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Reporting for JobKeeper payments

2 July 2020

Businesses that have enrolled for the JobKeeper Payment and identified their eligible employees will need to make a business monthly declaration to the ATO.

A registered tax professional can also do this on behalf of the business.

The monthly declaration can be completed from the 1st to the 14th day of each month, to receive reimbursements for the payments made to employees in the previous month.

This step will need to be completed each month to claim payments until the end of the program.

To find out more watch the video,  Step three – Make a monthly business declaration.


15 May 2020

If you’ve enrolled for the JobKeeper Payment it’s now time to identify yourself or your eligible employees.

You will need to complete this important step before you can be reimbursed by the ATO. If you are a sole trader with no employees you still need to take this step. To find out more watch the video,  Step two – Identify and maintain.

For further details, refer to the ATO’s JobKeeper guides


22 April 2020

The ATO has released the form that business owners/operators need to complete to apply for the JobKeeper Payment.

Access the JobKeeper nomination notice for eligible business participants

There are separate forms for sole traders and for those who are directors, shareholders, beneficiaries, or partners in a business. The issues concerning how a business may be structured that negates the ability to apply for a JobKeeper payment still exists.

To assist, the ATO has developed guides for employers seeking to register:

The ATO has also issued a proforma notice for use by employers and employees to confirm that an employer intends to add an employee to their JobKeeper registration and for the employee to confirm back to their employer that they are eligible to be included in that employer’s registration.

Access the JobKeeper payment employee nomination notice

This form must be in the possession of the employer at the time they make a claim. It is also possible to amend, at least at this stage, the JobKeeper registration to add an employee covering the April fortnights during the month of May. This form is fairly explicit in requiring an employee to attest to their eligibility, so employers can rely on that form to make their claim, even if the employee knows otherwise.

Further information for employees is available on the ATO website. It includes clear guidelines for employees to assess their own eligibility.

Note on eligibility

Employers can only claim the JobKeeper payment on behalf of employees who were paid at least $1,500 (before tax) for each fortnight claimed for during the JobKeeper payment period.

You should pay your employees for each JobKeeper fortnight you plan to claim for. The first fortnight is from 30 March – 12 April and each JobKeeper fortnight follows after that. The JobKeeper payment cannot be claimed in advance in any circumstances. The JobKeeper payment is a reimbursement from the ATO to an employer in arrears.

The only exception being allowed is in respect of the first two fortnights where the ATO will accept a payment made by the end of April covering those two periods will count. Otherwise, an employer risks being held ineligible for the subsidy altogether – in that instance the ATO will reclaim any payments it has made to the employer, plus interest and penalties.

Employees who have been stood down from work under the Fair Work Act 2009 without pay may still be eligible employees as long as they were in their employment and met the eligibility criteria on 1 March 2020. Employers will need to have paid them at least the minimum amount of $1,500 for each fortnight claimed for, to receive the JobKeeper payment.

Learn more


Disclaimer: The information above is of a general nature only and does not consider your individual circumstances. MEA does not provide financial or tax advice. Always consult with your accountant.


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