With this lockdown in Auckland seeming to go on forever, it’s a good time to refresh evryone on what support is available and what changes have been made to the support.
If your business has reduced revenue
COVID-19 Wage Subsidy Scheme
The Wage Subsidy Scheme will be available to all businesses while any part of the country is in Alert Levels 3 or 4. For example, while Auckland is in Alert Levels 3 or 4, businesses in Auckland and other parts of the country can apply for the COVID-19 Wage Subsidy Scheme.
You can apply for the COVID-19 Wage Subsidy Scheme to help keep paying your staff and protect jobs.
Businesses must meet the eligibility criteria to apply.
Businesses and self-employed people must expect a 40% drop in revenue to be eligible to receive the wage subsidy.
The wage subsidy is paid in a 2 week lump sum. You can get:
$600 per week for each full-time employee
$359 per week for each part-time employee
You cannot get the Wage Subsidy August 2021, Leave Support Scheme and Short-Term Absence Payment for the same employee at the same time.
If you applied for a Wage Subsidy, you will need to wait 2 weeks after your application before you can apply for the next Wage Subsidy, even if you haven’t received a payment yet.
To apply for the wage subsidy go to the work and income website.
COVID-19 Resurgence Support Payment
The COVID-19 Resurgence Support Payment helps to cover wages and fixed costs for businesses who have been directly affected when there is an increase to Alert Level 2 or higher for a week or more.
To be eligible, your business must have experienced at least a 30% drop in revenue or a 30% decline in capital-raising ability over a 7-day period, due to an increase in Alert Levels.
You can receive $1,500 per business plus $400 per full-time employee (FTE), up to 50 FTE.
The maximum payment is $21,500.
If you’re a sole trader, you can receive a payment of up to $1,900.
Businesses anywhere in New Zealand can apply if they meet the eligibility criteria.
You can apply for both the COVID-19 Resurgence Support Payment and the COVID-19 Wage Subsidy Scheme if you meet all the eligible criteria.
You can receive all three payments if you are eligible for them.
Increase to Resurgence Support Payment
The Government has announced an increase to the Resurgence Support Payment as we transition to the new COVID-19 Protection Framework.
From 12 November 2021, the Resurgence Support Payment will be paid fortnightly.
Businesses can receive $3000 per business plus $800 per full-time employee (FTE), up to 50 FTE.
The maximum fortnightly payment is $43,000.
If you are self employed, or a sole trader you can receive a payment of $3,800.
The eligibility criteria remains the same.
The Resurgence Support Payment will continue to be available to businesses anywhere in New Zealand until Auckland moves to the new COVID-19 Protection Framework.
Small Business Cashflow Loan Scheme
If you employ 50 or fewer staff, you may be able to apply for the Small Business Cashflow Loan Scheme. This is a one-off 5 year loan. You can borrow a maximum of $10,000 plus $1,800 per full-time-equivalent employee within your business.
When applying for the loan, you need to be able to declare that your business is viable.
Your business must have experienced a minimum 30% decline in actual or predicted revenue over the period of a month, compared with the same month last year.
Applications are open until 31 December 2023 through myIR. If your business does not have a myIR account, you will need to create one to apply.
Loans will be interest free if they are paid back within 2 years. The interest rate is 3% for a maximum term of 5 years.
Help with your tax
If you are finding it hard to meet your tax obligations due to COVID-19, Inland Revenue may be able to help.
If an employee needs to self-isolate
If an employee has been asked to self-isolate by a doctor or health official, they legally must stay home until they are told they no longer need to by public health officials.
If an employee cannot work from home while self-isolating, you may be able to apply for financial support so they can continue to get paid.
COVID-19 Leave Support Scheme
If your employees have been asked to self-isolate and they cannot work from home, you can apply for the COVID-19 Leave Support Scheme for them. Employees on a casual contract are also eligible for the payment.
You can also use the payment to help pay employees who:
are sick with COVID-19 and need to isolate until a doctor tells them they no longer need to
have been in close contact with someone who has COVID-19
are at a higher risk of getting sick from COVID-19
live with someone who is at high risk of getting sick from COVID-19, and a doctor or health professional has told people in the household to isolate to reduce the risk of transmitting COVID-19 to vulnerable household members
have been asked to self-isolate by public health officials
need to stay home and look after a dependent child who needs support to self-isolate.
The Leave Support Scheme is paid as a 2 week lump sum at the rate of:
$600 a week for full-time employees
$359 a week for part-time employees
Employers and employees need to meet certain criteria to apply for the Leave Support Scheme.
This payment is available anytime, and is not restricted to a change in Alert Levels.
You cannot get the Wage Subsidy August 2021, Leave Support Scheme and Short-Term Absence Payment for the same employee at the same time.
If an employee is waiting for the result of a COVID-19 test
If an employee has been asked to get a COVID-19 test, they must stay home until they get a negative result.
If an employee cannot work from home, you may be able to apply for financial support so they can continue to get paid.
COVID-19 Short-Term Absence Payment
The COVID-19 Short-Term Absence Payment helps businesses keep paying employees who cannot work from home and:
need to stay at home while waiting for a COVID-19 test result
need to stay home and look after a dependent child who has been asked to get a COVID-19 test, or
live with someone who has been at a location of interest and need to stay home while they wait for the person in the household to get a negative test result.
Employees on a casual contract are also eligible for the payment.
You can get a one-off amount of $359 for each eligible worker while they are staying home waiting for test results. The amount is the same for both full-time and part-time employees.
You can apply for the Short-term Absence Payment any time, not just when there is a risk of community transmission, or change in Alert Levels.
You cannot get the Wage Subsidy August 2021, Leave Support Scheme and Short-Term Absence Payment for the same employee at the same time.
Additional support for businesses in Auckland
As Auckland transitions to the new COVID-19 Protection Framework, businesses will be able to apply for up to $3000 worth of advice and planning support, and then receive up to $4,000 to implement that advice through the established Regional Business Partners programme.
There will also be funding available for businesses to apply for mental health support for their employees.
