If a business was acquired after 16 January 2022, it may have been eligible to apply for a COVID-19 Support Payment (CSP).
Revenue that the business earned during a typical 7-day period in the 6 weeks before 16 February 2022 or the 6 weeks before 16 February 2021 (where applicable) could be used when calculating a revenue drop if both of the following applied.
- The business or organisation had been in operation for at least a month prior to 16 February 2022.
- The same sort of business was being run as that run by the previous owner. For example, a café was acquired and it kept running as a café.
The revenue earned by the business for the comparator period could be the previous or new owners - depending on when the new owners running the business. If the revenue from the previous owner was used, the new owner needed to get this information from them. Actual revenue amounts earned by the business must be provided, not estimates. Figures need to be kept as evidence in case we ask to see them. The affected period revenue must have been the new owners revenue and cannot be the previous owners.
If a business was acquired after 15 February 2021 but before 17 January 2022 the revenue that the business earned during a typical 7-day period in the 6 weeks before 16 February 2021 could be used as long as the same sort of business was being run as that run by the previous owner.
When does ownership change?
We’ll consider that the business was acquired at the time that the new owner had both:
- entered a binding contract to purchase the business
- taken over operating the business.
What is a same sort of business?
The nature and character of the business or organisation has not substantially changed where the same or substantially similar assets, activities, and operations are used in generating business income.