Explained: The COVID-19 support payments available to businesses in South Australia

Businesses in South Australia affected by the recent coronavirus lockdown can still apply for one-off cash payments as part of a support package jointly funded by the state and federal governments.

A $40 million package announced in August offered payments to small businesses affected by the recent lockdowns and restrictions. As trading restrictions and border closures have continued, additional packages have been announced, including an additional $15 million in support payments announced in September.

Here’s what’s available for SMEs.

Cash grants for sole traders and businesses

Under the Business Support Grant Program, employing businesses can apply for one-off payments of $3000, while sole traders can apply for grants of $1000.

To be eligible, businesses must have met the following guidelines during the COVID-19 restrictions, which began on July 20:

• Have an Australian business number (ABN);
• Have an annual turnover of more than $75,000 (excluding GST) in either 2019-20 or 2020-21 and be registered for GST;
• Have total Australian payroll of less than $10 million in 2019-20; and
• Experienced at least a 30% reduction in turnover between July 20 and July 26 compared to the prior seven-days.

Businesses applying for the $3000 grants must also have employees who receive regular PAYG salary or wages, a Pay As You Go Withholding amounts as well as superannuation.

While businesses are not required to provide evidence of their decline in turnover as part of their application, they will be required to retain supporting information.

The SA government has confirmed applicants could be audited for two years after receiving a grant. Businesses should hold on to records from clients or suppliers detailing cancelled orders or appointments, receipts for refunds and invoices or delivery dockets.

Online applications are now open and will close midnight September 30, 2021.

CBD grant

Businesses and sole traders located in Adelaide CBD will automatically receive a $1000 grant, if they successfully apply for a payment under the Business Support Grant Program.

A business in the Adelaide CBD is defined as having a commercial premise located in the 5000 postcode.

COVID-19 Additional Business Support Grants

Additional funding is available for businesses operating in the hospitality, retail, transport and tourism sectors. The grant is designed to support businesses that have been significantly affected by trading restrictions in place since July 28, 2021.

Grants of $3,000 are available for employing businesses, and $1,000 is available to non-employing businesses.

In order to be eligible for the extra funding, businesses must show a decline in turnover of at least 30% for the fortnight of July 28 to August 10, 20210, compared to the average quarterly turnover in the June quarter in 2021.

This program also offers an additional $1,000 for businesses located in Adelaide CBD.

Applications for this program are open until October 17, 2021.

COVID-19 Tourism and Hospitality Grant

Announced in September, this grant offers extra funding for businesses that qualify for the Additional Business Support Grants listed above.

Businesses with employees that have an annual turnover of less than $2 million per year will be eligible for another $3,000 grant.

Sole traders are also eligible for another grant of $1,000.

If these businesses have applied for the Additional Business Support Grants, the extra payments will be made automatically, with no new application necessary.

Employing businesses with a turnover of between $2 million and $5 million will be eligible for an additional $7,000, taking the total received to $10,000.

Those with a turnover of more than $5 million will be eligible for a $17,000 top-up, taking their total grant funding to $20,000.

These businesses will have to re-apply for the additional funding, and provide supporting evidence of eligibility. More information is available here.

Applications will be open from September 17 to October 31.

COVID-19 Business Hardship Grant

This new grant package, also announced in September, is designed to offer support to businesses that have not been eligible for other grant support measures announced since July 2021.

Grants of $6,000 are available to businesses with employees, with annual payrolls of less than $10 million.

Grants of $2,000 are available to non-employing businesses.

To be eligible, businesses must show they have seen a decline in turnover of at least 50%, when comparing a two-week period between July 20 and August 31, 2021, to a benchmark two-week period in either 2019 or 2021.

For businesses that were operating in 2019, the comparison period must be between 20 July and 31 August, 2019, unless there are exceptional circumstances.

For those that were not trading in 2019, the comparison two-week period must fall between January 1 and June 30, 2021.

Businesses must also have had a state-wide grouped payroll of less than $10 million in the 2019-20 financial year.

The payments are only available to businesses that did not receive grant assistance through any of the other programs announced since the South Australian lockdown that began on July 20, 2021.

Applications for this package are open from September 17 to October 31, 2021.

Major Events Support Grant

The Major Events Support Grants package originally offered grants of up to $25,000 for operators of major one-off events affected by lockdowns and trading restrictions.

In September, the state government expanded the scheme, increasing the grant funding on offer to $100,000.

The funding covers non-recoverable costs up to $25,000 or up to $100,000, so if an event has lost less than this amount, that will be reflected in the grant received.

The larger grants are available for events that were expected to have more than 10,000 attendees.

Eligible events that have already applied for, or received, the $25,000 grant will automatically receive a top-up payment of up to $75,000.

To be eligible, businesses must be the organiser of an event that was scheduled between July 20 and August 10, and was cancelled or postponed because of the restrictions. 

Businesses must also:

• Have an ABN (Australian Business Number) and be registered for GST;
• Have had an Australian payroll of less than $10 million in the 2019-20 financial year;
• Employ people in South Australia; and
• Have incurred financial loss as a result of the cancellation or postponement of an event.

Applications for the original program are open until October 17, 2021. A new application form for the larger grant is expected to be available soon.

Find more information on all the support measures available in South Australia here.