On Friday the government announced that businesses who are suffering from a drop in revenue due to ongoing COVID-19 restrictions can apply for additional resurgence support payments.
Applications will open 17 September 2021 and it has been advised that more resurgence payments will follow if conditions do not change and will continue until all of New Zealand returns to alert level 1 for at least one month. Businesses applying will need to experience at least a 30% drop in revenue over a period of seven days as a result of COVID-19 alert levels to qualify.
Qualifying business will receive a maximum of $21,500 which includes a core business rate of $1500, plus $400 per employee (capped at 50 fulltime equivalents).
These payments are welcome to businesses who are struggling with the current restrictions, however, there have been reports of significant delays in the processing of applications. The IRD has explained that these delays are occurring when the information included in applications do not match the data held by the IRD.
We are all hoping for a swift return to level 1, but in the meantime if you qualify for the resurgence payments, take the time to ensure your applications are as accurate as possible to avoid any unnecessary delays.
By Sabrina Sachs