COVID-19 BILL:

AN OVERVIEW FOR BUSINESSES

w w w. 5 f i f t e e n b a r r i s t e r s . c o m / c o v i d - 1 9

11 MAY 2020
Disclaimer
This note summarises the main changes that are proposed
to be brought by the COVID-19 Bill. It does not cover every
aspect of the COVID-19 Bill. Nor does it address questions
relating to the interpretation and/or validity of the clauses
contained in the COVID-19 Bill. This note does not
represent legal or other advice.

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General Matters
The Interpretation & General Clauses Act 1974 (the “IGCA”) is an
enactment that provides for the construction and interpretation of other
legislative instruments, as well as other related matters. The COVID-19 Bill
proposes to amend the IGCA to provide as follows:
• Where the term “COVID-19 period” is used in other enactments, it
refers to the period starting on 23 March 2020 and ending on 1 June
2020 or such later date that the Prime Minister may prescribe by
regulations.

• Where enactments provide a time period for the following matters, and
such time expires or falls wholly or partly during the COVID-19 period or
30 days after the COVID-19 period lapses, such time period may be
extended by regulations made by Ministers:
➢ the institution or lodging of judicial proceedings
➢ statutory payments (e.g. fine, tax, charge, levy, duty, penalty, interest,
surcharge, etc.)
➢ the making of a decision or determination pursuant to an enactment
➢ the submission of a report under an enactment (including any information,
book, record, return, prospectus, etc.)
➢ registration of a document
➢ service of notice or any other document
➢ power to do something or refrain from doing something
➢ the extension of a licence (e.g. permit, approval, clearance, certificate, etc.

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• The exemption from CPD courses for the CPD year.
Employment (1/3)
The proposed amendments to the Workers’ Rights Act
2019 (the “WRA”) are as follows:
• Work from home – An employer may require any worker to
work from home provided a notice of at least 48 hours is given
to the worker and subject to regulations that the Minister of
Labour may make.
• Flexitime – Whereas the WRA already provides that an
employer may request a worker to work on flexitime (i.e. a core
period of the day during which the employee is required to be
at work, plus a period during which all remaining hours of work
should be performed), the COVID-19 Bill proposes that where
the employer makes such a request to the worker, the
employer must give the worker at least 48 hours’ notice.
Further, whereas the WRA provides that a worker may request
to work on flexitime to care for a child under the age of 4 or
who has an impairment, the COVID-19 Bill proposes to remove
the list of restricted circumstances in which the worker can
request to work on flexitime.
• Shift work – No allowance to be paid to a worker working on a
night shift during the COVID-19 period and such further period
as may be prescribed.
• Overtime – Workers in the construction industry or
manufacturing sector governed by the Factory Employees
(Remuneration) Regulations 2019 to be entitled to the
following to compensate for overtime during the COVID-19
period or such further period as may be prescribed: either (i)
remuneration for overtime, i.e. twice basic hourly rate for work
on public holiday and 1.5 times basic hourly rate for overtime
on any other day, or (ii) paid time-off calculated in accordance
with the rate at which overtime remuneration would be
payable and which the worker can carry forward up to 31
December 2021 and receive payment if he cannot avail himself
of all the time-off.
• Annual leaves – An employer to be entitled to withhold up to
15 days’ annual leave from the 20 annual leaves provided in
section 45(1) of the WRA during a period of 18 months after
COVID-19 period, or withhold up to 7.5 days’ annual leave
during that period if the worker worked from 23 March to 14
May.
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Employment (2/3)
• Termination – No termination in the month during which an
employer benefited from the Wage Assistance Scheme or
received some other financial assistance from the government.
• Transfer of undertaking – The Minister of Labour to make
specific regulations.
• Redundancy – The Minister of Labour to make regulations to
exempt an employer from the application of section 72 of the
WRA, where that employer provides services in sectors
requiring a minimum service, and instead subject that
employer to an alternative process to be introduced in a new
section 72A of the WRA. The alternative process provides for
the same procedural steps as required under section 72, but
with shorter timeframes to give notice to the Redundancy
Board and for the Redundancy Board to complete its
proceedings. (Also, the amendments to the IGCA (see above)
will result in an extension of the 30-day period during which
the Redundancy Board is required to complete its proceedings
under section 75(8) of the WRA.)
• Portable Retirement Gratuity Fund (PRGF) – The drafting of the
amendment relating to the PRGF provisions is ambiguous, but
presumably seeks to postpone the operation of the PRGF until
such date as the Minister of Labour may prescribe.
See also the provisions that are proposed to be made in respect of 5
the Wage Assistance Scheme under the Income Tax Act.
Employment (3/3)
• The COVID-19 Bill also proposes to amend the
Employment Relations Act 2008 to provide that
the Commission for Conciliation and Mediation
should forthwith refer to the Employment
Relations Tribunal, all labour disputes relating to
certain industries, and that the Tribunal is
required to make an award within 30 days of the
referral. The concerned industries are civil
aviation and airport, air traffic control, health,
hospital, and port.
• A proposed amendment to the Education Act
1957 may also affect employees of educational
institutions. The COVID-19 Bill proposes that the
Ministry of Education be entitled to order any
educational institution to provide distance
education and online learning programmes, in
which case the teaching staff and other
personnel of the educational institutions will be
required to engage in, produce and conduct,
distance education and online learning
programmes. Employees who refuse to comply,
without reasonable excuse, are to be deemed to
be in breach of their respective contracts of
employment and may be liable to disciplinary
proceedings. 6
Corporate
The proposed amendments to the Companies Act 2001 (the “CA01”)
include:
• No annual meeting of shareholders during COVID-19 period or such
further period that the Registrar of Companies may determine, and the
period during which an annual meeting of shareholder should take
place to be extended from 6 months to 9 months after the balance
sheet date of the company or such further period that the Registrar of
Companies may determine.
• Whereas section 162 of the CA01 provides for the directors’ duty to
prevent the company from trading while it is insolvent, the COVID-19
Bill proposes to exclude the application of section 162 during the
COVID-19 period and such further period that the Registrar may
determine.
• Extension of time for the completion and filing of financial statements.

It is also proposed that the Registrar of Companies be entitled to issue

Practice Directions, guidelines or other instructions “for the proper
administration” of the Companies Act, the Foundations Act, the Limited
Liability Partnerships Act and the Limited Partnerships Act.

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Insolvency
The COVID-19 Bill proposes the following amendments to the
Insolvency Act 2009:
• Winding up resolutions passed by a company or its creditors
during the COVID-19 period or within 3 months after to be
ineffective and void, except in respect of companies holding
Global Business Licence.
• No creditors’ meeting under section 142 to take place during
the COVID-19 period and up to 3 months after.
• The minimum amount for a statutory demand debt to increase
from MUR 100,000 to MUR 250,000, and the period of
compliance with a statutory demand to increase from 1 month
to 2 months from service. The limitation period for applying to
set aside a statutory demand to increase from within 14 days to
28 days of the service of the statutory demand.
• The appointment of a receiver under a charge deed during the
COVID-19 period to be ineffective and void.
• In respect of a company under administration, the timeframe
for holding the first creditors’ meeting is extended from 10 days
after the appointment of the administrator to 30 days after the
COVID-19 period lapses.

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Income Tax (1/2)
COVID-19 Solidarity Fund – Contributions made by individuals and
companies to this fund to be deductible from the net income after
deductions of income exemption threshold, interest relief in
respect of housing loan, medial or health insurance premium relief
and allowance for household employees. Any unrelieved amount
may be carried forward and deducted against the net income of
the next income year up to a maximum of 2 income years.

Wage Assistance Scheme –

• Eligible employees: part-time or full-time, basic monthly salary
of up to MUR 50,000, not public sector, not those excluded by
Minister (i.e. Minister may by regulations exclude employees
employed by a category of employers, or a category of
employees)
• Assistance from MRA to employer: 50% of basic salary for
March, 100% of basic salary for April (50% for Agalega and
Rodrigues) and 100% of basic salary for May, plus further as
may be prescribed. The MRA may request further information
or document from the employer or employee within 1 year
after payment of the allowance is made.
• Where the employer has benefited from the Scheme in a given
month and it terminates the employment of an eligible
employee during that month, the employer is not entitled to
any allowance in any subsequent month.
• Where the employer has benefited from the Scheme in a given
month and has failed to pay the basic salary of an eligible
employee, the employer is liable to refund the allowance to the
MRA and it will be precluded from any allowance in the
subsequent month.
• Where the employer has benefited from the Scheme in a given
month and during that period, it has reduced the basic salary
of an eligible employee, the employer is liable to refund the
allowance that has been paid to that eligible employee and the 9
employer is not entitled to any allowance in the next month.
Income Tax (2/2)
COVID-19 levy –
• Levy imposed on employers who have benefitted from the • For resident sociétés,
Wage Assistance Scheme. Levy is imposed on gross income o levy imposed in year of assessment commencing
less all allowable deductions except unrelieved amount of a on 1 July 2020 (payable by Sep 2021)
loss carried forward (for companies) from a previous year. o levy is equivalent to lower of (i) total amount paid
• For individuals: under Scheme, or (ii) 15% of chargeable income
o levy imposed in year of assessment commencing on 1
July 2020 (i.e. payable by September 2021) • No levy is payable if the employer is not liable to income
o levy is equivalent to the lower of (i) total amount paid tax with respect to that year.
under the Scheme or (ii) 15% of gross income after
deduction of allowable expenditure • The Minister may make regulations to exclude certain
• For companies: category of employers from the levy.
o if accounting period ends on any date between 1 May
2020 and 31 Dec 2020, levy is imposed in year of
assessment commencing on 1 July 2020 (payable by Sep
2021)
o if accounting period ends between 1 Jan 2021 and 30
Apr 2021, levy imposed in year of assessment
commencing on 1 July 2021 (payable by Sep 2022)
o levy is equivalent to lower of (i) total amount paid to him
under Scheme, or (ii) 15% of chargeable income
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Imports
Customs Act 1988 to be amended as follows:
• Where in relation the time limit for proceeding with validated
bill of entry by an importer, the goods are entered and cleared
by an SME or VAT registered person, the duty, excise duty, taxes
and any fees or charges leviable on the goods cleared in any
other month other than June shall now be paid not later than
16 working days after the end of that month instead of 7
working days.
• Regarding the provisions for the period of warehousing, goods
entered during the period of 2 November 2019 to 31
December 2020 may be warehoused for a period of 36 months.
The Customs Tariff Act to be amended to provide for 0% duty on
“Disinfectants” including “Hand Sanitiser” bearing H.S. Code
3808.94.10 and “Other” bearing H.S. Code 3808.94.90.
The Freeport Act to be amended to provide:
• A private freeport developer will be authorised to
provide warehousing facilities for the storage of goods
(which have been cleared from Customs) in a freeport
zone to any person during the COVID-19 period and
such further period as may be prescribed after the
COVID-19 period lapses. The fees payable for such
authorisation per enterprise are Rs 3,000 if paid
within the due date and Rs 4500 if paid after the due
date.
• Goods which are entered during the period of 1
October 2018 and 31 December 2020 shall be stored
for a maximum period not exceeding 36 months.
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Environment Protection
The COVID-19 Bill proposes to amend the Environment Protection
Act to provide:
• Where under the Environment Protection Act, a time limit is
imposed on a person to do or refrain from doing an act or
thing, and such time expires, or falls wholly or partly during the
COVID-19 period or 21 days after the COVID-19 period lapses,
the person may do or refrain from doing the act or thing no
later than 30 days after such period lapses or not later than
such further period as may be prescribed.
• In relation to an EIA licence, if it expires during the COVID-19
period or 21 days after the COVID-19 period, the EIA licence
shall be deemed not to have expired and shall remain valid for
a period of 30 days after such period lapses or for such further
period as may be prescribed.
• The payment of the environment protection fee in relation to
(a) hotel and (b) guest house or tourist residence of more than
4 bedrooms, shall not be applicable for the period of 1 March
2020 to 31 December 2020.
• The requirement of a Preliminary Environmental Report for the
undertaking of “rearing of poultry above 5000 heads” has been
removed, instead the requirement is now applicable for
“rearing of poultry above 15,000 heads”.
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Tourism
The COVID-19 Bill proposes to amend the Tourism Authority Act
2006 to provide as follows:
• Where holders of pleasure craft licences are concerned, the
Authority may on grounds of public health and for such periods
it considers appropriate, issue guidelines for the purposes of
restricting the number of passengers allowed on board of a
pleasure craft at any one time. Failure to comply with such
guidelines will be constitute an offence.
• In regards to notices of fixed penalties issued by the Authority,
where the time period of 14 days expires or falls wholly or
partly during the COVID-19 period or 30 days after the COVID-
19 period lapses, the penalty shall be paid not later than 3
months after such period lapses.
• Where a tourist accommodation certificate, tourist enterprise
licence, pleasure craft licence or canvasser permit expires or its
expiry falls wholly or partly during the COVID-19 period or one
month after the COVID-19 period lapses, such licence or permit
shall be deemed not to have expired and shall remain valid for
a period of 12 months after such period lapses. The payment of
the renewal fee for the period such licence or permit is
renewed may be made in equal monthly instalments, however,
failure to make 3 consecutive monthly instalments shall cause
such licence or permit to lapse. 13
Miscellaneous
• Moratorium for payment of electricity and water bills that
became due during COVID-19 period (moratorium period
to be provided by regulations).
• For lease agreements governed by the Landlord & Tenant
Act (residential leases), the non-payment of rent for the
months of March to August 2020 and as prescribed will
not constitute a breach of the tenancy agreement,
provided that rent is fully paid in instalments by 31 Dec
2021 or such other date as may be prescribed.

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