The JobKeeper Payment

The Federal Government has announced (as part of its Coronavirus Stimulus Package) the introduction of a new JobKeeper Payment to assist eligible employers (and self-employed individuals) who have been impacted by the Coronavirus pandemic to continue to pay their workers. The following is a broad summary of the key aspects of the proposed JobKeeper Payment, based on the Government’s Joint Media Release dated 30 March 2020 and the information that is currently available on the Treasury website at www.treasury.gov.au. The Government intends to introduce legislation into Parliament to give effect to the JobKeeper Payment measure. The Government also announced that the partner income test will be relaxed to ensure that an eligible person can receive JobSeeker Payment (and the associated Coronavirus supplement) where their partner earns less than $3,068 per fortnight (around $79,762 per annum).

Employers will be eligible for the JobKeeper subsidy where: 

• for a business with a turnover of less than $1 billion – its turnover will be reduced by more than 30% relative to a comparable period a year ago (of at least a month); or 

• for a business with a turnover of $1 billion or more – its turnover will be reduced by more than 50% relative to a comparable period a year ago (of at least a month); and 

• the business is not subject to the Major Bank Levy. 

Self-employed individuals (i.e., businesses without employees) and not-for-profit entities (including charities) that satisfy the above requirements will be eligible to apply for the JobKeeper Payment.

From NTAA News