Over 77,000 companies applied for new round of wage support

77 thousand business owners applied for the fourth round of the NOW wage support regulation. NOW applications have gone down slightly compared to the third round, when 81 thousand applications were filed, ANP reports.

The fourth period of the NOW-regulations was intended to partly compensate for employees' salaries for the period January to March. To be considered for the subsidy, business owners needed to show that they experienced at least a 20 percent loss of turnover during a period of three months.

Employers can receive a maximum compensation of 85 percent of their employees’ salaries. Previously the maximum benefit lay at 80 percent.

Of the overall 77 thousand applications in the fourth round, 52 thousand have been approved and 2,500 have been rejected. Authorities are still reviewing the remaining applications. The 776 million euros in subsidies will be distributed among 823 thousand employees.

Starting May 17, employers will be able to apply for the fifth round of the NOW which business owners can use to pay their employees’ paychecks between April and June. Eligible are all employers with a minimum loss of twenty percent during a period of three months.