COVID-19 National: Business – IBA Indigenous Business Relief Package

This program aims to support Indigenous businesses who have been impacted by the COVID-19 crisis, including non-IBA customers. It is a new relief package that has been designed in collaboration with the National Indigenous Australians Agency (NIAA) to respond to the immediate challenges Indigenous businesses are facing.

The package includes:
1. For existing IBA customers
- Deferral of business loan and lease repayments for a 4-month period, waiver of interest on business loans and leases for a 4-month period and where necessary, extension of loan term by four months (to accommodate the deferral period).
- IBA may also be able to arrange support to test their customers' eligibility to access recently announced Federal, State and Territory Government stimulus packages.

2. For all Indigenous businesses
- Business impact analysis: Access to specialist advice to navigate the COVID-19 crisis, including a rapid assessment of the business positioning, cashflow management and assistance to access available stimulus measures from Federal, State/Territories, such as the Job Keeper Payment or the Boosting Cash Flow measures.
- Working capital assistance: Businesses can apply for working capital assistance of up to $100,000 via a loan/grant package (assessed on a needs basis), which will consist of a grant of:
a) Up to 50% of the package amount.
b) For the loan component, a loan term of up to 36 months, with zero repayments for the first 12 months, and preferential interest rates.

Customers who are not eligible for any other government stimulus packages will be prioritised for working capital stimulus assistance.

Eligible applicants include:
- Sole traders who must be over the age of 18 years and of Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander descent.
- Organisation who must:
a) Have at least 50% of the ownership or membership of the organisation held by a person(s) of Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander descent.
- Be an Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander corporation registered under the Corporations (Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander) Act 2006, and the Indigenous owner(s) of the business (if applicable) are actively involved in the business.

The applicant's business must:
- Carry on a business for profit.
- Have no more than 200 employees.
- Be established no less than six months before 31 March 2020.
- Not be wholly owned by the Commonwealth.
- Have been adversely impacted by COVID-19.

None of the relevant persons in the business must:
- Be undischarged bankrupts.
- Have been found guilty of for an indictable offence against a law of the Commonwealth or another jurisdiction that involves fraud, embezzlement, cybercrime, counterfeiting, identity theft, money laundering, terrorism financing, tax evasion, bribery, corruption, blackmail, forgery, insider trading, market manipulation, an offence under the Taxation Administration Act 1953 (Cth), or any other serious financial crime.