The end of September will soon be upon us and businesses needing ongoing support must get familiar with the rules of JobKeeper 2.0.
The first thing to note is that businesses need to qualify separately for each extension period.
- To qualify for the first extension period, running from 28 September 2020 to 3 January 2021, small businesses will need to satisfy the 30% decline in the turnover test for the September 2020 quarter.
- To qualify for the second extension period, running from 4 January 2021 to 28 March 2021, small businesses will need to satisfy the 30% decline in the turnover test for the December 2020 quarter.
- Then, businesses need to understand the reduced payment rates that apply under a two-tiered system per period.
For the first extension period, employees who worked for 80 hours or more in the four weeks of pay periods before either 1 March 2020 or 1 July 2020 will receive $1,200 per fortnight, while all other employees will receive $750. For the second period, these rates will drop to $1,000 per fortnight and $650 per fortnight, respectively.
The ATO has announced that businesses currently enrolled in JobKeeper will not need to re-enroll for JobKeeper 2.0, nor will they need to provide an employee nomination notice again.
Further guidance on calculating the decline in the turnover test will be announced soon, but it will be expected to rely heavily on Total Sales (G1) less GST (1A) reported on business BAS for each relevant quarter. This figure will then be compared with figures from the same quarterly BAS, lodged 12 months prior.
An ATO spokesperson said additional turnover information may be allowed to demonstrate that businesses met the decline in the turnover test for the September quarter from the start of October onwards. The information must be provided before you complete your November monthly declaration.
Affinitas Accounting will be keeping up to date with any additional JobKeeper 2.0 information as it is released, so stay in touch and keep a lookout for more updates via email and social media.
Contact 07 3510 1500 or service@affinitasaccounting .com.au for more info
