Purpose has been working with a number of clients to support them to access the JobKeeper 2.0 scheme, covering the period 28 September to 3 January 2021.

From early January, we will turn our focus to the next phase of the scheme, JobKeeper Extension 2:

• This phase runs from 4 January to 28 March 2021
• Eligibility requirements will remain the same, so in a sense we have more certainty than we have before:
  • To be eligible for the scheme beyond 3 January, NFP’s need to demonstrate that their actual GST turnover has fallen by 15% for the December 2020 quarter (against the comparable period, generally the corresponding quarter in 2019)
  • The same interpretation has been applied to the period that income should pertain to for assessment – it is based on BAS rules for reporting sales, rather than an accounting basis (that might look at when the service or product is delivered)
  • You can be eligible for JobKeeper Extension 2 even if you were not eligible for previous JobKeeper Extension 1 payments
• Orgs that are already enrolled in JobKeeper do not need to re-enrol to claim payments in the next phase – they just need to confirm their continuing eligibility to the ATO. Purpose will assist our clients in this process, which should be done by the end of January.
• Tier 1 and Tier 2 JobKeeper rates apply again, however the amounts are reduced further. The new rates are:
  • Tier 1: $1,000 per fortnight (before tax)
  • Tier 2: $650 per fortnight (before tax)
• Orgs must confirm to the ATO which tiers apply for all employees receiving payments
• Any top-up payments that employees have been receiving to date, as part of JobKeeper Extension 1, need to reduce (to the subsidy levels offered under the next phase), or cease altogether, if participation in the scheme is ending:
  • For organisations whose eligibility assessment for the next phase has a degree of uncertainty, we again recommend to clients that they pause employee top-up payments until they have sufficient clarity on their assessment. The ATO has stated that employers have until the end of January to resume top-up payments. So if eligibility is confirmed, the top-up payments can be caught up in the latter part of January.