Payroll Tax Banner


Rebates

A number of payroll tax rebate schemes have been introduced from time to time as measures to aid in the creation of employment opportunities and to assist in the continued development and generation of value added export markets for South Australian goods and services. The latest rebate has been developed to encourage more investment in renewable energy to South Australia.

RevenueSA administers the following rebates for payroll tax:

South Australia Renewable Energy Rebate Scheme

The rebate is equal to 100% of the total payroll tax paid in South Australia that is attributable to the labour associated with direct, on-site construction of new, large scale wind and solar energy projects.

The rebate is capped at $5 million per project for solar and $1 million per project for wind.

The rebate will apply to large scale wind and solar projects in the initial operation of the scheme. The rebate has a fixed life of four years from 1 July 2010 to 30 June 2014. After its first two years of operation, the rebate will be subject to review during which it is intended that the inclusion of other renewable energy technologies will be considered.

Eligibility Criteria

The general eligibility criteria are as follows.

Eligible renewable energy projects must:

  • have started the construction phase on or after 1 July 2010;
  • be a large scale project, i.e. must have a name plate rating or combined name plate rating at a single connection point of 30MW or greater; and
  • utilise wind or solar technologies. Where projects are combined with conventional fuel, the rebate will only apply to the renewable energy component.

Evidence of registration as a generator in the National Electricity Market from the Australian Energy Market Operator must be provided to RevenueSA.

Definition of Construction Phase

Construction means activities undertaken to establish the structures, buildings and facilities required for plant commissioning, and specifically includes:

  • site civil works and preparations;
  • installation of services (water supply, sewage, electricity and stormwater);
  • building of temporary site facilities;
  • construction of roads and access platforms (access pavings and footpaths); and
  • removal of temporary site facilities and re-instatement of the area.

Construction does not include:

  • plant capital investment activities;
  • prefabrication of component parts; or
  • administration of the site carried out remotely or travel to and from the site.

An application form can be downloaded here.

Further information regarding the Renewable Energy Rebate is located in the Rebates for Renewable Energy Projects Information Circular.

South Australian Trainee Wages Rebate Scheme
(ceased 30 June 2010)

Employers who pay wages to employees engaged as trainees and apprentices under 25 years of age and pursuant to an approved Contract of Training were entitled to a rebate of up to 80% of the payroll tax paid in respect of wages paid to these employees, where all the eligibility criteria are met.

Please note that employers had until 31 December 2010 to claim rebates for prior periods. Please refer to Information Circular No: 16 - Rebates for further information.

Note: The South Australian Trainee Wages Rebate Scheme has been replaced by a payroll tax exemption for wages paid to apprentices and trainees from 1 July 2010. For futher information please see Information Circular 21.

South Australian Exporters Rebate Scheme

Employers who are or will be exporters of value added goods or services may claim a rebate of 20% of payroll tax payable on the wages of employees engaged in generating eligible export earnings where all the eligibility criteria are met.

This rebate is equal to 20% of the proportion of total payroll tax paid in South Australia, which is attributable to South Australian export earnings in the rebate period.

Eligibility Criteria

  • Employers who have South Australian export earnings from value added goods and services are eligible.

Value added goods are those that have been manufactured, produced or processed in their final form in South Australia. 'Processed' includes grading, packing or sorting of South Australian horticultural products where the produce is required in a fresh form for final consumption by the export markets. Processed minerals and petroleum products are excluded.

  • Services provided by employees outside of Australia are eligible for the rebate only where the employer can establish that South Australian employees made a significant contribution to the services supplied

  • South Australian export earnings mean the $A FOB (Free on Board) sale value of value added goods sold to a purchaser outside Australia and/or the South Australian component of the $A consideration received in Australia for services supplied outside of Australia.

To be eligible, the employer’s name or that of the employer’s agent must appear on the Bill of Lading for the goods concerned.

Sales outside Australia to a purchaser who subsequently exports the goods from Australia may be eligible.

The date of sale will be deemed to be the date shown on the Bill of Lading, or for services, the date on which payment was received in Australia.

  • The Scheme only applies to the private sector.
  • Employers currently treated as a group for payroll tax purposes will be treated as a group for the purposes of this scheme. Only one application may be made by the Designated Group Employer on behalf of all members of that group of employers.

To be eligible for the rebate, employers must be up-to-date with their payroll tax obligations and must have paid the payroll tax for the rebate period. The rebate entitlement cannot be deducted from an employer’s payroll tax liability.

Exporter Rebates are to be lodged on the approved application form on a six monthly basis at the close of each six monthly period.

An application form can be downloaded from our forms page.

Further information regarding Exporters Rebate Scheme is located in the Rebates Information Circular.

Note: The government has announced as part of the State Budget handed down on 16 September 2010, the phased abolition of the Payroll Tax Exporters Rebate, with the rebate to be halved from 20% to 10% of the payroll tax paid on wages attributable to export production from 1 July 2011 and abolished from 1 July 2013.

No legislative amendment is required for abolition as the scheme is administrative. RevenueSA will liaise with employers as necessary closer to the first phase of abolition of the Payroll Tax Exporters Rebate.


 

 

This page was last reviewed 10 January, 2012