COVID-19 SMALL BUSINESS STIMULUS AND SUPPORT – UPDATED 31.03.20

Update 31 March 2020:

Today is something of a watershed day in terms of economic support for the Australian population from the Government.

The first of more than six million people eligible for the $750 Economic Support Payment will receive a payment of that amount via Centrelink today.

At the same time, around six million workers now know that they’re in line for a flat payment of $1500 per fortnight for up to six months.

The Government announced that this historic wage subsidy, called the JobKeeper payment, will be paid to employers so that they can keep employees on their books for the coming months and be ready to get back to work when the COVID-19 restrictions are lifted.

The program started yesterday, and tens of thousands of businesses have already registered via the ATO website.

To be eligible a business with an annual turnover of less than $1 billion must have seen a reduction in revenue of 30 per cent or more since March 1 for a minimum one-month period.

Employers with an annual turnover of $1 billion or more are required to demonstrate a reduction in revenue of 50 per cent or more for a month or longer to be eligible.

Eligible businesses can begin distributing the JobKeeper payment immediately and will be reimbursed from the first week of May in the amount of $1,500 per fortnight per eligible employee.

Every eligible employee must receive at least $1,500 per fortnight from this business, before tax.

Full-time, part-time, and casual employees who have been with an employer for 12 months are eligible, as are the self-employed.

To help more businesses get on top of things more quickly, we have also prepared a separate resource with some advice and information on how to keep your business alive during these testing times.

We hope you can make use of this COVID-19 BUSINESS CONTINUITY PLAN – and please feel free to share it to any of your business contacts.

Click here to view the COVID-19 BUSINESS CONTINUITY PLAN document

Please get in touch if you need more information, particularly on what to do in right now and through April, before the payment is made in arrears in the first week of May.

Click here to view the COVID-19 SMALL BUSINESS STIMULUS & SUPPORT document

27 March 2020:

It’s clear that we are in the midst of a health and economic challenge the like of which we haven’t experienced in our lifetimes.

The Federal and State Governments have already announced various stimulus packages to support Australian business, with an emphasis on SMEs.

Australian banks have also put in place initiatives of their own to support their customers in various ways, as well as the implementation of an initiative guaranteed by the Federal Government.

The information being released into the media has been constant and, at times, overwhelming.

We have summarised the initiatives that are in place as at 25 March 2020, and identified how small business owners can access them, in the attached resource.

We want to assist our clients and our general business community to get the support they require to get through this challenging period.

We expect that governments, both federal and state, will continue to assess the need for further support as the weeks, and months, pass. We will aim to keep you updated at all times.

In COVID-19 SMALL BUSINESS STIMULUS AND SUPPORT, we have summarised the key measures and how they will be applied.

These include the Australian Government initiatives announced so far to support Australian businesses to manage cash flow challenges and retain employees, such as:

Boosting cash flow for employers;
Temporary relief for financially distressed businesses;
Increasing the instant asset write-off;
Backing business investment;
Supporting apprentices and trainees.
We believe this is valuable information for Australian businesses & families. Please share this information with your friends, family & networks to help keep them informed and aware of what support is available, to enable everyone to navigate through these very challenging times. We’re all in this together.

Please don’t hesitate to contact us at any time to discuss how we can assist you to get the support you require.