The Commonwealth and NSW governments yesterday announced additional support to NSW individuals and businesses. A new cost sharing arrangement will enable additional support to be rolled out as quickly as possible.
COVID-19 Disaster Payment
The Commonwealth will enhance and expand the support available to NSW and other states that experience an extended lockdown.
From week four of a lockdown because of a Commonwealth declared hotspot, the COVID-19 Disaster Payment will increase from $500 to $600 each week if a person has lost 20 hours or more of work a week or $325 to $375 each week if a person has lost between 8 and 20 hours of work.
From 9 July, everyone living in our electorate of Berowra, is in a Commonwealth declared hotspot.
The COVID-19 Disaster Payment will be paid as a recurring payment for approved recipients for as long as the Commonwealth declared hotspot and lockdown restrictions remain in place. This will remove the need for recipients to re-claim for each seven day period of a lockdown.
The payment has also been amended so that a person would be eligible for the payment, including where they are still working, provided they have lost more than 8 hours or a full day of work.
From 18 July 2021 the COVID-19 Disaster Payment will be available to those outside Commonwealth declared hotspots in NSW that meet the criteria for the payment. Funding for the payments in these broader areas will be from the NSW Government, with the Commonwealth continuing to fund payments to recipients in a Commonwealth declared hotspot. Applications will be made the same way, regardless of where you live. You should contact Services Australia to clarify anything you need to know about these payments.
Information about how to apply for COVID-19 Disaster Payment can be found on the Services Australia website. Please note the website is in the process of being updated so if the website doesn’t reflect the information above, check again soon.
https://www.servicesaustralia.gov.au/individuals/services/centrelink/covid-19-disaster-payment
Small and medium business support payments
From week four of the lockdown, the Commonwealth will fund 50 per cent of the cost of a new small and medium business support payment to be implemented and administered by Service NSW.
Eligible entities will receive 40 per cent of their NSW payroll payments, at a minimum of $1500 and a maximum of $10,000 per week.
Entities will be eligible if their turnover is 30 per cent lower than an equivalent two week period in 2019.
The new small to medium business support payment will be available to non-employing and employing entities in NSW, including not for profits, with an annual turnover between $75,000 and $50 million.
To receive the payment, entities will be required to maintain their full time, part time and long term casual staffing level as of 13 July 2021.
For non-employing businesses, such as sole traders, the payment will be set at $1,000 per week.
The assistance will cease when current lockdown restrictions are eased or when the Commonwealth hotspot declaration is removed.
Businesses can register their interest from 14 July 2021 at: https://www.service.nsw.gov.au/covid-19-business-support-2021
Commonwealth business tax relief
The Commonwealth will also provide additional support through the tax system, by:
- making NSW small business grants, including the new small business payments, tax exempt.
- Providing administrative relief to NSW taxpayers facing hardship, including reduced payment plans, no interest charged on late payments and varying instalments on request.
As the pandemic evolves, so too does the Government’s support for Australians.
The NSW Government has also announced some further supports and you can read the full announcement here: https://bit.ly/3yTzVHD
