Business Support Fund – Expansion

What is the Business Support Fund – Expansion?

The Business Support Fund – Expansion was launched to support small and medium businesses in metropolitan Melbourne and Mitchell Shire that may have been financially impacted by the return of Stage 3 Stay at Home restrictions in these areas.

This program is in addition to the first round of the Business Support Fund, which closed on 1 June 2020.

Background

The Victorian Government announced updated restrictions for Melbourne and regional Victoria to help slow the spread of coronavirus (COVID-19) in Victoria.

Stage 4 restrictions are in place from 6pm on Sunday 2 August for metropolitan Melbourne.
Stage 3 restrictions are in place from 11:59pm on Wednesday 5 August for Regional Victoria, including Mitchell Shire.

These restrictions mean that many businesses will have to operate in a limited capacity or can no longer operate.

Funding

To support businesses impacted by these restrictions, one-off grants will be made available to eligible businesses under the Business Support Fund – Expansion program:

$10,000 for employing businesses in metropolitan Melbourne and Mitchell Shire in recognition of spending longer under restrictions
$5,000 for employing businesses in regional local government areas (except Mitchell Shire)

Businesses which have already received a Business Support Fund – Expansion grant, or have applied for one, will not need to re-apply. Successful applicants will automatically receive this additional allocation.

Eligible Projects

Grant funds, for example, may be used to assist the business with:

meeting business costs, including utilities, salaries or rent
seeking financial, legal or other advice to support business continuity planning
developing the business through marketing and communications activities
any other supporting activities related to the operation of the business.

Eligible Applicants

Businesses can apply where they meet all the criteria listed below. They must:

operate a business located in metropolitan Melbourne or Mitchell Shire
be a participant in the Commonwealth Government’s JobKeeper Payment scheme
employ people
be registered with WorkSafe on 30 June 2020
have an annual payroll of less than $3 million in 2019-20 on an ungrouped basis
be registered for Goods and Services Tax (GST) as at 30 June 2020
hold an Australian Business Number (ABN) and have held that ABN at 30 June 2020
be registered with the responsible Federal or State regulator.

Businesses that have received funding from other components of the Victorian Government’s Economic Survival Package are eligible to apply for this program.

Business owners that do not employ people (non-employing businesses) are not eligible for funding through this program.

Timing

Applications for the program will be extended until 14 September 2020.

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