Businesses seeking help and support in the current challenging climate may feel like you are swimming in information with no real answer. The team at Qubed are here to help you navigate the support available and make sense of the regulations and implications that follow.
What support is available?
Over the course of the pandemic, the Victorian Government has released a range of support payments to help small and medium businesses. The support program that is running at the moment is the Business Costs Assistance Program Round 4. Applicants who were successful in the BCAP round 2 and BCAP July Extension will automatically receive weekly support ranging from $2800 – $8400 (paid fortnightly). This program has also been extended to select businesses in Regional Victoria based on ANZSIC code or Local Government Area.
There is a range of other support that is available including Commercial Landlord Hardship Fund 3, Impacted Public Events Support Program Round 2 and the Licensed Venue Hospitality Fund. For more information and an extensive list of all support available, click here. Please contact the team at Qubed for help with determining eligible support for your business.
Tax Implications of various grants?
Not all grants or support programs are eligible for Non-Assessable, Non Exempt (NANE) income treatment. This means that at this stage, tax does need to be paid on some Covid Support payments from the government. The Minister has the authority to declare whether a support payment is eligible to be NANE income, meaning the tax implications may change depending on these decisions. Below is an example of some of the support payments that are currently classed as NANE income:
- Business Continuity Fund
- Business Costs Assistance Program Round 2
- Business Support Fund
- Licensed Hospitality Venue Fund 2021 – July Extension
- Small Business COVID Hardship Fund
Please note, this is not an extensive list that can and will change at the discretion of the ATO and the Minister. For a definitive list of these grants please visit this link or speak to one of the team at Qubed.
Is there any support tailored to the construction industry?
In light of the recent 2 week shut down of the industry, the Victorian Government plans to release a new support program in mid-October. There are 26 ANZSIC classes that will be eligible for this program and the payment ranges from $2000 up to $8400 depending on business and payroll size. Eligible businesses must not have received a payment as part of the previous Business Costs Assistance programs and must have incurred direct costs as a result of the restrictions that have not been partially or fully recovered. The opening date for applications will be 05/11/2021, so please contact one of the Qubed team members if you have any questions on eligibility for this program.
We understand that these are challenging times for all businesses. If you would like to learn more about Federal and State based grants that may be eligible to you or your business, please make contacts with the team at Qubed.
Carmel Boldrin, Junior Bookkeeper
