It’s not too late to apply for small business relief in Botswana.
If your business has been affected (as most have) by the COVID-19 pandemic, consider what funding you might be able to access.
Various forms of relief are still available.
Botswana 2020 tax concessions
The government has granted the following concessions to tax-compliant small businesses:
- all audited tax refunds are to be processed and paid within 21 days
- training levies are waived for a period of six months
- a 75% tax deferral, until March 2021, applies to any two quarterly payments between March and September 2020.
Businesses are expected to fulfil their tax obligations via efiling.
Loans for Botswana businesses
In an effort to stabilise businesses and enhance cash flow, the government – via the Botswana Export Credit Insurance (BECI) – and commercial banks are backing business loans of up to BWP 25 million for a period of 24 months.
Businesses must be tax compliant to be eligible. Business owners can contact Mr Cowell Habana at the BECI on 71754002 or 3188015 for more information.
CEDA COVID-19 Emergency Response Plan
The Citizen Entrepreneurial Development Agency (CEDA) has ring-fenced BWP 40 million to improve the liquidity and working capital of SMEs.
The core interventions of the CEDA COVID-19 Emergency Response Plan are loan restructuring, repayment holidays and short-term capitalisation of vulnerable businesses.
Online and PDF application forms are available on the CEDA website.
Which small business sectors are eligible for relief?
All small business sectors in Botswana are eligible for COVID-19 relief, with the exception of:
- wholesale and retail food
- water and electricity supply
- post and communications
- banks and insurance and
- government-linked companies or parastatals.
BURS COVID-19 wage subsidy
Note that the government’s BURS COVID-19 wage subsidy was made available for the months of April, May and June.
For eligible businesses, the subsidy covers 50% of salary payments, for salaries within the BWP 1,000 to BWP 2,500 per month range.
Small business owners must complete the COVID-19 Wage Subsidy Online Application Form via the e-tax tab on the BURS website. Payroll information and the monthly salary of each employee must be submitted.
Employers are then required to complete and submit a monthly COVID-19 Wage Subsidy Claim Form.
Application forms for June subsidies have to be in by 15 June 2020 – so the window for applying will close soon.
What happens if your small business does not meet the funding criteria?
Not all businesses qualify for wage subsidies, government-backed loans or stimulus packages.
For example, a business may not be eligible for government relief if it’s not fully tax compliant or if a high percentage of its employees aren’t citizens of Botswana.
In that case, it might be necessary to seek another type of short-term loan.
What we offer at lamna Botswana
At lamna Botswana we’ve made it as easy as possible for businesses in distress to borrow money over the short-term.
All we require is a fully paid-up asset that’s in good condition to be held as security. We’ll process the loan application within 24 hours.
Call lamna Botswana now on 71 388 088 to find out more about our asset-based loans.