Victorian Government Grants
The Small Business Specialist Advice Pathways Program provides $2,000 grants to employing small businesses to access professional advice and services to help them make informed business decisions and plan for the future.
The program supports businesses that have faced disruptive change, caused by the COVID-19 pandemic and other factors, by improving their capability and preparedness to plan for their future or adapt their business model.
To be eligible for a grant under the Small Business Specialist Advice Pathways Program, a business must meet the following requirements:
- Be a legally structured business registered in Victoria with an Australian Business Number (ABN) and have held that ABN on and from 1 July 2020
- Be registered with WorkSafe Victoria
- Employ 1-19 full-time equivalent staff.
Applications close on 30th September 2022
Land Tax - Victoria
Land tax rates are a progressive scale applied to the Site Value of real estate property as shown on the Rates Notice for the property.
Site values have been steady increasing in recent years without any compensating adjustment to Land Tax rate scales.
A simple example of a humble holiday shack on the Mornington Peninsula
| Year | Site Value | % change | CPI | Land Tax | % change | CPI |
| $ | $ | |||||
| 2018 | 1,000,000 | 1.8% | 2,975.00 | 1.8% | ||
| 2019 | 1,080,000 | 8% | 1.8% | 3,615.00 | 22% | 1.8% |
| 2020 | 1,180,000 | 9% | 9.0% | 4,415.00 | 22% | 9.0% |
| 2021 | 1,200,000 | 2% | 3.5% | 4,575.00 | 4% | 3.5% |
| 2022 | 1,480,000 | 23% | 6.1% | 6,815.00 | 49% | 6.1% |
| 2023 | 2,440,000 | 65% | 19,295.00 | 2.83% | times | |
| OUCH! | ||||||
Rates Notices are currently being issued by relevant local Councils
Objections to the Site Value can be made using the appropriate form available on the relevant Council website. However, any objection must be lodged within 60days of the date of the Rates Notice.
This value is used at 31st December 2022 for the calculation of the 2023 Land tax assessment. It is not possible to object to the Site Value when the Land Tax Assessment arrives.
Exemptions to land tax include:
· Principal Place of Residence
· Certain Rural Lands
· Certain Not for Profit organisations
In addition, it is not widely known that a commercial tenancy to a not for profit entity exempts the landlord from Land Tax.
Land held in trusts attracts a surcharge following the unsuccessful attempt of Government some years ago to aggregate lands held in multiple trusts so as to attract a higher rate of tax up the progressive scale.
The rates of Victoria Land Tax are:
Value Land Tax
<$300,000 Nil
$300,000-$600,000 $375 plus 0.2% over $300,000
$600,000-$1,000,000 $975 plus 0.5% over $600,000
$1,000.000-$1.800.000 $2,975 plus 0.8% over$1,000,000
$1.800.000-$3,000.000 $9,375 plus 1.55% over$1,800,000
>$3,000,000 $27,975 plus 2.55% over $3,000,000
Land taxes are becoming a significant impost and worthy of your review with the support of our MVA Bennett Team.
There is a Victorian State election in November If revising the scales was an election pitch, there maybe a view that the trade off would be the Queensland approach outlined below.
Land Tax - Queensland
The Queensland government is seeking to aggregate all lands in Australia in order to apply the relevant tax scale. Aggregation is not new to State Revenue Offices as it already happens with Payroll Tax – that temporary tax brought in to finance the war effort (WW2).
From 30 June 2023, an owner’s liability for land tax will be determined based on the total value of Australia-wide landholdings including taxable land in Queensland and relevant interstate land.
Land tax applies for individuals when their rateable land value hits $600,000 or more, while assets in companies and trustees it is $350,000. The Queensland rates of land tax ramp up faster than any other capital city.
Major implications will exist for investors and tenants when the quantum of tax increases.
There maybe a cynical view that other States will follow the lead of Queensland in this regard.