Queensland Lockdown Business Support Explained
With the Delta strain wrecking havoc across the nation, ensure that you're familiar with the various lockdown business support options currently on offer.
While it’s no secret that the highly contagious Delta variant is causing headaches for state leaders right across Australia, Queensland’s latest lockdown was implemented on Saturday 31 July initially for a three day period, before being extended to eight days. As Sydney, Melbourne and even Canberra continue to grapple with this strain of COVID-19, there’s no doubt regarding the ongoing economic ramifications that are affecting each and every one of us across Australia.
As such, there are a range of lockdown business support measures that have been released in the last year to provide brands with a means to cope with these rapid changes. However, it can be difficult to keep up with what you do and don’t qualify for, so let’s explore the current options available to Queenslanders in the world of business.
Lockdown Business Support Options For Queensland
When it comes to defining what constitutes what a COVID-19 hotspot is for the purpose of government financial relief, the Federal Government uses the following metrics:
The Commonwealth trigger for consideration of a COVID-19 hotspot in a metropolitan area is the rolling three day average of ten locally acquired cases per day. This equates to over thirty cases in three consecutive days.
The Commonwealth trigger for consideration of a COVID-19 hotspot in a rural or regional area is the rolling three day average of three locally acquired cases per day. This equates to nine cases over nine consecutive days.
From 2 August 2021, the COVID-19 Disaster Payment for individuals and sole traders has increased to a maximum of $750 per week for those who have lost twenty hours of work or more, and $450 for those who have lost between eight and twenty hours of work. In most cases, the payment now applies from day one of a lockdown. In general, you need to be living in or impacted by a Commonwealth declared lockdown in order to receive the payment.
A special separate $200 a week ‘top-up’ payment has been added for those currently receiving an income support payment through social security, ABSTUDY Living Allowance, Dad and Partner Pay or Parental Leave Pay in addition to their existing payment, if they can demonstrate they have lost more than eight hours of work and meet the other eligibility requirements for the COVID-19 Disaster Payment. The payment was put in place because people receiving income support payments are not eligible for the COVID-19 Disaster payment.
On top of this, if an employee or a sole trader’s income has been affected because they have been directed to self-isolate, quarantine at home, or care for someone with COVID-19, they may also be eligible to claim the Pandemic Leave Disaster Payment in Queensland. If eligible, they can claim $1,500 for each fourteen day period that they’ve been told to self-isolate. This direction must come from a health official for any of the following reasons:
They have COVID-19
They’ve been in close contact with a person who has COVID-19
They care for a child, 16 years or under, who has COVID-19
They care for a child, 16 years or under, who’s been in close contact with a person who has COVID-19.
Other lockdown business support measures are more tailored based on the size, industry and location of a commercial entity. Just a handful of these options available to Queensland enterprises include:
COVID-19 Business Support Grant - The recent announcement of the latest COVID-19 Business Support Grant will provide a range of grants starting from $10,000 to $30,000 depending on the eligibility of the business as a means to help offset the impact of multiple border closures and less than ideal trading circumstances. To qualify, businesses must have a turnover of more than $75,000 per annum, an annual payroll in Queensland of up to $10 million, and have experienced at least a 30% reduction in turnover as a result of the latest lockdown.
Cleaning Rebate - The Queensland COVID-19 Cleaning Rebate supports small and medium businesses and not-for-profit organisations that have been listed as an exposure site by Queensland Health. It is designed to help cover professional cleaning expenses by providing a rebate of up to 80% of cleaning costs, capped at $10,000 (excluding GST) per incident, where a business is identified as an exposure site. To qualify, a business’s annual payroll in Queensland must not exceed more than $10 million.
Tax Relief For Tourism And Hospitality - Payroll tax relief measures have been introduced to alleviate the impacts of coronavirus, particularly for industries that have been hit harder than others. If you are a business operating in the hospitality or tourism sector and lodge payroll tax returns monthly, you can apply to defer paying your liability for July 2021 for six months. If you have paid your July return liability, the deferral will be applied to your August return. Applications close on September 30, 2021.
Coronavirus SME Guarantee - The Government’s SME Recovery Loan Scheme is designed to support the economic recovery, and to provide continued assistance, to firms that received JobKeeper, and also to firms that are eligible flood-affected businesses. The Scheme is enhancing lenders’ ability to provide cheaper credit, allowing many otherwise viable SMEs to access vital additional funding to get through the impact of COVID-19, recover and invest for the future. Loans are available from 1 April 2021 until 31 December 2021.
On top of these measures, lockdown business support for Queenslanders is vast. Relief can be found via commercial rent subsidies, industry specific funding, wage subsidies for employing apprentices, increases to the instant asset write off, free mentorship and advisory services, JobMaker hiring credits, and many more.
To find out what your business or brand could potentially qualify for, one of the best sources can be found via the Business Queensland website. However, understanding how to present your business’s application in the best possible light can be tricky, which is why the help of a professional can be a gamechanger when it comes to getting approval for funding.
Sourcing The Right Advice For Grant Submissions
State and federal grant submissions can be meticulous processes, and you want to do all that you can to ensure your application presents your business in the best possible light. Considering the new world in which we live in, any form of grant or funding usually goes a long way when it comes to ensuring your business remains profitable. Depending on the size of your enterprise, location or industry, there may be a whole range of lockdown business support measures available to you.
If understanding your finances, or the in’s and outs of doing business isn’t your strong point, then it may be reassuring to know that you’re not alone. In fact, many businesses big and small enlist the services of an accountant and business advisor, in order to free up their time while knowing that their financial obligations are already taken care of by the professionals.
What you choose to invest in or shy away from as a business owner can have a domino effect that ripples through your entire team - so are you confident in your financial choices? At Muro, we are more than just accountants. We offer our clients strategic business advice and ongoing support to help them reach their business and financial goals. Get in touch with us at Muro today to ensure that you’re on the right path for success in starting a business in 2021.