COVID-19 Resources: Western Australia Government
COVID-19 Economic Response: Relief for Businesses and Households
COVID-19 Economic Response: Relief for Businesses and HouseholdsThe Western Australia Government announced a $607 million stimulus package to support Western Australia households, pensioners and small businesses in the wake of COVID-19. This stimulus package includes $114 million in measures to support Western Australian small and medium businesses.
One-off Grants of $17,500 to Small and Medium Businesses
Small and medium businesses whose annual Australian Taxable Wages are between $1 million and $4 million will receive a one-off grant of $17,500 to assist them to manage the impacts of COVID-19. No applications are required. Grants will automatically be paid from July 2020, but there may be delays for taxpayers whose tax status changed during the 2018-19 assessment period or who commenced as new employers in 2018-2019 and 2019-2020.
Fast-track Payroll Tax Relief
The payroll tax threshold will be increased to $1 million from 1 July 2020, six months earlier than originally planned.
Waiver of 2019-2020 Payroll Tax
Payroll tax will be waived for a four-month period between 1 March 2020 to 30 June 2020 for small-to-medium sized businesses with Australia-wide annual wages of less than $7.5 million in 2019-20.
Employers, or groups of employers, with Australian taxable wages below $5 million at 29 February 2020, do not have to apply for the waiver – the payroll tax waiver can automatically be
claimed for March to June 2020 by:
- Declaring WA taxable wages as normal in Revenue Online; and
- Recording the value of WA taxable wages as exempt wages using the ‘Other Exempt Wages’ field.
Employers, or groups of employers, with Australian taxable wages of $5 million or above (capped at $7.5 million) at 29 February 2020, or new employers registered for payroll tax from 1 March 2020, can apply to defer lodgement and payment of returns.