In its efforts to drive Australia’s economy and provide more job opportunities to young people, the federal government continues to extend its help to employers through JobMaker. Here’s what you need to know about this scheme.

What is JobMaker Hiring Credit Scheme?

JobMaker is an incentive given to eligible businesses to hire job seekers aged 16-35 years. The goal of this scheme is to increase the workforce participation of young people as the Australian economy recovers from the impacts of COVID-19.

JobMaker Key Dates

The JobMaker Hiring Credit is a one-year project that runs from 7 October 2020 to 6 October 2021. Other important dates are as follows:

  • 6 December 2020 – registrations start
  • 1 February 2021 – first claim period begins
  • 30 April 2021 – first claim period ends

For the complete list of JobMaker key dates, check here.

Payment Rates

If you qualify for this scheme, you can receive payments of up to:

  • $200/week for each eligible additional employee aged 16-29 years
  • $100/week for each eligible additional employee aged 30-35 years

The age will be based on the date the employee started formally working in your business.

How to Register

The registration for the second period is still on-going. You can only file a claim if you register. Here are the criteria you need to meet to qualify.

Employer Eligibility 

You must:

  • Register for the JobMaker Hiring Credit scheme
  • Operate either a business or not-for-profit organisation in Australia
  • Be a deductible gift recipient (DGR) under DGR item 9.1.1 or DGR item 9.1.2
  • Have an Australian business number (ABN)
  • Be registered for pay as you go (PAYG) withholding
  • Have not claimed JobKeeper payments for a fortnight that started during the JobMaker period
  • Be updated with your income tax and GST returns for the two years until the end of the JobMaker period you plan to claim
  • Meet the conditions on payroll and headcount increase
  • Accomplish reporting requirements
  • Not belong to any of the ineligible employer categories.

Employee Eligibility

You can only claim payments for eligible employees who meet the following requirements:

  • Started work with you during the JobMaker period — that is, 7 October 2020 to 6 October 2021
  • Received the JobSeeker Payment, Youth Allowance or Parenting Payment at least a month within the three months before getting hired
  • Aged 16-35 years when they started employment
  • Worked a minimum of 20 hours/week during the given period
  • Completed a JobMaker Hiring Credit employee notice
  • Have not provided a JobMaker Hiring Credit employee notice to another employer

For further details, visit the ATO website.

Registration

Using your active ABN, you can register for JobMaker on ATO online services or Online services for business. You’ll also need the following information to complete your registration:

  • baseline headcount
  • baseline payroll amount
  • contact details.

Take note that you cannot receive your JobMaker Hiring Credits if you also receive a JobKeeper payment for a fortnight which started during the JobMaker period.

Conclusion

The JobMaker Hiring Credit scheme is a good opportunity to support the employment needs of your business without causing too much damage to your cash flow. Make sure to register today to enjoy its benefits.

Let Us Help

If your business has a turnover of over $1 million, ABJ Solutions is offering a complimentary one-hour meeting to help answer questions and model critical decisions with you. Get in touch with us today so that we can help guide you through these challenging times.

Interested to read more content to improve the way you manage your business? Click here to visit ABJ Solutions’ blogs.