UPDATE: Due to an overwhelming number of applications, the Queensland Government have now closed the Small Business COVID-19 Adaption Grant for new applications. For more information, click here.

Queensland small businesses can now apply for a grant of up to $10,000 under the Queensland Government’s $100 million Small Business Adaption Grants support package to help businesses recover from the impacts of COVID-19.

With many small businesses looking to reopen following the easing of COVID-19 restrictions, the new grants program will assist businesses looking to restructure, significantly change their business operations or move their operations online to help get them back on their feet.

Businesses may use the grant money for the following purposes:

• financial, legal or other professional advice to support business sustainability and diversification
• strategic planning, financial counselling or business coaching aligned to business development and diversification
• building the business through marketing and communications activities, for example, content development – web pages, mobile apps, visual and audio media, etc.
• digital/technological strategy development
• digital training or re-training to adapt to new business models
• capital costs associated with meeting COVID-19 safe requirements
• specialised digital equipment or business specific software to move business operations online – e.g logistics program for online ordering
• meeting business costs, including utilities and rent.

Premier Anastacia Palaszczuk said it was imperative that small businesses received the support they needed to recover from the COVID-19 pandemic.

“Small businesses represent 97 per cent of all businesses and employ over 970,000 people or 45 per cent of the State’s private sector workforce,” said the Premier.

“We know small businesses have been doing it really tough due to the pandemic.

“With the first stage of our recovery roadmap in place, we want to make sure our thousands of small businesses have the support they need to recover and keep Queenslanders in jobs.

“These grants will provide immediate support to help them get back on their feet and come out stronger on the other side.”

The $100 million Small Business Adaption Grant support package is funded by the $500 million Worker Assistance Program, delivering projects to assist small businesses who have been impacted by COVID-19, and was announced as part of the Queensland Government’s Economic Recovery Strategy: Unite and Recover for Queensland Jobs.

From the $100 million Small Business Adaption Grant, $4 million will be put into creating new training courses for businesses.

Applications for the grant are now open and will close when funds have been exhausted.

For more information on eligibility and to apply for the grant, visit: https://www.business.qld.gov.au/

Source: Queensland Government | $100 million in small business grants and training to combat COVID-19

19 May 2020