Acknowledging the difficulty that business operators have faced, the NSW Treasurer Matt Kean has announced a package of measures to support small businesses impacted by COVID-19 over January and February 2022.
2022 Small Business Support Program
The NSW Small Business Support package provides eligible employing businesses with a lump sum payment of 20% of weekly payroll, up to a maximum of $5,000 per week for the month of February 2022. The minimum weekly payment for employers is $750 per week.
Eligible non-employing businesses will receive $500 per week (paid as a lump sum of $2,000).
To access the package, businesses must:
- Have an aggregated annual turnover between $75,000 and $50 million (inclusive) for the year ended 30 June 2021; and
- Experienced a decline in turnover of at least 40% due to Public Health Orders or the impact of COVID-19 during the month of January 2022 compared to January 2021 or January 2020; and
- Experienced a decline in turnover of 40% or more from 1 to 14 February 2022 compared to the same fortnight in either 2021 or 2020 (you must use the same comparison year utilised in the decline in turnover test for January); and
- Maintain their employee headcount from “the date of the announcement of the scheme” (30 January 2022).
The support package only covers the month of February 2022. Applications for support are now open directly through Service NSW here.
Please review the guidelines carefully to understand what you must provide during the application process as there is different substantiation requirements depending on the industry you operate in.
Fees and chargers rebate increased and extended to RAT tests
The NSW small business fees and charges rebate has been increased from $2,000 to $3,000. In addition, the rebate has been extended to cover up to 50% of the cost of Rapid Antigen Tests (RAT) purchased by the business to protect staff and clients.
The rebate for RAT tests will be available “by March” and is unlikely to cover RAT tests purchased prior to the funding coming online to prevent additional pressures on the RAT test supply chain.
The rebate is not a cash payment but a digital credit that businesses can draw down on to offset the cost of eligible NSW and local government fees and charges.
Should you require any assistance with the above, please do not hesitate to reach out to your account manager.