The Australian Taxation Office (ATO) has officially opened Job Keeper applications from 20 April 2020 through the tax agent and business portals.

Employers can either log into their ATO business portal or engage us to complete the application process for them.  PLEASE NOTE that it is not compulsory for all eligible businesses to apply for Job Keeper. 

The obvious prerequisite for applying for Job Keeper is that the business is eligible to receive this payment.  To satisfy the fall in turnover test, the business has to pass either the basic test or the alternative test.  Generally businesses will use the basic test as follows:

1. Identify the turnover test period (monthly or quarterly).
2. Identify a relevant comparison period (2019 turnover test period).
3. Determine relevant Job Keeper GST turnover (actual or projected).
4. Determine which turnover reduction applies to you (30% for small business entities).
5. Work out if your turnover  has fallen by the required amount.

The business only needs to satisfy the fall in turnover test once.  Ongoing monthly turnover reporting is still required to give an indication of how your business if progressing under the Job Keeper Payment scheme.

Applications will remain open until the end of May, but any business that has already started to pay their eligible employees the $1,500 (before tax) per fortnight should apply before the end of April to receive their payment in May.

All eligible employees need to be notified that the employer is applying for Job Keeper before the employer enrols.  This can be done by providing the “Employee Nomination Notice” released by the ATO, to all eligible employees.  The completed form must be returned to the employer by 30 April 2020.

Businesses using STP reporting can nominate their eligible employees for Job Keeper through their payroll software or via their business portal.  MYOB, Xero and Quickbooks have all confirmed their payroll software has Job Keeper functionality.

Each month participating businesses must reconfirm their eligible employees and notify the ATO of any change in employment circumstances, as well as provide information of current and projected GST turnover.

As each business must be assessed separately for both eligibility for the scheme and employee eligibility, which is also dependant on the business structure and employment circumstances, we are offering our services under a separate engagement for all COVID-19 related matters.

Please email all request for assistance regarding Job Keeper to:  admin@townsvilleaccounting.com.au.  We will then forward you the required documentation to proceed.