On the 16th of June 2020, the NSW Government introduced a Small Business Recovery Grant to assist business owners with the gradual lifting of social distancing restrictions. The grant will allow applicants to receive between $500 and $3,000 in funding to assist with the costs of re-opening a small business after the COVID-19 mandatory closures. Applications are now open and will close on the 16th of August 2020.
The new grant replaces the previously announced COVID-19 small business support grant which allowed applicants to apply for up to $10,000 in funding. If your business previously received the $10,000 grant, you may still be eligible to apply for the newly announced funding, however, there are some restrictions on what you can use the new funding for. The grant can only be used for re-opening or up-scaling operations made from 1 July 2020, and only where no other government support is available. The funding could be used on staff training and counselling, fit-out changes, business advice, and cleaning products, to name a few examples.
To be eligible for the grant, you must (as at the 1st of March 2020):
- Be a small business or a not-for-profit organisation based in NSW;
- Have an ABN registered in NSW;
- Have an annual turnover of more than $75,000 (a Business Activity Statement must be provided as evidence). In some cases, an income tax declaration may be accepted as evidence of an annual turnover of $75,000;
- Employ less than 20 full-time equivalent staff (non-employing businesses can apply);
- Be able to report a payroll below the NSW 2019-2020 payroll tax threshold of $900,000;
- Be in a highly impacted industry by the Public Health COVID-19 Restrictions on Gathering and Movement Order 2020 (click here to check your industry);
- Have experienced at least a 30% decline in turnover in any 2 week period from March to July 2020 compared to the equivalent period in 2019.
It is important to note that the NSW Government has stated that businesses who successfully receive this funding may be audited in the future. Therefore, it is a requirement that businesses to keep all documentary evidence relied upon to make an application for a minimum of 5 years. You may also be required to provide evidence that the funding was used in accordance with the conditions of the grant.
You can submit your application through the Service NSW website here.
– Nicola Dawson & Kanista Arokianathan
Posted 15.07.2020
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