The news around COVID-19 continues to move fast. Governments are moving to alleviate the impact on individuals and businesses. Today’s stimulus had the following measures included.

SUPPORT FOR INDIVIDUALS

Welfare payments: $18.1bn

Welfare recipients receive an extra $550 a fortnight on top of their current benefits, essentially doubling the newstart payment.

Coronavirus supplement time-limited for next six months.

Waiting times and asset tests for JobSeeker Payment waived.

Extra one-off $750 payment for welfare recipients and veterans, on top of the $750 announced for them in the last round of stimulus measures. The 2nd $750 will arrive in July.

Superannuation: $1.2bn

Unemployed, casuals and sole traders will be able to access their superannuation funds.

People can apply to access up to $10,000 in this financial year. Another $10,000 will be accessible in the next financial year.

Minimum superannuation drawdown rates for retirees and others reduced by 50 per cent until 2021.

Deeming rates: $876m

Deeming rates lowered in line with the Reserve Bank’s emergency rates cut.

Expected to benefit up to 900,000 pensioners.

SUPPORT FOR EMPLOYERS: $31.9BN

Jobs payments

Small and medium enterprises (SMEs) to get up to $100,000 to keep staff in jobs.

Payment linked to business PAYG Withholding. 100 per cent of tax businesses withhold from staff’s wages: the more staff you have, the more money you get back (up to a limit of $100,000).

Businesses with turnovers of up to $50m and charities eligible.

Cash flow for SMEs

Cash flow injection into small businesses from last stimulus package boosted.

Minimum payment rises from $2000 to $10,000. Maximum payment from $25,000 to $50,000.

WIDER SUPPORT FOR BUSINESSES

SME loan guarantee: $20bn

Federal government will guarantee 50 per cent of loans to small businesses.

Government guarantee will support up to $40bn of banks’ lending to SMEs.

Insolvency and bankruptcy

Threshold for creditors to take action raised from $2000 to $20,000.

Businesses will have six months, instead of 21 days to respond to creditors.

Further information and fact sheets are available at https://treasury.gov.au/coronavirus