From 1 February 2023, employees of non-small business employers (employers with 15 or more employees on 1 February 2023) were able to access 10 days of paid family and domestic violence leave per annum.  

 What is changing?  

Employees employed by small business employers (employers with less than 15 employees) will be able to access 10 days paid leave per annum from 1 August 2023.  It will be a minimum leave entitlement such as annual, sick and carer’s leave. 

The leave entitlement will be available to part-time and casual employees. It is not pro-rated for part-time or casual employees. 

It is an entitlement upfront and will not accumulate from year to year if it is not used. 

What is the leave used for? 

The leave can be taken to deal with the impacts of family and domestic violence where it is not practical to do so outside of their working hours.  

This might include: 

• Making arrangements for their own or a family member’s safety including relocation 
• Attending court or accessing police services 
• Attending counselling, or appointments with medical, financial, or legal professionals.

The leave can be taken as single or multiple days, or as part days by agreement with the employer.  

Can an employer ask the employee to provide evidence? 

An employer can request for evidence to show the employee needs to attend to something and it is not practical to attend to it outside their work hours.  

Types of evidence an employee may provide include: 

• A Statutory Declaration 
• Family violence support service documents 
• Documents issued by a police service, or 
• Documents issued by a court.

Employers must take reasonable steps to keep information about notice or evidence for family and domestic violence leave confidential. 

How much is to paid to an employee? 

For full-time or part-time employees leave must be paid at the employee’s full rate of pay for the hours they would have worked had they not taken leave. 

Casual employees must be paid at their full rate of pay for the hours they were rostered to work in the period they took leave. 

The employee’s full pay rate is their base rate plus any loadings, allowances, overtime and penalty rates, bonuses, incentive payments or other separately identifiable amounts. 

Is superannuation payable ? 

Paid family and domestic violence leave is considered Ordinary Time Earnings (OTE), therefore superannuation is payable.  

How are these payments to be shown on the payslip? 

The pay slip must not categorise the amount as family and domestic violence leave payments. 

The earnings must be shown as ordinary hours of work, or another kind of payment for performing work such as an allowance, bonus or overtime payment.  It is best practice to show these amounts on the pay slip in a way that makes it appear the employee has not taken leave. 

Employers must also keep a record of the accrued leave balance and leave taken by employee outside of the payroll system. Payslips must not show family and domestic leave days being taken or the accrued leave balance. 

What if an employers fail to comply with the family and domestic violence provisions? 

Non-compliance with paid family and domestic violence leave provisions will give rise to breaches of the civil remedy provisions under Part 4-1 of the Fair Work Act, exposing employers and individuals such as managers, to prosecution and significant monetary penalties. 

What does this mean for small business employers? 

Employers must ensure they comply with the new laws and provide these benefits to relevant employees. 

Employers should:

• Provide education and training to managers on the content of the new laws and how to deal with applications for the leave 
• Communicate the relevant changes to staff 
• Review and update payroll systems, policies and procedures to ensure compliance 
• Consider reviewing and changing employment contracts to include new leave entitlements 
• Restrict record keeping and communication to in person and in writing (in an employee’s physical file) at the workplace. This is for the safety of the victim, as domestic violence offenders will often have access to the victim’s email, work logins and physical mail 
• Implement record-keeping arrangements to track leave taken and leave accrued 
• Begin planning and budgeting for payments.

How can SW help   

• SW has an experienced outsourcing team to assist with your payroll function. We assist employers in understanding and becoming familiar with the new requirements to make this change as easy as possible, while also ensuring employers are meeting compliance requirements  
• Review and assist with updating the payroll systems to ensure compliance 
• Review processing of leave payments and disclosure on payslips 
• Assist with implementing and record-keeping arrangements to track leave taken and leave accrued outside of the payroll system.

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Did you miss out on our Federal Budget webinar?

Check out Madeline Dunk, Senior Economist at ANZ, Bill Lang, Executive Director at Small Business Australia and our panel of industry experts as they share their insights and key takeaways from the Budget.

What does the Federal Budget mean for you?

Our Fast Facts provide an overview of the budget insights and highlight potential opportunities for your sector.

Take a look at what the Federal Budget means for you in 2023:

Agribusiness

Energy & Resources

Education

SMEs & Superannuation

The post Federal Budget overview 2023/24 – May appeared first on SW Accountants & Advisors.

了解联邦预算案在2022年对您有何意义：

农业综合企业

能源与资源

国际业务

托儿

房地产与基础建设

教育

中小型企业与养老金

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With the change of government, there was great anticipation on the updated Federal Budget. However, this Budget may not provide enough support for households in managing the cost of living. Many businesses, especially small to medium-sized businesses are still feeling the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic and rising prices and interest rates.

On 25 October 2022, the Treasurer announced the Government’s plan for a more inclusive and sustainable economy. This budget is in line with the Labor’s five-point Economic Plan, aiming to reduce the costs of living, drive productivity growth and expand the capacity of the economy to alleviate supply side pressures, increase real wages and genuine economic investment for Australians. The SW team has navigated the papers to find key measures for industry and sectors.

Did you miss out on our Federal Budget webinar?

Check out Bill Lang, Director at Small Business Australia and our panel of industry experts as they share their insights and key takeaways from the Budget.

What does the Federal Budget mean for you?

Our Fast Facts provide an overview of the budget insights and potential opportunities from our team of experts. Tailored to your industry or business type, SW also reviews if the Federal Budget support measured up to expectations.

Take a look at what the Federal Budget means for you in 2022:

Agribusiness

Energy & Resources

Childcare

Property & Infrastructure

Education

SMEs & Superannuation

The post Federal Budget overview 2022/23 – October appeared first on SW Accountants & Advisors.

Sejla Kadric supports local and foreign owned businesses across a range of sectors, with particular focus on assisting property developers with all of their key requirements.

She brings a commercial pragmatism to all her client engagements, where she skilfully combines accounting and tax compliance advice with strategic and commercial consulting.

Sejla’s experience includes:

• advice and establishment of property ownership structures for private ownership, joint venture ownership, closely and widely held syndicated groups, development management agreements, development rights agreements, co-ownership agreements
• entity structuring for property acquisition, property development and disposal transactions
• GST advice on acquisition, development, leasing and disposal of property assets
• advice and reporting services during the application process for land acquisition and construction funding
• provision of tax advice in relation to all state and federal taxes including land tax, stamp duty, payroll tax and fringe benefits tax
• advice with respect to foreign owner property state and federal taxes and duties.

Sejla is also an active Committee member of the Property Council of Australia Academy for Property Developers. She is also a regular presenter in the SW flagship series, Emerging Property Developers that has been running for 8 years.

Sejla is a Partner of SW Audit and a Director of SW Accountants & Advisors Pty Ltd.

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The 2022 Small Business Support Program

The new program is intended to help NSW businesses survive the immediate impact of the COVID Omicron variant wave. Eligible businesses with a turnover of between $75,000 and $50 million that experienced a minimum 40% decline in turnover in January 2022 (and the first fortnight of February 2022) can apply for support through this program.

Employing businesses will be eligible to receive 20% of weekly payroll as a lump sum for the month of February, with a minimum payment of $750 per week and a maximum payment of $5,000 per week. Non-employing businesses will receive $500 per week, paid as a lump sum of $2,000.

The 2022 Small Business Support Program is only for the month of February and businesses will be able to apply through Services NSW from mid-February. Further details on the eligibility rules will be issued shortly.

Eligibility

To be eligible for the program, there must be a decline in turnover due to either public health orders or the impact of the Omicron variant of more than 40% during both:

• The month of January 2022 (compared to January 2021 or 2020), and
• 1 – 14 February 2022, compared to the same fortnight in February in the comparison year which is used to test the January 2022 decline in turnover.

Further, employers must maintain employee headcount from 30 January 2022.

Small business fees and charges rebate

Eligible businesses or not-for-profits only need to apply for the rebate once, but can submit multiple claims until the full value of the rebate is reached. The funds can be used to offset the costs of eligible NSW and Local Government fees and charges due and paid from 1 March 2021. These include, but are not limited to:

• Food authority licences
• Liquor licences
• Tradesperson licences
• Event fees
• Outdoor seating fees
• Council rates
• Road user tolls for business use.

The rebate cannot be used for fines or penalties, fees and charges that have the key purpose of discouraging behaviours or inducing behaviour changes, Commonwealth Government charges, rent on government premises or taxes. However, the rebate can now be used to cover half the cost of Rapid Antigen Tests (RAT).

The rebate will be available until 30 June 2022.

Eligibility

To be eligible for this rebate, small businesses (including non-employing sole traders) and not-for-profit organisations must:

• Have total Australian wages below the NSW Government 2020–21 payroll tax threshold of $1.2 million
• Have an Australian Business Number (ABN) registered in NSW and/or have business premises physically located and operating in NSW.

Note: Only one $3,000 rebate is available for each ABN.

Alfresco Restart Rebate

Small or medium food and beverage businesses wanting to create or expand their outdoor dining area may be eligible for a rebate of up to $5,000 under the NSW Government’s Alfresco Restart Package. The rebate is available to the first 5,000 eligible small or medium food and beverage businesses that register.

There are 2 steps involved in the Alfresco Restart rebate:

1. Register for the rebate

• Businesses must first register to confirm their eligibility
• Registrations will close when 5,000 businesses have successfully registered.

2. Claim the rebate

• Businesses that have successfully registered can claim their rebate from late February 2022 for expenses incurred from 14 October 2021 to 30 April 2022
• Registered businesses will receive an email when the claims process opens
• Claims must be made by 30 April 2022.

Eligibility

To be eligible for the rebate, businesses must:

• Have an active ABN, held before 1 June 2021
• Have operating premises physically located in NSW
• Have an aggregated annual turnover less than $10 million (inclusive) for the year ended 30 June 2021
• Be a small or medium food and beverage business, defined by at least one of the following ANZSIC codes:

• 4511 Cafés and restaurants
• 4520 Pubs, taverns and bars
• 4530 Clubs (hospitality)
• 4400 Accommodation (limited to hotel and motel operation)
• 1212 Beer Manufacturing
• 1213 Spirit Manufacturing
• 1214 Wine and other Alcoholic Beverage Manufacturing

• Have incurred, or will incur, eligible costs and expenses for opening or expanding their outdoor dining areas from 14 October 2021 to 30 April 2022.

When claiming the rebate applicants must also, where applicable:

• Have development approval and approval to use the land from council, Place Management NSW or a private landholder
• Have approval for the liquor licence boundary changes.

Note: Only one application per ABN is allowed. The rebate can be used towards outdoor dining expenses at multiple business locations if eligibility criteria are met.

Commercial Landlord Hardship Grant

Small commercial or retail landlords may be eligible for a grant under the Commercial Landlord Hardship Fund if their main source of income is impacted due to providing rent relief to tenants financially impacted by COVID restrictions.

Grants of up to $3,000 per month (GST inclusive), per property, are available for eligible landlords who have provided rental waivers to affected tenants. Rent waived must comprise at least half of any rental reduction provided. The remaining portion may be a rental deferral. The grant does not apply to rent deferrals.

Grants will be paid as a lump sum amount for the rent waived from 1 August 2021 to 13 March 2022. This is an extension of the period which previously ended 14 November 2021. Applications close on 31 March 2022.

Eligibility

To be eligible for a Commercial Landlord Hardship Grant, applicants must:

• Be the landlord of a property in NSW
• Have an agreement to provide rental relief to tenants from 13 July 2021
• Have not claimed, or will not claim, land tax relief between 1 July 2021 and 31 December 2021
• Have total land holdings valued at $5 million or less as at 31 December 2020, excluding the value of their principal residence
• Have more than 50% of your total income derived from gross rental income for the 2019–20 or 2020–21 financial year

• Where they are a business, attest that providing rent relief to their tenants may cause them financial hardship because they:

• are at imminent risk of closure, or
• are unable to pay for operating expenses, including rent or employee-related expenses for employing business landlords, or
• may be forced to reduce employee headcount if they are an employing business landlord, and
• have not incurred excessive and non-essential business expenses, and
• have experienced a decline in revenue due to the impact of the NSW public health orders, and
• cannot rearrange finances or draw upon non-essential assets to continue operation

• Where the applicant is an individual or holds property on trust, they must attest to financial hardship if they:

• are unable to maintain their current standard of living for themselves or their immediate family, and
• have not incurred excessive and non-essential living expenses.

Performing Arts COVID Support Package

The Package will now be extended from an end date of 14 February 2022 to 30 April 2022.

The funding is to be provided to eligible performances staged between 19 September 2021 to 30 April 2022.

The funding amount per performance will be calculated using a formula of:

• Average ticket price multiplied by the number of tickets available for sale (capped at 10,000) and,
• A specified percentage (up to a maximum of $12.5 million).

Eligibility

To be eligible for funding, the applicant must be one of the following:

• An eligible venue
• A producer of an eligible performance scheduled to perform at one of the eligible venues
• A promoter of an eligible performance scheduled to perform at one of the eligible venues.

Eligible venues have been identified through:

• Sector-wide consultation
• Review of online marketing material of venues, and
• Through assessment of tickets on sale through major ticket selling agencies (list published by Create NSW).

Eligible performances must be evidenced by:

• Marketing collateral (website, social media etc), and
• Have ticket sales managed through one of the eligible ticketing systems (list published by Create NSW).

How SW can assist

Many businesses have found the eligibility criteria difficult to navigate.

Our experts can guide you through the process and help you gather accepted relevant documentation to ensure your business gains the maximum benefits for these support measures.

Contributors

Tony Principe

E tprincipe@sw-au.com

Jae Debrincat

E jdebrincat@sw-au.com

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Chris brings a diverse background in accounting, advisory and financial services which allows him to provide family wide holistic solutions for collaborative investment, asset allocation and structuring for complex family groups.

Chris’ clients value how reliable and dependable he is in delivering work for them. Chris takes the time to build trust and confidence with his clients so that he can tailor his service delivery to suit each individual client. As a result of adapting to his client’s preferences and always putting them first, Chris was nominated as a finalist in the beaton Client Choice Awards for Best Accountant.

Career highlights:

• Developing simple and complex financial strategies to help clients achieve their goals
• Providing advice on both managing and growing family wealth to investors small and large
• Helping SME clients develop strategies to transition business wealth to personal wealth and also transitioning that wealth between generations.

Chris is a Partner of SW Audit and a Director of SW Accountants & Advisors Pty Ltd.

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