Archived April 2020 post. JobKeeper has since ended; this is kept for reference only. At the time, if your business didn’t meet the basic decline-in-turnover test for JobKeeper, the ATO’s alternative decline-in-turnover test could apply. We summarised the rules here.
The alternative test applied only when an entity failed the basic test, and it involved a number of complex rules. The ATO divided it to reflect seven different business situations (each with sub-sections). The best starting point was to determine whether your situation reflected one or more of the following.
The seven situations
1. Business commenced: your entity started business before 1 March 2020 but after the relevant comparison period (with two alternatives under this section). 2. Business acquisition or disposal that changed turnover, occurring after the comparison period and before the applicable turnover test period. 3. Business restructure that changed turnover, in the same window. 4. Substantial increase in turnover immediately before the test period – 50% or more over 12 months, 25% or more over six months, or 12.5% or more over three months.
5. Business affected by drought or natural disaster: the entity operated in a declared drought or natural disaster zone during the comparison period and this changed its turnover. 6. Irregular turnover: over the 12 months before the test period, the lowest turnover quarter was no more than 50% of the highest, and turnover was not cyclical. 7. Sole trader or small partnership with sickness, injury or leave: the entity had no employees, and the sole trader or a partner did not work for all or part of the comparison period due to sickness, injury or leave, affecting turnover.
Getting help
The full detail sat on the ATO website. If you were unsure which situation applied, the advice was to get in touch with the team – the rules were intricate and the right test depended on your specific circumstances.