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In light of NSW extending the Greater Sydney lockdown for four more weeks, the NSW and Federal Government have confirmed a boost in support for NSW businesses.
In a positive move, the threshold for businesses eligible for JobSaver payment has been lifted from $50 million in turnover to $250 million in turnover, as well as a significant increase in the amounts available for employing businesses.
As of today, businesses with an annual turnover of between $75,000 and $250 million, and have experienced a revenue decline of 30% or more will be eligible for the JobSaver payments.
The weekly payments available to employing businesses that maintain their employee headcount is between $1500 and $100,000, with payments based on 40% of weekly NSW payroll.
The new payments take effect from 18 July 2021 – businesses that have already submitted an application will not need to do anything as the payments will be automatically adjusted to be consistent with the expanded program.
Non-employing business remain eligible for a maximum of $1000 per week.
It is anticipated that the expanded payment will now cover more than 400,000 businesses employing 3.3 million workers in NSW – subject to eligibility.
Applications for JobSaver opened on Monday, 26 July 2021. More than 14,000 applications have already been received and almost $28 million approved for payment so far. The approximate turn-around time for payments is between five and ten business days from the approval date.
Disaster payments for individuals has also been increased to a maximum of $750 a week.
An additional $400 million in support – with funding split 50/50 between the Victorian and Federal Governments – builds on the support announced last week for Victorian businesses to recover from lockdown that ended this week.
A new $156 million Business Continuity Fund will be established to deliver $5,000 grants to around 30,000 businesses that remain impacted by COVID restrictions, such as capacity caps. There are 24 eligible sectors, including gyms, cafes, restaurants and hairdressers.
Businesses located in the CBD will be eligible for an additional $2,000 due to reduced foot traffic and office density limits.
Importantly, all recipients must have received or been eligible for the previous Business Cost Assistance Program.
The Commercial Tenancies Relief Scheme will be reinstated to provide rent relief to small and medium commercial tenants. The package, worth around $80 million, will be administered by the Victorian Government, with details around the roll out to be released soon.
Small businesses with a payroll of up to $10 million who have experienced a 70% or greater reduction in revenue will be eligible for grants of up to $5,000.
This is a new fund to support small businesses who have not been eligible under existing business support funds.
A further $9.8 million has been allocated to deliver grants of between $5,000 and $20,000 to 430 Alpine based businesses in recognition of restricted inter and intra-state travel during the peak winter season. The funding also includes an additional $5 million support to alpine resort operators and management boards.
