Bridging aid: What corona support the economy is hoping for in the new year

The federal government wants to modify the bridging aid III plus and for companies with more than 30 percent Put on a bridging aid IV for loss of sales. It should initially apply to the months of January to March and start with the reimbursement of fixed costs. The restart assistance will be continued for self-employed individuals. The Federal Ministry of Economics wants to publish details of the funding conditions “promptly”.

The continuation of the help is “a clear signal that the State maintains its protective shield and compensates for losses through no fault of its own, “says the economic policy spokesman for the Greens parliamentary group, Dieter Janecek.

Talks with the showman and event industry

As part of the bridging aid, companies affected by closings received an improved equity grant in addition to the reimbursement of fixed costs in order to about being able to cope with canceled Christmas markets. Janecek emphasized that further talks were taking place with the hard-hit showman and event industry.

For the opposition, however, the government’s plans do not go far enough. SPD , Greens and FDP would have to expand the corona aid, especially for companies with strong sales losses, and examine how The sometimes strong failures in the Christmas business can be absorbed even better, says the economic policy spokeswoman for the Union faction , Julia Klöckner (CDU): “The traffic light coalition should hold talks with the EU Commission as soon as possible and get this step approved.” the approval of the Brussels authority required. The Commission has just increased the permissible limit by 2.5 million euros. A company or group of companies can in future receive a maximum of 54.5 million euros in funding across all aid programs. It is a maximum of ten million euros per month.

Many trading companies have already exhausted the applicable maximum limits in the course of the previous lockdown, complains the chief executive of the trade association

Germany (HDE), Stefan Genth. Therefore a doubling is “long overdue”.

Retailers worry about existence

Shortly before the turn of the year, retailers in the non-food sector are becoming increasingly fearful of their existence. “That is why there is a need for appropriate economic aid that corresponds to the reality of life in retail.” This includes that funding should not start with at least 30 percent loss of sales. In addition, it must be carried out “to the day”. “There is an urgent need for adjustment in many areas of economic aid,” emphasizes Genth.

President of the Craftsmen Hans Peter Wollseifer goes one step further. He welcomes the fact that the federal government intends to support companies with Bridging Aid until the end of March next year. “But we would prefer if the aid was based on the November and December aid again “, Wollseifer told the Handelsblatt. Because the currently applicable bridging aid III plus, which is essentially being continued, does not compensate for the costs actually incurred in the companies.

As part of the November and December aid granted last year, companies affected by closures were reimbursed unbureaucratically up to 75 percent of the respective comparable sales from the previous months The instrument was gratefully accepted at the time, but it was also very expensive.

Of the total of over 60 billion euros that the federal government has now disbursed in support, a good one was lost Quarter solely on the November and December aid. There was also criticism that, for example, closed Rest aurants were able to have a large part of the previous year’s sales reimbursed, even though they did not have to spend on purchasing goods. It is unlikely that the traffic light will revive the instrument.

In addition, the federal states are currently checking the eligibility for applications for November and December aid on a random basis. Companies that have applied for help from a tax advisor or auditor must prepare a final statement by the end of next year.

It could therefore happen that companies are still dealing with repayment claims confronted – as is currently the case with the emergency aid that was paid at the beginning of the pandemic in spring 2020. As the Handelsblatt had reported , the countries responsible for processing and Development banks returned a total of around 288 million euros in emergency aid from the applicants – in the middle of the pandemic.

The Association of Founders and Self-Employed Germany (VGSD) has little understanding for this . The reclaims would come “at the worst possible time,” says CEO Andreas Lutz. Therefore it is good that Federal Economics Minister Robert Habeck (Greens) has asked the federal states to adopt a moratorium .

Self-employed people have to choose between an apartment and an office

Lutz welcomes the fact that the federal government is continuing the bridging and restart aid. However, the aids are mutually exclusive, so that the self-employed affected would still have to decide almost two years after the start of the pandemic whether they wanted to apply for compensation to finance their private living costs or their operational costs.

“You basically have to decide between renting an office and an apartment and finance the other from your savings or your pension,” says Lutz. “You should be a little more generous towards those who have been in dire straits for so long.”

Definitely The industries, which continue to suffer particularly from the consequences of the pandemic, hope that there will not be another lockdown. Although the Omikron variant is causing concern, the numbers of new infections and hospital admissions are currently falling, says Dehoga CEO Hartges. “It would therefore be disproportionate to intervene preventively with occupational bans and company closings.”

“Another blanket lockdown is not a solution,” says HDE managing director Genth. The federal and state governments have made this clear with their latest decision.

Green economic politician Janecek is currently still optimistic, even if Federal Chancellor Olaf Scholz and Minister of Health Karl Lauterbach (both SPD) do not want to draw red lines when fighting a pandemic and therefore do not generally exclude a lockdown .

“The latest scientific findings on Omikron, which assume a significantly lower hospitalization rate than the Delta variant, hope that a lockdown will be avoided in the new year “says the economic politician.

More: Lauterbach: The need for rapid tests is covered