COVID-19: Government assistance programs COVID-19: Government assistance programs COVID-19: Government assistance programs

There are ongoing funding and cash flow programs available to assist private, mid-market and family businesses affected by COVID-19.

The COVID-19 pandemic continues to have a serious impact on our people, our communities and our businesses – here and around the world. Federal and state government responses to the economic and social impact of the pandemic include relief payments and concessions for individuals and businesses.

We have compiled a guide detailing current funding and cash flow programs that are available to your business if it’s being affected by COVID-19.

In a very broad sense, common eligibility criteria include: that the applicant usually be a small to medium enterprise (SME) employing less than a threshold number of employees; and have aggregated turnover under, for example, $50 million. Please note that each one of these assistance programs has unique eligibility requirements and, if you are applying for one, care must be taken to ensure that the criteria are satisfied.

Further, some programs offer cash grants whilst others offer tax credits delivered through the Australian Taxation Office (ATO). For more specific eligibility criteria and detail on existing COVID-19 grants, please refer to our more detailed guide linked below.

Most of the available funding and cash flow programs will require some evidence of eligibility. Keep key documents to hand to prove eligibility if your business needs to apply. Typically, some of the documents required are:

• proof of business registration
• proof of impact or potential impact of COVID-19 (e.g. order cancellations)
• evidence of business being an SME, employing less than the relevant threshold number of personnel.

Since March 2020, the Federal Government has announced billions in stimulus packages to help business and the Australian economy. Our detailed guide above provides information on specific programs.

You can find out about the measures announced as part of the Federal Government’s May 2021 Budget by visiting our Federal Budget 2021 page.

Other privately funded programs may also be available to you and your business. Enquire at your financial institution for available assistance packages.

Additionally, if these government funding and cash flow programs do not meet your business’ specific needs, discretionary funding approaches may be made to local, state or federal members of parliament for circumstances that warrant funding on their own merit.

Many of these funding and cash flow programs have a deadline which it is important to be aware of. These deadlines vary by program and, for longer standing programs, change from time to time.