On 17 July 2020 HMRC updated its guidance to clarify a point on notice periods during furlough, which had been causing some concern.

The previous version of the HMRC guidance provided that an employer can continue to claim under the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme (the “Scheme”) for a furloughed employee who is serving statutory notice.  This led to concern as to whether enhanced contractual notice periods were also covered.  HMRC have now updated their guidance to confirm that employers can claim under the Scheme for a furloughed employee who is serving statutory or contractual notice.

This will be welcome news to employers as it provides clarity that they will be able to claim for contractual notice periods under the Scheme.