The business is already making use of other corona related assistance schemes or has tried to qualify for such assistance;
• The assistance is meant for the startup and not for the repayment of credit facilities;
• You need to be willing to reduce costs when required.

For whom is this scheme intended?

This scheme is intended for start-ups in middle and west Brabant that find themselves under pressure due to the corona crisis. One qualifies for assistance under this scheme in case the startup is located in middle or west Brabant. Furthermore, one either needs to be student or employee at Tilburg University, Breda University of Applied Sciences or Avans Hogeschool.

For whom is the GO-C Scheme intended?

Are you a medium-sized or large business in need of financing, but the bank cannot meet this need or meet it in full? If so, the government can facilitate the required financing by means of a state guarantee on medium and large loans.

What does the extended scheme involve?

Under the GO-C scheme, the government can support the financing of your business by providing a guarantee to the bank. This arrangement existed prior to the coronavirus crisis but has now been extended. Under the extended GO-C Scheme, the government provides a guarantee up to 80% for large enterprises and 90% for small and medium-sized enterprises for loans with a duration of a maximum of 6 years ranging between EUR 1.5 million and 150 million.

What are the requirements?

• The business is Dutch with substantial activities in the Netherlands.
• Satisfactory profitability and continuity prospects;
• Financing must serve business interest and is not a substitute for an existing facility. In addition, financing cannot be used to pass on existing risks to the state;
• No excessive capital withdrawal in the past two months;
• Financing of the liquidity shortage is a result of the Covid-19 crisis.

Where can you apply for this loan?

In order to be able to use this scheme, the financier in question must be associated with the scheme. The financier then applies for the guarantee from the Netherlands Enterprise Agency (RVO). Financiers can file their applications with the RVO until 15 June 2021, 17:00.  

The following banks are associated with the GO-C scheme:

• ABN AMRO
• BNP Paribas Netherlands branch
• Commerzbank
• Deutsche Bank AG, Amsterdam Branch
• Deutsche Bank Luxembourg
• HSBC France, Amsterdam Branch
• ING
• KBC
• NIBC Bank
• Rabobank
• Oldenburgische Landesbank (OLB)
• Société Générale, Agence Amsterdam S.A.

TOPPS in brief

TOPPS has been developed by Invest-NL in cooperation with Techleap.nl and the Regional Development Institutions. Invest-NL reserved an amount of EUR 100 million in order to provide for loans under this scheme. The goal of this scheme is to safeguard sufficient venture capital to startups and scale-ups aimed at providing capital to companies to continue their activities. It concerns loans of a minimum of EUR 2 million in which professional are involved next to Invest-NL.

This facility is closed as per 30 September 2020. It is therefore no longer possible to apply for TOPSS.

What are the conditions?

The most important requirements to qualify for TOPPS are:

• The bridge loan can only be utilised to provide for additional liquidity. It cannot be utilised to pay-off pre-existing loans or other banking facilities.
• The need for financing needs to find its basis in the effects from the coronacrisis.
• 50% of the loan needs to be co-financed.
• The business has to be able to show a strong track record from before the coronacrisis and must show a healthy turnover potential for the future.

For whom is this scheme intended?

TOPPS is aimed at innovative startups and scale-ups with a healthy financial perspective who are stopped in their development drive or future plans because  they are not able to attain financing from financial institutions who have become reluctant to provide loans due to the coronacrisis.

Loans under the TOPPS-scheme

The loan takes the form of a convertible loan with an interest rate of 8%. The interest must be paid at the moment of repayment of the loan or it can form part of the conversion. The loan is redemption free and has a duration of 3 years. More information can be found at: https://www.invest-nl.nl/page/862/aanvullende-informatie-tijdelijk-overbruggingskrediet-innovatieve

This facility is closed as per 26 June 2020. It is therefore not possible to apply for assistance under this facility. Entrepreneurs can apply for support under TVL (Fixed Costs Compensation for SME).

BL-C In brief

A specific credit guarantee scheme (BL) exists to meet the liquidity needs of agricultural, horticultural, fisheries and aquaculture businesses. On the basis of this scheme, agricultural businesses can obtain a guarantee for part of a financing arrangement. The government guarantees this part. The scheme enables agricultural businesses to borrow more than they could obtain on the basis of their collateral security. This measure has been extended as a result of the coronavirus crisis (BL-C). You do not apply for the BL-C directly, your bank or financier will do this for you. The application for BL-C can be made until 31 December 2021.

What does the extension mean in practice?

• The measure is intended to provide a bridging loan or overdraft facility with a financier, with a maximum duration of one year;
• The business can obtain a maximum credit of EUR 1.5 million (EUR 2,8 million in case of an agricultural Plus credit guarantee scheme (BL-plus loan).
• The maximum maturity of the BL-C credit is 24 months;
• The government guarantee amounts to 70% of this credit guarantee;
• The financier assesses whether the business is sufficiently creditworthy and whether the financing goal fits within the BMKB.

What are the conditions?

• The business must fall within the definition of an SME. In short, the conditions are: a maximum of 250 employees (FTEs) with an annual turnover of up to EUR 50 million or a balance sheet total of up to EUR 43 million (note that specific conditions apply to groups of companies!);
• The following sectors are excluded: real estate operation, insurance and finance businesses, publicly insured healthcare, legal profession, bailiffs, SMEs other than in the agriculture and horticulture sector;
• The financier (bank) must be associated with the BMKB(-C);
• The business owes a one-off commission;
• The BMKB can be provided only by one financier;
• Extra favorable conditions may apply to start-ups and innovative entrepreneurs.

How can you apply?

The application is made via the business’ own financier. The following banks are associated with the BL-C scheme:

ABN AMRO Bank
Deutsche Bank
ING Bank
Rabobank
Triodos Bank
NIBC

The application is made via the business’ own financier. In general, the application is largely processed digitally. The information required may vary from one financier to another.

WHOA in short

On 1 January 2021, the Court Confirmation of Extrajudicial Restructuring Plans Act (WHOA) entered into force. Businesses that are fundamentally healthy and sound can restructure their debt burden on the basis of the WHOA. Restructuring takes place by offering an extrajudicial restructuring plan to creditors and shareholders. If all requirements are met, the court can confirm the extrajudicial restructuring plan. As a result of the confirmation, creditors and shareholders who have not agreed to the extrajudicial restructuring plan will still be bound.

TOA in short

The WHOA does not erase all difficulties that entrepreneurs encounter when temporarily shutting down or permanently stopping their business. Entrepreneurs who want to reorganize their company through WHOA will therefore be supported by the Time-out Arrangement (TOA). On the basis of TOA, business activities can be temporarily shut down. This can lead to savings or postponement of fixed costs.

On 21 January 2021, the government announced that a credit facility will be made available under TOA in order to facilitate a restructuring procedure under the WHOA. The outlines of the credit facility are not yet clear. It is clear however, that TOA-credits will be assessed by Qredits. The TOA credit will be provided as a subordinate loan. On average, it will concern medium term loans (up to approximately 10 years), which will amount up to between EUR 75.000 and EUR 100.000 and a lower than market practice interest rate.

What are the conditions?

The support measures of the TOA are related to the conditions of the WHOA. A temporary shutdown of business activities or entitlement to the TOA credit will be shaped in such a way that only SMEs, which become financially healthy and sound after restructuring and develop sufficient viable business activities, will be eligible. Further elaboration of the settlement will follow shortly. Non-viable companies with excessive credit risk will not be eligible for TOA-credit. 

Where can you apply for the regulation?

The procedure regarding TOA will be further elaborated.

TONK in short

The Temporary Support for Essential Costs scheme (TONK) is a temporary emergency scheme to help self-employed persons, for whom other measures (Tozo, WW, Bijstand) offer no or insufficient help. TONK helps people who are dealing with financial problems and therefore have difficulties paying essential costs related to the household, such as living costs. In principle, TONK will be provided as an allowance, but can be considered a loan if the applicant has the means to carry his own costs himself on a short term basis.

What costs are covered by TONK?

• Rent or mortgage costs;
• Electricity, gas and water costs;
• Service costs;
• Municipal taxes.

Amount of the benefit

The amount of the allowance will be determined by looking at the amount of your essential household costs, your income at the time of application and the amount of the costs you can still cover by yourself. You can receive TONK for a maximum of 6 months. TONK will apply retroactively from 1 January 2021 to 30 June 2021.

What are the conditions?

• You are over the age of 18;
• You are suffering an unforeseeable and unavoidable loss of income due to COVID-19;
• You can no longer pay your fixed essential costs from the family income or private assets. With regards to private assets, only directly available private assets will be taken into account. Assets from enterprises will not be taken into consideration. Directly available private assets are: cash, money in savings accounts, crypto currencies (such as bitcoins), the value of securities (investment accounts with shares, bonds, and options and securities on deposits);
• You are below the power limit as potentially set by the municipality.

How does the application work?

Applications under TONK can be made to the local municipality. You can find the application form on the site of your municipality. Here you will find exactly which data you should send and information about how long the request will take.

TASO in short

The Covid-19 measures have had a lot of impact on amateur sports clubs. Therefore, TASO will help these sports clubs with absorbing the loss of turnover they experienced by. Applications for the fourth quarter of 2020 ended on 5 April, 2021. Applications for the first quarter of 2021 will open on 17 May 2021 and will be open until 11 July.

What are the requirements?

– TASO is for amateur sports clubs;

– A minimum loss of turnover of 10%;

– Financial losses of a minimum of EUR 1.500;

– The loss of turnover is a direct consequence of the Covid-19 crisis.

Further information

The compensation under this scheme depends on the financial losses incurred during the relevant quarter. for further information please visit: https://www.dus-i.nl/subsidies/tegemoetkoming-amateursport-covid-19

You have a financing arrangement with a bank but foresee that in the near future you will get in repayment difficulties. What can you do?

First of all, it is important to check whether you have agreed with your bank that you must meet certain ratios during the period to maturity. Is that the case and do you expect that, due to the coronavirus crisis, you will no longer be able to meet these ratios at some point? For the bank, this constitutes a ground for termination of your financing. It is wise to proactively inform your bank about this and make agreements. This could take the form, for instance, of a waiver letter. This is a statement on the basis of which the bank (temporarily) waives immediate demandability, while making new arrangements.

At the beginning of the crisis, banks stated that there were sufficient buffers in place to be able to take measures where necessary in connection with the coronavirus crisis. In this context, banks indicated that a deferral of payment was possible. In case you had a loan that did not exceed EUR 2.5 Million, banks readily provided for a deferral of payment ranging up to 6 months in case the business was fundamentally sound. As of this date, postponement of payment is not being granted as easily and is now only granted as a tailor-made solution in case the complies with the bank’s requirements.