JobKeeper Payment - Information for Employers and Self-Employed

Yesterday the Federal Government revealed a new JobKeeper payment – a wage subsidy to keep Australian’s in work.  A very important element to this announcement is the help for the self-employed;

Businesses without employees

Businesses without employees, such as the self-employed, can register their interest in applying for JobKeeper Payment from 30 March 2020 – CLICK HERE

Please note that payments are not scheduled to commence until 1 May.

Businesses without employees will need to provide an ABN for their business, nominate an individual to receive the payment and provide that individual’s Tax File Number and provide a declaration as to recent business activity.

People who are self-employed will need to provide a monthly update to the ATO to declare their continued elibiglity for the payments. Payment will be made monthly to the individual’s bank account.

Businesses with Employees

Under the JobKeeper Payment, businesses impacted by COVID-19 will be able to access a subsidy from the Government to continue paying their employees. Affected employers will be able to claim a fortnightly payment of AUD1,500 per eligible employee from 30 March 2020, for a maximum period of 6 months. The first payment will be received by employers from the ATO after 1 May.

Eligible Employers

Eligible employers are businesses, not-for-profits and charities with a business that:

• has a turnover of less than AUD1 billion and their turnover will be reduced by more than 30 per cent relative to a comparable period a year ago (of at least a month)

Eligible Employees

Eligible employees are employees who:

• are currently employed by the eligible employer (including those stood down or re-hired);
• were employed by the employer at 1 March 2020;
• are full-time, part-time, or long-term casuals (a casual employee on a regular basis for longer than 12 months as at 1 March 2020);
• are at least 16 years of age;
• are an Australian citizen, the holder of a permanent visa, a Protected Special Category Visa Holder, a non-protected Special Category Visa Holder who has been residing continually in Australia for 10 years or more, or a Special Category (Subclass 444) Visa Holder; and
• are not in receipt of a JobKeeper Payment as income.

Obligations on Employers

To receive the JobKeeper Payment, employers must:

• Register an intention to apply on the ATO website CLICK HERE
• Assess that they have or will experience the required turnover decline 
• Provide information to the ATO on eligible employees. This includes information on the number of eligible employees engaged as at 1 March 2020 and those currently employed by the business (including those stood down or rehired). For most businesses, the ATO will use Single Touch Payroll data to pre-populate the employee details for the business.
• Ensure that each eligible employee receives at least AUD1,500 per fortnight (before tax). For employees that were already receiving this amount from the employer then their income will not change. For employees that have been receiving less than this amount, the employer will need to top up the payment to the employee up to $1,500 (before tax). And for those employees earning more than this amount, the employer is able to provide them with a top-up.
• Notify all eligible employees that they are receiving the JobKeeper Payment.
• Continue to provide information to the ATO on a monthly basis, including the number of eligible employees employed by the business.

Action Required

We are encouraging all affected clients to register your intention to apply for the payment with the ATO by using this link: CLICK HERE

We will provide additional updates on the Jobseeker system when these details are made available.

Resources:

Australian Government Treasury Fact Sheet CLICK HERE