In April 2020 we reported on Land Tax and Payroll Tax measures state and territory revenue offices made in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. As the ramifications of COVID-19 continue to affect Australians, these measures have since been extended and new measures announced.

We outline below a summary of the measures as at 1 September 2020.

PAYROLL TAX MEASURES

As we previously reported here, the Victorian Government announced in March a payroll tax waiver for eligible Victorian businesses suffering as a result of COVID-19. A subsequent announcement in May resulted in additional payments made under the JobKeeper program being exempt from payroll tax. We provided further details on this measure here.

In response to the continued difficulty faced by Victorian businesses, the Victorian Government announced on 10 July 2020 some further measures. Pursuant to these additional measures eligible businesses with taxable Australian wages less $10 million have the option to defer payment of their payroll tax liabilities as follows:

• for July 2020, August 2020 and September 2020 defer until 14 January 2021, and

• for October 2020, November 2020 and December 2020 defer until 7 March 2021.

Employers must lodge their 2019-20 annual reconciliation return and their monthly payroll tax returns for July 2020 through to December 2020 in order to be eligible for the deferral.

There are a number of changes across Australia, with certain previously announced measures now having lapsed.  In summary the current position across Australia, as at 1 September 2020, is as follows:

LAND TAX MEASURES

As we reported here, the Victorian Government announced in March a land tax deferral for land owners who own at least one non-residential property and have total landholdings below $1 million. Subsequently on 15 April 2020 the ‘Support to Landlords and Tenants’ package was announced. This package provided:

• a 25% reduction on 2020 land tax assessments where landlords provide rent relief to tenants impacted by COVID-19;

• the relief also applied to land owners unable to secure a tenant due to COVID-19; and

• a deferral for landlords of their 2020 land tax until 31 March 2021.

Further land tax relief measures were announced by the Victorian Government on 20 August 2020. The measures provide as follows:

• landlords of residential and commercial properties who provide a 50% or more outright rent waiver of at least 3 months’ to eligible tenants can claim now claim a 50% waiver of the property’s 2020 land tax (previously 25%) and defer payment of the remaining tax to 31 March 2021.

• owner-occupiers of commercial properties can obtain a new 25% waiver of the property’s 2020 land tax and payment of the remaining tax can be deferred to 31 March 2021 if their business meets certain conditions.

Currently the SRO is updating its systems to reflect these changes. Taxpayers are unable to apply for the relief measures at this stage. It is anticipated after the update which applications will be open again.

There are no changes to the measures in New South Wales, Queensland, Tasmania, the Australian Capital Territory and the Northern Territory. However additional changes have been made to measures in South Australia and Western Australia. In summary the position across Australia as at 1 September 2020 is as follows:

If you have any questions, please contact one of our State Tax specialists:

Laura Spencer
Senior Associate
T +61 3 9611 0110
lspencer@sladen.com.au

Phil Broderick
Principal
T +61 3 9611 0163  l M +61 419 512 801   
E: pbroderick@sladen.com.au     

Denise Tan
Senior Associate
T +61 3 9611 0160  | M +61 438 714 965
E: dtan@sladen.com.au      

Lucy Liang
Graduate Lawyer
E lliang@sladen.com.au