Making a point
about stimulus packages.
The alternative title for this blog is ‘Get Stimulated’ and I want to make this point
because as I've been working through this situation with my coaching clients,
I've seen several incidents where my clients have come to me and said ‘I don't think I'm gonna get
the job keeper payment. I don't think I'll qualify’.
And what seems to have happened is that either they or their bookkeeper or accountant
had a look at the rules, and says, ‘You're gonna miss out, bad luck’.
I call it bullsh*t.
Let's not see if we qualify, let's see how we can make sure we qualify.
And now just for clarity, I'm not advocating fraud. I'm not advocating lying
or any kind of dishonest behavior, none of that. But let's look at this
with an aim in mind. Let's see how we can get maximum assistance
from the government. Let's see how we can get stimulated.
But the Australians, I'm going to go into the detail because that's what I understand, that's where I live.
For Brits and Kiwis, sorry I don't understand the detail of your stimulus packages properly
and I know there are people on Facebook who do so, I'm gonna leave it to those experts.
For the Australians, the cashflow boost you need to do your BAS. Make sure you do you BAS.
There's not much more to it. Make sure everyone who can be employed is
- the more PAYG tax you withheld, the more what you're going to get, minimum $10K
and you're going to get $10k a minimum twice now and in August again.
The apprentice subsidy, register all your apprentices, crack on and do it to the ones who qualify.
And for the job keeper, this is where I'm focusing my attention. This is the big one.
This is 1,500 per employee per fortnight stimulus to you that you pass on to your employees
and that encourages you to keep them in a job. That's good for everybody
and you have to have had a fall in revenue of 30 % and this is the conversation
I've been having. This is where people have said, ‘Look, I don't think I'm going to show a revenue fall of 30 %’
and I'm saying we've been quite badly affected. Yeah, but I don't show 30% falling revenue compared to last April.
That's the example I'm using, I'm sure there are others.
So if you haven't seen a falling revenue of 30% and your business hasn't suffered
and you don't anticipate a fall of 30% in the near future though enough, you don't get it. You don't need it either.
But here's the thing. If your business has been affected but this March compared to last March or this April
compared to last April, it doesn't show 30% fall in revenue, then you're gonna miss out
and that doesn't seem fair, is that a fair comparison?
And for many of my clients, they've been investing hard. They've been working hard to grow their business.
That's why they’ve hired a business coach in. They're businesses have grown
between last April and now and then perhaps suffered a downturn now or about to suffer and downturn as
jobs dry up particularly for buildings. You're still doing work now. You might be quite in June or July
when you don't win in new jobs so think a bit harder.
If you've been affected or you're going to be affected, how can you prove it, how can you argue it
and get the payment, a stimulus payment.
The ATO helpfully gives two options.
You can choose your period to compare like March or April compare to March or April or May or June or July,
you can choose those as well so if it's going to drop in July,
get your application in and do your proving then and get your payment starting then.
If you're expecting your revenue to decline, get your application and prove it then.
You only get the money after your turnover falls of course but it's better,
you don't need that.
So the comparison period is the same month last year unless
and here's the small print that people seem to have overlooked and I found myself arguing with my clients,
saying’ No, no, no, no, there's the small print that says unless that's not an appropriate comparison
in which case you can consider an alternative test and it used to say the Tax Commissioner
can judge an alternative test on its most.
So what's an alternative test you might say and it says they can determine what.
So yesterday while I'm writing this video,
I was looking through the ATO website as you do, making sure of these words and there's a new piece of
legislation ratified yesterday called, check this
- Coronavirus economic response package payments and benefits alternative decline in turnover test.
Great name. It gives provisions for these alternative tests and it lays out a few so it gives provisions for
if business started less than a year ago.
If the business acquired a business or part of a business or disposed of part of a business that affected turnover,
if there was a business restructure that changed turnover,
if a business had a substantial increase in turnover which is what's happened to a couple of my clients.
They’ve done really hard, they've been working with me of course and they've grown, happy days.
And now they've suffered.
Business is affected by drought, businesses with irregular turnover which applies to quite a lot
of builders who have very lumpy turnover so
comparing April to April is a kind of a meaningless comparison.
And they allow you to take the average of several months or
to take the smaller numbers so they're making it easy for you to get the payment
if that direct month-on-month comparison isn't fair
so don't give up. If at first look, it seems you're not gonna get it,
don't give up, crack on. Go and investigate.
If you want help from me obviously, get in touch. Book a 10- minute chat. I will
spend a few minutes thinking through with you in your particular situation and not just give you
a business coaching sales speech.
So if you want to do that with me, get in touch and I'll talk to and help you.
My bookkeeper is helping me apply. They can do it from within
your ATO portal. I've seen a decline in my revenue too.
Your accounting can as well so get help. Don't recycle, don't sit there not knowing what to do.
Talk to your advisers and get stuck in and if you want help from me like I said,
ask me. Apply now. You can now apply for the job keeper amounts
and you can do your proving on the 4th of May so now is the time
to get your application.
It's a stimulus, it's stimulated. Specifically it's so that you don't feel like you have to lay people off.
You can put them on
few hours and give them the $1500 and everyone's okay and can do that for six months
while this sh*t sorts itself out.
So get the money. It’s your job to get the money for your business. I'm a business coach.
If you want someone like me on your side thinking like this maybe you should get in touch.
You can book a 10-minute chat and put in the notes, "I want to talk about business coaching"
or you can book a 10- minute chat and put in the notes, “How do we get some stimulus, Jon’
and if you're not ready for business coaching, there's always the marketing. You can buy that for $50 a month
and think about growing a business as we push through this instead.
See you later.