The ATO has been rejecting a hell of a lot of JobKeeper applications.
Since the JobKeeper program commenced in late March, more than 6,500 applications have been rejected by the Australian Taxation Office (ATO) either due to ineligibility or fraud.
Thousands of Australians could see their payments deducted as a result of the findings. According to the ABC, 3,000 ATO staff will be doing reviews of JobKeeper applications as part of an overarching federal government review of the $70 million scheme.
There are currently 3.3 million Australians accessing the $1500 fortnightly payment – up until June 4, the ATO had serviced 872,482 businesses delivering $13 billion in JobKeeper payments.
Depending on the seriousness of the JobKeeper infringements, jail time could be on the cards for the most severe violations. Outside of that, fines and deductions may be issued.
According to an ATO spokeswoman, the 6,500 rejected applications stemmed from a range of reasons from basic human errors to fraudulent behaviour. There has also been letters sent to 8,000 businesses warning them of their ineligibility or erroneous paperwork.
The federal government are set to announce their findings from the JobKeeper review when Treasurer Josh Frydenberg gives an economic update on July 23.
Written by Tom Parker via Beat Magazine.
