JobKeeper 2.0 was launched on 21 July 2020 to help businesses that continue to be significantly affected by COVID-19. Further changes were announced on 7 August, making it easier for businesses to qualify for payment and making more employees eligible. This is a summary of the changes to JobKeeper.
More Employees Qualify
From 3 August 2020, you may be able to nominate new employees for JobKeeper payment if they were employed by you on 1 July 2020. Previously, the employee would have been employed by you on 1 March 2020. However, now you can include employees that you employed after 1 March 2020 provided they meet the Employee Test Requirements and provide a JobKeeper Payment Employee Nomination.
This is an opportunity to review those employees who were previously ineligible as at 1 March 2020 due to the age-related or residency conditions. For example, employees who were 17 on 1 March 2020 and have now turned 18.
Employers have until 31 August to meet the wage conditions for new employees that were eligible under the 1 July 2020 eligibility criteria for the fortnights commencing 3 August 2020 and 17 August 2020. This means that employers have until 31 August 2020 to pay eligible employees at least $1,500 per JobKeeper fortnight. Businesses can claim for new eligible employees between 1 and 14 September 2020 when they lodge their August monthly declaration.
Those employees who commenced employment after 1 July 2020 are not eligible.
Eligibility based on actual turnover
Transition from JobKeeper 1.0 to 2.0 is not automatic. From 28 September 2020, businesses will be required to re-assess their eligibility based on actual turnover. For example,
- To receive payment between 28 September 2020 and 3 January 2021, actual turnover for the September 2020 quarter is compared to the September 2019 quarter to determine whether there has been a decline in turnover by 30% or more.
- To receive payment from 3 January 2021 to 28 March 2021, a further assessment of eligibility is required in January to compare the actual turnover for the December 2020 quarter to the December 2019 quarter to determine whether there has been a decline in turnover by 30% or more.
Reduced Payment Rate
Payment rates will also change from 28 September 2020. A summary of the rates is below:
| Date | Full rate | Lower rate |
| Monday 28 September 2020 to Sunday 3 January 2021 | $1,200 | $750 |
| Monday 4 January 2021 to Sunday 28 March 2021 | $1,000 | $650 |
The full rate is paid to eligible employees who work more than 20 hours per week and the lower rate to those that work less than 20 hours per week. Businesses are required to nominate which payment rate they will be claiming.
For more information, visit the ATO website.
Need help navigating JobKeeper?
If you need help calculating your JobKeeper entitlement, please contact us. We are 100% virtual. However, if you would prefer an onsite visit, we are located in the beautiful Riverina region and service the areas of Albury, Wodonga, Griffith and Leeton.