A sole trader and partnership entity cannot pay the owners a wage, however some sole traders still employ unrelated staff.

The ATO will be giving tax free credits for Small to Medium sized Business (turnover under $50 million) for their BAS who employ staff between 1 January 2020 and 30 June 2020. The credit will be applied equal to 100% of the PAYG Withholding declared in the March and June BAS up to a limit of $50,000. A minimum $10,000 credit will be granted regardless of how much your withholding is.

A second payment was also introduced in the July – September 2020 period. Eligible entities will receive an additional payment equal to the total of all of the payments they received between January – June period. This means that eligible entities will receive at least $20,000 up to a total of $100,000 under both payments.

Here is an outline below of the timeline for a Quarterly Lodger. Please contact me if you lodge monthly.

Click here to download Australian Government Fact Sheet.

Currently the instant asset write off is $30,000 for small business. This will be increasing to $150,000 for all businesses with a turnover of less than $500 million. What this means is the whole asset becomes immediately deductible in your tax return, and does not need to be depreciated.

This measure would apply from 12 March 2020 to 30 June 2020, for new and second hand assets once Legislated. The Government hopes this measure will ward off recession and hopefully boost consumption by bringing forward investments in cars and industrial equipment.

This applies to equipment such as cars, utes, kitchen equipment, office assets and many more items. If you are thinking about purchasing any types of assets please get in touch to discuss.

Eligible Small Businesses will be able to apply for a 50% subsidy on wages for Apprentices or Trainees (who are already in training as of 1 March 2020) for up to 9 months from 1 January 2020 to 30 September 2020. The benefit is up to $21,000 per Apprentice. You can register for the subsidy from April 2020 with claims due by 31 December 2020. If you need more information on this measure please contact me directly.

Many banks are offering the option to defer business loan payments for up to 6 months (all banks different). This includes business lending, car repayments, equipment finance etc. Banks are still accruing interest on these loans.

In relation to car and equipment finance, banks are not extending the terms of these loans. Instead they are adding the missed repayments to the final balloon payment at the end of the term. For example, if your balloon is $10,000 then also add any missed repayments and this becomes your new balloon. You will need to get approval and confirm with your lender. We can also help with these enquiries.

QLD COVID-19 Job Support Loans – APPLICATIONS OPEN

• $500 million loan scheme
• Maximum loan up to $250,000
• No repayments or interest charged for the first year
• Plus two years interest only
• 2.5% fixed interest rate
• 10-year term of loan
• Open until 25 September 2020 or until funding is fully committed

Please contact me to discuss your application. You can start the process by clicking here.

For further information please also read through the measures for Households here.

The QLD Government is yet to announce additional rights to tenants in the face of the Covid-19 Crisis. We are expecting these to be announced any day now. If you have had to close your business we recommend getting in touch with your landlord and negotiating a rent reprieve or extension over the periods you are affected. It is in the landlords best interest your business continues and is able to reopen, so effective communication and understanding on both sides will go a long way. Some landlords are asking a lot of financial questions, we are able to assist with information you may need to provide to your landlord.

The Employsure website offer a Resource Hub for employers with plenty of useful information as we go through this crisis.  See here for more information.

Sometime tough decisions need to be made to protect your business and also your employees. If your business is forced to shut down, the goal is to have a job for your employees to come back to once this is all over.

By making the tough decisions you are protecting your businesses and employees future. Note that you will be required to pay out normal entitlements in the case of sickness and their annual leave in the case of a shutdown. Being flexible and understanding with your employees during this time is imperative.