Government Support for August 2021 Lockdown

Last week the Government announced support for businesses during the August 2021 lock down.  The assistance available and links for more detailed information follow:

The Wages Subsidy Scheme (WSS)

  • $600 per week for full time employees
  • $359 per week for part time employees
  • Applications open from 9am Friday 20 August 2021, initially for a 2-week period
  • Your business revenue declines by at lest 40% over the period 17 August to 30 August 2021 compared to a typical 14-day period in the six weeks immediately prior to Alert level 4
  • For the period of the subsidy use your best endeavors to pay at least 80% of each employee’s ordinary wages or salary
  • For detailed information go to COVID-19 – Work and Income

The Resurgence Support Payment (RSP)

  • Your business revenue declines at least 30% over a 7-day period due to Covid -19 alert level 2 or higher
  • The RSP can be claimed as well as the WSS if your business is eligible
  • You can apply for the lesser of:
    • $1,500 + $400 per full time employee, up to a maximum of 50 FTEs, or
    • Four times (4x) the actual revenue decline
  • Applications open from 8am Tuesday 24 August 2021, open until one month after return to Alert Level 1
  • The Government may decide to activate the RSP multiple times if there are multiple alert level increases from level 1 – but that is not guaranteed
  • For detailed information go to COVID-19 Resurgence Support Payment (RSP) (ird.govt.nz)

The Leave Support scheme (LSS)

  • Two-week lump sum of either $585.80 per week for full time or $350 per week for part time employees who must self-isolate and cannot work from home
  • Rates will increase to $600 for full time employees and $359 for part time employees from Tuesday 24 August 2021
  • For detailed information go to COVID-19 Leave Support Scheme – Work and Income

The Short-Term Absence Payment (STAP)

The Small Business Cashflow Scheme (SBCS)

  • Applications are open until 31 December 2023
  • Eligibility:
    • 50 or fewer FTE employees
    • In business for more than 6 months, the business must be viable
    • At least 30% decline in revenue due to Covid-19 over 14-day period in the 6 months before applying, compared to the same 14 day period one year ago
  • Loan must be used for business purposes, not for personal drawings or payment of a dividend
  • Loan amount $10,000 + $1,800 per FTE, maximum loan is $100,000
  • 5 years to repay the loan, interest rate is 3% pa
  • Loan is interest free if repaid in full within 2 years
  • For detailed information go to COVID-19 Small Business Cashflow Scheme (SBCS) (ird.govt.nz)

If in doubt about what Government assistance your business may be eligible for contact Q2 Ltd. We are here to help.

 

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