The Australian Taxation Office (ATO) is urging local businesses to take advantage of the JobMaker Hiring Credit, with the deadline for the first claims period set for the end of this month.

The deadline for the first claims period for the JobMaker Hiring Credit is set for Friday, 30 April.

Under the initiative, employers have the opportunity to receive up to $10,400 per year for each new job they fill between 7 October 2020 and 6 January 2021 with an eligible employee aged 16 to 29 years. Each new job filled with an eligible employee aged 30 to 35 years will enable the employer to receive up to $5,200 a year.

Deputy commissioner James O’Halloran said the ATO is encouraging businesses who have bolstered their headcount during this time to make a claim before the 30 April deadline.

“As the deadline to claim for the first period approaches on 30 April, I encourage all employers to see if they qualify for the scheme, and if eligible, claim the JobMaker Hiring Credit payments,” Mr O’Halloran said.

“Employers who want more information can go to www.ato.gov.au/jobmakerhiringcredit or contact their tax or BAS agent.”

Mr O’Halloran’s comments come off the back of the latest government employment figures which show more than 300,000 additional jobs have been created since October 2020.

How to access the JobMaker Hiring Credit

As per the ATO’s website, employers looking to receive payments under the scheme must complete the following steps.

1. Check you are an eligible employer

Eligible employers must hold an Australian business number (ABN) and be registered for pay-as-you-go (PAYG) withholding. They must not have claimed JobKeeper payments for a fortnight that started during the JobMaker period and must be up to date with income tax and GST returns for the two years up to the end of the JobMaker period for which they are claiming.

2. Employ eligible additional employees

Eligible employees are classified as those employed during the JobMaker period, i.e. between 7 October 2020 and 6 January 2021, and have worked or have been paid for an average of at least 20 hours per week they were employed in the JobMaker period.

They must have completed a JobMaker Hiring Credit employee notice for the employer and have not already provided a JobMaker Hiring Credit employee notice to another current employer.

3. Register for the JobMaker Hiring Credit before your first claim

Prior to making their first claim, employers need to register prior to the 30 April deadline. To do this, employers will need to provide their baseline headcount, baseline payroll amount and contact details.

4. Satisfy both the headcount increase condition and the payroll increase condition 

As stated on the ATO’s website, the JobMaker Hiring Credit scheme “subsidises you to hire more employees. It does not reduce the cost of replacing employees.”

“As an employer, you must prove you are creating new employment positions to receive payments. You do this each JobMaker period by showing an increase in your employee headcount and payroll. The amount you get is based on the number of eligible employees you have hired,” the ATO said.