JobKeeper Update

April 30, 2020

There's a few changes to JobKeeper

There have been some minor changes announced to the JobKeeper Payment.

Here's what you need to know:
  • Previously anyone wanting to claim JobKeeper for the month of April needed to be enrolled by 30 April. This deadline has been extended to 31 May.
  • Employers who need to make back-pay top-up payments for April now have until 8 May to do so.
  • Businesses which employ their staff through a service entity have been added to the eligibility list.
  • Full-time students younger than 17 years who are not financially independent are not eligible employees.
  • Sole traders who have a full-time or part-time job cannot claim JobKeeper under their own ABN.
  • Charities can now exclude Government payments from their turnover when checking eligibility.

The ATO also released its Legislative Instrument to give affect to Alternative Tests. This means that if you can't pass the basic test to meet eligibility, one of these tests might still let you qualify. They are for people who:
  • Have been in business less than a year
  • Had a low turnover in the prior year due to natural disaster
  • Had a low turnover in the prior year because they were sick
  • Bought or sold part of their business which changed their turnover
  • Restructured their business which changed their turnover
  • Have a large variance in turnover or irregular income
To find out more about JobKeeper, visit our dedicated page here.

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