COVID-19 Business Support Grant
Applications for the above grant have opened and will remain open for three months, so there is time to get your application ready and apply.
Guidelines on how to apply for the grants are now available at: www.business.qld.gov.au/supportgrant
The 2021 COVID-19 Business Support Grants will provide grants of $5,000 to employing small and medium businesses and large businesses in the hospitality and tourism sectors across Queensland that have been impacted by the recent SEQ or Cairns lockdowns.
Importantly, all eligible businesses who apply for a grant during the 3-month application period will receive a grant.
Businesses must have experienced at least a 30% reduction in turnover as a result of the lockdowns to be eligible as well as meeting other eligibility criteria.
Small and medium businesses are defined as businesses that have a turnover of more than $75,000 per annum and have an annual payroll in Queensland of up to $10 million.
Businesses or not-for-profit organisations do not have to be located in one of the lockdown areas to be eligible.
To be eligible, you:
must employ staff (employees must be on your payroll and does not include any business owners)
have a Queensland headquarters
must have an annual turnover of more than $75,000
must have an annual payroll in Queensland of not more than $10 million
must show or declare a reduction in turnover of 30% or more for a 1-week period that includes at least 1 full day of the:
Southeast Queensland lockdown commencing 31 July 2021
the Cairns and Yarrabah lockdown commencing 8 August 2021, or
any other lockdown in Queensland in August 2021.
How to apply:
You will need to apply online with supporting evidence through the Queensland Rural and Industry Development Authority (QRIDA) portal.
To get ready, create a QRIDA profile so you can submit as soon as applications open.
If you do not have a QRIDA profile login, complete the following steps:
Visit the QRIDA portal to create your profile.
If you have not registered with QRIDA before:
Click on the 'Register' tab and enter your details
after registering, QRIDA will send an email to validate your account – allow time to receive this email (remember to check your junk email too)
when you have validated your account, you will be ready to log into the QRIDA portal and submit your application.
Once you have set up your QRIDA profile you will need to collate your supporting evidence. This may include an Independent Financial Confirmation letter which can be prepared by our office. Please note we will need to perform a review of your financial position to be satisfied you meet the eligibility criteria so we recommend you have your financial information up to date.
As you can understand this will be a busy time for our office so, please be patient as we will have a number of clients requiring assistance with this support package. This grant is not capped so all eligible businesses will receive the grant and have a three-month window to apply.
Please email or phone our office once you have determined your eligibility and we will perform the relevant review and prepare your letter.
Please note as per the guidelines we are not able to complete the application on your behalf, you will need to establish your own QRIDA profile and submit the details personally.
There may be areas of the guidelines that are not clear, we will do our best to answer any questions however as this is all new, we may have to refer back to DESBT to get clarity so again we ask for your patience while this is done.
Clients using Xero software
For any clients using Xero please do not use the COVID business support turnover calculator as it is producing incorrect data. You will need to manually check your income by producing a profit and loss for the relevant periods.
Other support measures
If you are not eligible for the COVID-19 Business Support Grant you may be eligible for the COVID-19 Disaster Payment – please see the link below to determine your eligibility.
https://www.servicesaustralia.gov.au/individuals/services/centrelink/covid-19-disaster-payment-queensland
