Changes to JobKeeper Eligibility – Timely Boost for Businesses
More Australian businesses will keep receiving JobKeeper wage subsidies from September, with the federal government to ease the eligibility criteria for both businesses and employees in response to the stricter lockdowns in Victoria.
Businesses and not-for-profits will only need to show a fall in their GST turnover in the September quarter, instead of the June and September quarters, to qualify for the extension of the scheme, which comes into effect at the end of September 2020.
These changes will also apply to the second extension of JobKeeper, which will begin at the start of January 2021.
There will also be changes for employee eligibility. New staff who commenced employment from 1 July will also be able to receive the payment.
The planned reductions in the JobKeeper payments will still go ahead with the extension of the scheme, which comes into effect from 28 September. This means from October, the JobKeeper rate will still drop from $1,500 to $1,200 for workers who engage in 20hours or more a week, and to $750 for workers who engage in less than 20hours a week.
The payments will then change to $1,000 per fortnight for those who work 20 hours or more a week, and $650 for workers who engage in less than 20hours a week from January.
The Chief Executive of the Victorian Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Paul Guerra said in response to the announcement “the Stage 4 lockdown has placed enormous financial and emotional strain on Victorian employers and their employees, and this support has come at a crucial time in providing some certainty and clarity for the future”.
Further information about the changes to JobKeeper eligibility tests is available here.