WA Premier, Mark McGowan, has announced a number of initiatives to provide relief to businesses and households in the wake of COVID-19 and the disruption this is causing in the economy.

Approximately $114m has been allocated to support Western Australian SME’s, including a one-off grant for businesses with a payroll between $1m and $4m to help manage the impacts of COVID-19.

Business support and jobs

• Payroll tax-paying businesses with an Australian payroll between $1m and $4m will receive a one-off grant of $17,500 to assist them to manage the impacts of COVID-19. It's expected 7,400 Western Australian businesses will benefit from the grant. Grants will automatically be paid by cheque from July and so businesses should ensure that their postal addresses are correct in Revenue Online.

• Fast-track additional payroll tax relief for small businesses, with the payroll tax threshold increasing to $1m from 1 July 2020, six months earlier than planned.
• SMEs that pay $7.5m or less in Australian Taxable Wages and have been directly or indirectly impacted by COVID-19 can now apply to defer payment of their 2019-20 payroll tax until 21 July 2020.  We can assist in formulating the submissions to accompany the application.

 Households:

• A freeze, effective immediately and in place until at least July 2021, will be placed on household fees and charges, including electricity, water, motor vehicle charges, the emergency services levy and public transport fares.
• $91m to double the Energy Assistance Program in 2020-21 (from $300 to $600) to provide additional support to vulnerable Western Australians, with a $300 credit applied from 1 July 2020.

Please reach out to find out what these concessions may mean for you and your business.

Read the statement from the WA Premier here.