7 August 2020
You may have heard the news that Treasurer Josh Frydenberg has announced the government will expand the JobKeeper scheme again. This comes a few weeks after announcements of JobKeeper 2.0 to start at the end of September.
Below is a roundup of what has been announced and what we expect to see, but please note that this is not legislated yet and is still subject to change. Again, we appreciate your patience as we work through the changes and what it will mean for your business.
Two significant changes to JobKeeper have been announced: one is to the business turnover requirements and one to the eligible employees requirements.
Business Turnover Test
Previously:
Previously a business would need to have experienced a decline (by the requisite amount in their turnover) in both the June and the September quarters to be eligible for JobKeeper in the December quarter.
The change:
Now the government is saying businesses only need to be down in the September quarter. This takes into account that some businesses did okay in April to June, but have suffered in recent months. This is welcome news for those in Victoria who may be struggling in July, August, and September given the Stage 4 lockdowns.
Eligible Employees Test Changes
Previously:
In the past, an employee had to be on the books as of the 1st of March in order to be eligible for the JobKeeper wage subsidy.
The change:
Now, the government will change the eligibility to also qualify employees that were hired as of the 1st of July.
This is to allow for businesses that started opening up and taking on new employees after March. Those employees will now join the JobKeeper program over the September quarter.
Payment amounts
There has been no new changes announced to the payment amounts for JobKeeper 2.0. As it stands, the next phase of JobKeeper will start at the end of September at a reduced rate. The subsidy will be reduced from $1500 per fortnight to $1200 per fortnight for full time workers and those working more than 20 hours per week. For those working less than 20 hours per week, they will receive $750 per fortnight.
From 4th January 2021, these payments will fall to $1000 per fortnight for full time employees and to $650 per fortnight for those working less than 20 hours per week.
Thank you
Thanks for your patience as we work through these changes. We will continue to keep you updated as we have more news.
As always, we appreciate your ongoing support.
