Article courtesy of ABC News published at 3.30pm 29 June 2021.
Small businesses in New South Wales impacted by the latest lockdown will be given a funding lifeline by the state government, the Premier and Treasurer announced today.
The package includes grants of between $5,000 and $10,000 for small businesses, payroll tax deferrals for all employers, and an extension of the Dine and Discover program to the end of August.
Hotels and clubs will also be given a reprieve with optional deferral of gaming machine taxes.
NSW Treasurer Dominic Perrottet said the funding process had been “streamlined” following backlog issues with the northern beaches coronavirus grants which were announced to cover business loss for the peninsula lockdown in December last year.
“We think we have streamlined this and there is a balance between getting money out the door and making sure it is going to the right places,” he said.
“This is rapid relief for every business across the state to help them through this period.”
Opposition Leader Chris Minns said there was bipartisan support for the COVID relief package, but with the coming year’s budget released only last week, the government would need to update its financial position.
“Obviously all those [budget] assumptions have now been put in the wastepaper basket,” he said.
The amount of funding that a business, which includes sole traders and not-for-profits, receives will depend on how much was lost due to the stay-at-home orders.
The NSW government has outlined these have been divided into two streams: small business and hospitality and tourism.
The grants will be available to small businesses, sole traders and not-for-profits, that have:
- A turnover of more than $75,000 but below the payroll tax threshold of $1,200,000
- Fewer than 20 full-time employees
- An accountant statement that confirms a loss in revenue for the time period compared to the same time in July 2019
For the tourism and hospitality sector, eligible businesses will need to have:
- A turnover of more than $75,000 and an annual wages bill of below $10 million
- An accountant statement that confirms a loss in revenue for the time period compared to the same time in July 2019
For those eligible businesses there will be a $10,000 grant available for businesses that have lost 70 per cent of their revenue, a $7,000 grant for a 50 per cent loss, and $5,000 for a 30 per cent loss.
Payroll tax deferrals would be available to all businesses.
The hotels and clubs sector have also been given some tax relief, with the option to defer their June quarter gaming machine tax payments — usually due in July.
These measures were welcomed by the Australian Hotels Association (AHA), with many having to stand down staff after the lockdown announcements.
“The pubs might be closed but the bills keep coming in, so the grants for impacted businesses are particularly appreciated,” AHA NSW chief executive officer John Whelan said.
Dine and Discover extended
The Treasurer also announced that the Dine and Discover vouchers would be valid until the end of August, an extension of one month from the previous July 31 deadline.
The cash injection for hospitality businesses could also be used for takeaway, the Treasurer pointed out, as long as customers used the QR codes to check into the businesses when picking up food.
More detailed criteria about the Dine and Discover extension and whether businesses would be eligible for the relief will be available in coming days.
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