The “devil will be in the detail” and the legislation can not be voted on until Parliament returns in late March however, as a starting point it seems that
Households in receipt of government benefits (such as pensions, Newstart etc) to receive a one-off payment of up to $750, rolling out from 31 March
Small employers (less than 20 employees) will receive incentives to retain existing apprentices (they must have been your apprentice on 1 March)
Small businesses (less than $50M turnover) who pay salary & wages (no detail yet as to any possible exclusions for business owners) to receive between $2,000 and $25,000 tax free annually – calculated as 50% of the amount of PAYGW paid to the ATO for employees (capped at $25,000) – this is not expected to start until at least May 2020
Instant asset write-off expanded for capital purchases up to $150,000 – this still only applies to purchases to 30 June 2020.
What should you do now?
Nothing (it’s not law yet) but you should start considering planning matters like
– retaining existing apprentices
– contractors vs employees
– timing of capital purchases