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Tax practitioners will now have their questions on NSW’s COVID-19 business support measures addressed directly by Service NSW in a one-off webinar on Monday.
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Service NSW to address accountants in new COVID-19 support webinar
09 August 2021
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9 minute read
The webinar, designed specifically for accounting and tax practitioners, will be held on Monday, 9 August, from 5pm to 6pm.
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It is expected to cover the range of financial supports currently available to businesses in NSW, including the COVID-19 business grant, the micro-business grant and the JobSaver payment.
The webinars come as business owners and accountants continue to struggle with aspects of the application process, including eligibility guidelines that fail to consider businesses operating outside standard circumstances.
Accountants Daily understands that Service NSW will first respond to a list of questions put forward by the major accounting bodies, before answering questions submitted by practitioners during the webinar.
Some issues expected to be addressed during the hour-long webinar will include practical examples of alternative decline in turnover scenarios accepted by Service NSW, the eligibility of businesses operating under alternative circumstances, and employment issues.
Gavan Ord, senior manager of business and investment policy at CPA Australia, said the webinar was a good opportunity for practitioners to seek clarity on any technical and complex questions.
“We know some applications are straightforward and sail through quickly, but many are not and require high levels of manual intervention by Service NSW and Revenue NSW,” said Mr Ord.
“Issues arise often enough that we’d encourage any accountant who processes businesses support applications to attend this webinar. It’ll save you time in the long run.
“There will be an opportunity to ask questions of Service NSW and NSW Treasury, so it’s a good chance to highlight any areas where the process is falling down.”
The Institute of Public Accountants general manager of technical policy, Tony Greco, said that while the webinar would help address uncertainty, it was disappointing that Service NSW had not reached out to the profession earlier in the process.
“Service NSW has failed to consult with the accounting profession, a key stakeholder and intermediary in the delivery of government support to struggling businesses,” said Mr Greco.
“This is despite being well placed to assist Service NSW given our experience, knowledge from working closely with Treasury and the ATO during the implementation of JobKeeper in 2020.”
The webinar can be accessed here and will be available on Service NSW’s YouTube channel after it has concluded.
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