States’ tax relief measures to deal with the challenges of COVID-19

Victoria : businesses with payroll of less than $3 million will be provided full payroll tax refunds for the 2019-20 financial year, with payments processed from this week. These businesses can also defer payroll tax for the first three months of the 2020/21 financial year until 1 January 2021. Eligible small businesses (landowners with at least one taxable non-residential property and total taxable landholdings below $1 million) can defer their 2020 land tax payments until after 1 January 2021, with payment to be made in full by 31 March 2021.

Western Australia: penalty tax for late payment of tax liabilities (payroll tax, duties and land tax) will be remitted for taxpayers who can demonstrate that COVID-19 has directly or indirectly affected their financial circumstances, and new payment arrangements (to pay by instalments or extend the time for paying tax) will be interest-free for taxpayers who can demonstrate they are unable to pay their taxes.

Queensland: in addition to the six-month payroll tax deferral scheme to all impacted businesses, they will be refunded two months’ worth of payroll tax. Small and medium enterprise businesses will be given a three-month payroll tax holiday and a further six-month payroll tax deferral.

ACT: a six-month waiver of payroll tax for the hospitality, creative arts and entertainment industries. There will also be access to interest-free deferrals of payroll tax commencing on 1 July 2020 for all businesses up to a payroll threshold of $10 million in Australian taxable wages.