This assistance will support businesses to manage cash flow challenges and help businesses retain their employees. These two measures are designed to support employing small and medium enterprises and to improve business confidence. In addition, the wage subsidy for apprentices and trainees will help to ensure the continued development of the skilled workforce that employers need.
BOOSTING CASH FLOW FOR EMPLOYERS
Summary
The Boosting Cash Flow for Employers measure will provide up to $25,000 back to business, with a minimum payment of $2,000 for eligible businesses. The payment will provide temporary cash flow support to small and medium businesses that employ staff. The payment will be tax free.
Eligibility
Small and medium business entities with aggregated annual turnover under $50 million and that employ workers will be eligible. Eligibility will generally be based on prior year turnover.
- The payment will be delivered by the Australian Taxation Office (ATO) as a credit in the activity statement system from 28 April 2020 upon businesses lodging eligible upcoming activity statements.
- Eligible businesses that withhold tax to the ATO on their employees’ salary and wages will receive a payment equal to 50 per cent of the amount withheld, up to a maximum payment of $25,000.
- Eligible businesses that pay salary and wages will receive a minimum payment of $2,000, even if they are not required to withhold tax.
This measure will benefit around 690,000 businesses employing around 7.8 million people.
Timing
The Boosting Cash Flow for Employers measure will be applied for a limited number of activity statement lodgments. The ATO will deliver the payment as a credit to the business upon lodgment of their activity statements. Where this places the business in a refund position, the ATO will deliver the refund within 14 days.
Quarterly lodgers will be eligible to receive the payment for the quarters ending March 2020 and June 2020.
Monthly lodgers will be eligible to receive the payment for the March 2020, April 2020, May 2020 and June 2020 lodgments. To provide a similar treatment to quarterly lodgers, the payment for monthly lodgers will be calculated at three times the rate (150 per cent) in the March 2020 activity statement.
The minimum payment will be applied to the business’ first lodgment.
The ATO offers a range of support services to small and medium businesses experiencing hardship — visit ato.gov.au to find out more.
Budget impact
This measure is estimated to cost $6.7 billion over the forward estimates period.
SUPPORTING APPRENTICES AND TRAINEES
Summary
The Government is supporting small business to retain their apprentices and trainees. Eligible employers can apply for a wage subsidy of 50 per cent of the apprentice’s or trainee’s wage paid during the 9 months from 1 January 2020 to 30 September 2020. Where a small business is not able to retain an apprentice, the subsidy will be available to a new employer.
Employers will be reimbursed up to a maximum of $21,000 per eligible apprentice or trainee ($7,000 per quarter).
Support will also be provided to the National Apprentice Employment Network, the peak national body representing Group Training Organisations, to co-ordinate the re-employment of displaced apprentices and trainees throughout their network of host employers across Australia.
Eligibility
The subsidy will be available to small businesses employing fewer than 20 full-time employees who retain an apprentice or trainee. The apprentice or trainee must have been in training with a small business as at 1 March 2020.
Employers of any size and Group Training Organisations that re-engage an eligible out-of-trade apprentice or trainee will be eligible for the subsidy.
Employers will be able to access the subsidy after an eligibility assessment is undertaken by an Australian Apprenticeship Support Network (AASN) provider.
This measure will support up to 70,000 small businesses, employing around 117,000 apprentices.
Timing
Employers can register for the subsidy from early-April 2020. Final claims for payment must be lodged by 31 December 2020.
Further information is available at:
- The Department of Education, Skills and Employment website at: www.dese.gov.au
- Australian Apprenticeships website at: www.australianapprenticeships.gov.au
For further information on how to apply for the subsidy, including information on eligibility, contact an Australian Apprenticeship Support Network (AASN) provider.
Budget impact
This measure is expected to cost $1.3 billion across 2019-20 and 2020-21.
