Government Stimulus Packages – The Ultimate Guide

Where do you start to assess your stimulus options? 

The past month, barely a day goes by without another announcement. Lockdowns, stimulus packages and other announcements have dominated the news at both State and Federal level. It’s enough to make your head spin! 

The breadth of support has been wide-ranging. The banking sector has weighed in underwriting small business loans and the ATO has launched a range of waivers and deferrals. Couple these measures with individual relief packages, a cash boost for Australia’s pensioners and the option of early superannuation release – where do you start to assess your stimulus options? 

Glad you asked. Welcome to the Ultimate Guide to Government Stimulus Packages.

At BridgePoint Group we have analysed each stimulus package and provided a summary over the past month and now we pull them all together in one place, including links to get more detail around each package. We kicked off the COVID-19 toolkit on our LinkedIn page which is a great resource to see what other companies are doing to combat the effect of Australia’s economic and social actions to limit the virus spread. Please contribute your ‘hacks’ or pose any questions you have in the forum. 

Let us look at the business stimulus options available. 

• BridgePoint Group’s Director, Mitchell Turnbull, analysed the Federal Governments $17.6 billion stimulus package with his top four package benefits for your business.  The instant asset write-off threshold, deductions of asset costs, credits for PAYG amounts withheld and wage subsidies for apprentices and trainees. Top 4 Stimulus benefits for SME’s
• The NSW Government soon followed suit with its own relief for NSW small businesses. The key point is a waiver of payroll tax for the rest of the 2019-2020 fin year. The article details a move to increase investment, bringing forward $500m in capital works and maintenance, as well as $250m to bring forward public works maintenance. You can read more here.
• The Reserve Bank of Australia slashed interest to a new low of 0.25 per cent to help move the economy from crisis to recovery. For SMEs, the RBA has led the way providing incentives for banks to loan SMEs. With $90 billion in funding, the banks have a strong incentive to lend to SMEs to gain additional funding from the RBA. The Australian Banking Association have labelled this as the Small Business Relief Package. It also incorporates a holiday period on loan repayments. There is a comprehensive analysis of the ABA offer and each of the major banks offers in our article RBA leads Aussie banks to throw $100B lifeline to SMEs
• Explaining further the Federal Government’s assistance package for small and medium businesses with turnover of less than $50m, the key points are outlined in the aptly titled article “Helping you get your stimulus entitlements”. Based on the ATO’s incentive to keep cash with employers, the article details withheld tax and wages payments to help sustain businesses and to retain staff. The key point in claiming this allowance is having your company’s March BAS lodgement with the ATO.
• The stress placed on businesses over the last month has seen the Federal Government launch temporary relief for financially distressed businesses. Neil Parker, BridgePoint Group MD explains these measures in the article, Government Safety Net to Reduce Business Stress.  If you are a company director, it is critical you understand where you stand. If you are facing financial stress, there are means in place to help.
• Probably the most controversial and confusing relief package has been the JobKeeper Payment.  Fed Govt’s $130b Bounce Back Enabler explains what it includes but alarmingly what it doesn’t and who has missed out. The Government continues to update JobKeeper rules as the operational issues are worked through. We had BridgePoint Group’s Russell Debney (Lawyer and Commercial Advisor/ Special Counsel) step through your legal rights and the practicalities of the JobKeeper payment. Click here to read his in-depth analysis. Russell signs off the article with this warning, “ when we get to the “other side”, and with the benefit of hindsight, employment lawyers are likely to be lining up to take on employers who have not followed the rules.” The article is a must-read to make sure your actions now don’t come back to haunt you later. 
• $10k could be yours… Read the article to find out how. The NSW Government has pumped $750m into the Small Business Support Fund. BridgePoint Group’s MD Neil Parker, while applauding all the governments (both State and Federal) initiatives, wonders if enough businesses will be able to ‘keep the lights on’ while waiting for the range of stimulus to hit bank accounts. 

The measures announced by the Federal Government, the NSW Government, the ATO, the Banking sector, the JobKeeper program, the Small Business Support Fund as well as a raft of other waivers and rule relaxations…it’s almost too much from too many.

In these COVID-19 times we can be blessed we have the stimulus choices. It’s no easy task to analyse which is right for your business and the longer-term impacts on your business. Especially when you are trying to keep your business trading. 

The team at BridgePoint Group are experts in ensuring the right benefits for your business are applied from the raft of packages available. If you need help please reach out to us on 1300 656 141 or email Neil Parker or Mitchell Turnbull. 

Also, refer to: 

Australian Government website

The Treasury website 

Australian Taxation Office website

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Mitchell Turnbull

DIRECTOR

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