COVID-19: QLD Payroll Tax relief updates see increased deferrals and refunds

On 23 March 2020, the Queensland Premier announced an update in relation to the QLD Payroll Tax relief package that was originally proposed on Friday 20 March 2020.
This update provides further deferrals and refunds of payroll tax debt that have already been paid.

Eligibility:  

If you are an employer (or part of a group of employers) who pays $6.5 million or less in Australian taxable wages and have been directly or indirectly impacted by Coronavirus (COVID-19), you can:  

  • Make a claim for a refund of your payroll tax for 2 months (November and December 2019); 
  • Apply for a payroll tax holiday (no payroll tax to be paid for 3 months); and  
  • Apply for a deferral of payroll tax for the 2020 calendar year.

 If you are an employer (or part of a group of employers) who pays $6.5 million or more in Australian taxable wages and have been directly or indirectly impacted by Coronavirus (COVID-19), you can:  

  • Make a claim for a refund of your payroll tax for 2 months (November and December 2019); and 
  • Apply for a deferral of payroll tax for the 2020 calendar year.

 For any employer who has already applied for a deferral under the previous announcement which deferred payroll tax to 31 July 2020, you do not need to re-apply as the OSR will automatically extend this to the full 2020 calendar year. 

The OSR deems that a business is directly or indirectly affected by Coronavirus (COVID-19) if their current turnover, profit, customers, bookings, retail sales, supply contracts or other factors are negatively affected compared with normal operating conditions. 

 

How to apply: 

Employers may receive an email from the OSR indicating they are eligible for the refund and payroll tax holiday.

If you have not received an email and you believe you are eligible, you can apply for these concessions using the online application forms (there is one form to apply for a deferral and another to apply for the refund and payroll tax holiday) on the OSR website using the following links: 

 

You MUST apply for the refund and payroll tax holiday before 31 May 2020.   

 

Further details regarding the new updates can be found on the OSR website

 

You can also contact your usual Mazars advisor who will be able to assist you with this process or alternatively one of our Mazars specialists below: 

Brisbane – Nathanael Lee

Melbourne – Evan Beissel

Sydney – Gaibrielle Cleary

+61 7 3218 3900

+61 3 9252 0800

+61 2 9922 1166

 

Author: Michael Glasper

Published: 24/3/2020

 

Please note that this publication is intended to provide a general summary and should not be relied upon as a substitute for personal advice.

 

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