The Federal Government has announced a $17.6 billion economic stimulus package in a bid to keep Australians in jobs as the economy takes a hit from the spread of Coronavirus.
This includes tax relief for small businesses, business cash payments, family tax benefits, business investment incentives and money to help keep apprentices in work.
Business support
It is estimated $6.7 billion of the budget has been earmarked to help businesses weather the storm. Nearly 700,000 small and medium sized businesses across Australia will be eligible to receive up to $25,000 to help pay wages or hire extra staff, based on BAS lodged. However, if you are a sole trader and don’t employ anyone, you won’t receive any cash payments but will have access to business investment incentives.
For example, the instant asset write-off threshold will be increasing to $150,000 from $30,000 and it is opening up to businesses with turnovers up to $500 million until 30 June 2020. It is hoped this will encourage businesses to spend on equipment and other investments, as they can claim a tax break for what they spend.
The Government is also introducing a time limited 15-month investment incentive (through to 30 June 2021) to support business investment and economic growth over the short term, by accelerating depreciation deductions. Businesses with a turnover of less than $500 million will be able to deduct 50 per cent of the cost of an eligible asset on installation, with existing depreciation rules applying to the balance of the asset’s cost.
The WA Premier is travelling to Canberra for tomorrow’s Council of Australian Governments (COAG) meeting to discuss the plans.
If you are worried about not being able to make tax contributions due to Coronavirus, it is important that you speak to your Taxpro accountant early, so they can look at your requirements on a case-by-case basis. The ATO may provide administrative relief for some tax obligations for people affected by the outbreak.
While the risk in WA is low to date, we are monitoring the situation for our clients and keeping abreast of all regulatory changes. We will keep you informed as the impact of Coronavirus develops.
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