Cost of living relief but is there anything for small business?

In a surprise to no one, this Federal Budget has a huge focus on the cost of living, and provides relief for individuals and families for this to the tune of $8.6 billion.

Specifically, the announced cost of living relief includes:

• fuel excise being cut by 22c per litre for the next six months (starting now),
• An additional payment of $420 to be paid as part of the Low and Middle Low Income Tax Offset (LMITO) and
• A one-off $250 payment for those on the pension and some government welfare payments.

It was very much a pre-election budget with the impact of the above announcements to occur either immediately (fuel excise) or before the budget ($250 payment).  The flow of funds from the LMITO changes won’t be available until 2022 tax returns are lodged. It is expected the law will be passed soon.

The Federal Government has had to walk a very delicate balance between providing cost of living relief and trying not to add to the increasingly problematic inflationary pressure building within Australia.  No doubt the Reserve Bank of Australia will be watching closely and considering how future interest rate movements play into the current economic situation.

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Whilst there has been a lot of publicity surrounding the grants made available by the SA State Government for businesses that have been adversely impacted by the current Covid outbreak, it’s important to remember that there are also payments available, in limited circumstances, to individuals.

There are two payments available to individuals in SA – the Federal Government Pandemic Disaster Leave Payment and the SA COVID-19 Testing (Cluster) Isolation Payment.

It is important to note upfront that the eligibility requirements for these payments are stringently applied and they are continually being tweaked. The below includes as much detail possible based on Government information available on 18 January 2022.

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Just after Christmas, the State Government announced further health restrictions due the impact of the Omicron variant of Covid.  These rules were specifically introduced for businesses in tourism and hospitality and gyms, and focused mainly on density limits.

On 31 December, the State Government announced financial support packages targeted at businesses in the industries impacted by the restrictions.  They also announced a “business hardship grant” which is available to businesses who aren’t in tourism, hospitality, or a gym but have been significantly impacted by Covid restrictions. Further detail is provided below regarding these grants.

There are also many South Australians contracting Covid which means they may be eligible for the Pandemic Leave Disaster Payment which is a Federal Government payment made available to people who are unable to work due to having the virus or having to care for someone with the virus.

There are a number of eligibility criteria for both the business and individual payments.

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If so, you need to apply for a Director Identification Number

The Government has recently passed legislation which requires a director of a company to have a “director identification number” (or Director ID).  This has been introduced to try and stop fraudulent behaviour by directors and in particular involvement in illegal phoenix activities.

This has been proposed for quite some time, with …

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From 1 November 2021, there is an extra step that employers may need to take to comply with choice of fund rules for new employees.

If new employees don’t choose a superannuation fund, you may need to request their ‘stapled super fund’ details from the ATO – A stapled super fund is an existing super account which is linked, or ‘stapled’, to an individual employee so that it follows them as they change jobs.

The intention of the change is to reduce account fees by preventing new superannuation accounts from being opened every time an employee starts a new job.

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