JOBKEEPER - NEXT STEPS
Over the weekend the Australian Taxation Office (ATO) and Treasury released further information on the JobKeeper Scheme and how to enrol. Please review the step by step instructions below to register and enrol for the JobKeeper payments.
Please contact us if you require help in any of these steps.
Enrol for the JobKeeper payment via the ATO Business Portal
(from 20 April onwards)
Each entity will need to enrol for the JobKeeper payment by following the steps below, we can of course help you with any of these items:
Step 1 – Register your interest and subscribe for JobKeeper payment updates via the ATO.
Step 2 – Check you and your employees meet the eligibility requirements. See these in our blog.
Step 3 – Pay at least $1,500 to each eligible employee per JobKeeper fortnight (the first JobKeeper fortnight is the period from 30 March to 12 April) deducting the correct amount of PAYG withholding tax from this payment.
Step 4 – Notify your eligible employees that you are intending to claim the JobKeeper payment on their behalf and check they aren’t claiming JobKeeper payment through another employer or have nominated through another business.
Step 5 – Send the JobKeeper employee nomination notice to your nominated employees to complete and return to you by the end of April if you plan to claim JobKeeper payment for April. Keep it on file and provide a copy to your registered tax agent if you are using one.
Step 6 – From 20 April 2020, you can enrol directly with the ATO for the JobKeeper payment using the Business Portal. You must do this by the end of April to claim JobKeeper payments for April. Alluvia Financial can assist you with this.
Note - As previously communicated, from 31 March 2020 access to the Business Portal is only available if you have a myGovID and Relationship Authorisation Manager (RAM). If you have not yet set up your myGovID and RAM for access to your business portal we strongly suggest you do this immediately, please see instructions here.
Step 7 – In the online form, provide your bank details and indicate if you are claiming an entitlement based on business participation, for example if you are a sole trader.
Step 8 – Specify the estimated number of employees who will be eligible for the first JobKeeper fortnight (30 March – 12 April) and the second JobKeeper fortnight (13 April – 26 April).
Confirmation of eligible employees you will claim JobKeeper Payment for
(available from 4 May 2020 onwards)
Each entity or Alluvia Financial can on your behalf, apply for the JobKeeper payment for your eligible employees:
Step 1 – Apply to claim the JobKeeper payment by logging in to the ATO Business Portal
Step 2 – Ensure you have paid each eligible employee a minimum of $1,500 per JobKeeper fortnight before tax.
Step 3 – Identify your eligible employees in the application form by:
selecting employee details that are prefilled from your STP pay reports if you report payroll information through an STP enabled payroll solution, or
manually entering employee details in ATO online services or the Business Portal if you do not use an STP enabled payroll solution, or
contact us who will submit a report on your behalf through online services for agents
Step 4 – Submit the confirmation of your eligible employees online and wait for your confirmation email or SMS showing it has been received.
Step 5 – Notify your eligible employees you have nominated them
Step 6 – The ATO will pay you the JobKeeper payment for all eligible employees after receiving your application.
Step 7 – Each month, you will need to reconfirm that your reported eligible employees have not changed through ATO online services, the Business Portal or via us as your registered tax agent. This will ensure you will continue to receive the JobKeeper payments from the ATO. You do not need to retest your reported fall in turnover, but you will need to provide some information as to your current and projected turnover. This will be done in your monthly JobKeeper Declaration report.
Step 8 – If your eligible employees change or leave your employment, you will need to notify the ATO through your monthly JobKeeper Declaration report.
What do you need to do for your employees
You need to identify which employees you intend to claim the JobKeeper payment for and advise them you intend to claim the JobKeeper payment for them.
You need to provide these employees with the JobKeeper employee nomination notice and ask them to return it to you by the end of April if you want to claim JobKeeper payment for April.
If your employees have multiple employers, they can usually choose which employer they want to nominate through. However, if your employees are long-term casuals and have other permanent employment, they cannot nominate you. They cannot receive the JobKeeper payment from more than one employer.
If an employee is currently receiving an income support payment, they must notify Services Australia of their new income to avoid incurring a debt that they will have to repay, as they cannot receive both the JobKeeper payment and a payment from Services Australia.
Reviewing your turnover estimates
We suggest you review your performance for March 2020 and estimate your April 2020 turnover, to determine if you will qualify for the JobKeeper payments.
Where your business has satisfied the decline in turnover test, it will not need to retest the turnover in later months. However, you will be required to notify the ATO of your actual and projected turnover on a monthly basis.
The key requirement you need to be aware of is that the ATO will accept a reasonable estimate on the likelihood of your turnover being 30% lower than the same period last year in order to determine your eligibility.
The ATO has advised that where your estimate proves to be incorrect and your business is not eligible, the payments will need to be repaid. However, if the discrepancy is only minor, the ATO may exercise its discretion and accept the business as qualifying for that period.