There are two different COVID-19 payments to help pay workers and self-employed people who are self-isolating.
These two COVID-19 payments are available for employers and self-employed people at any COVID-19 traffic light setting:
- COVID-19 Leave Support Scheme
- COVID-19 Short-Term Absence Payment
These payments are to help employers pay workers, and to pay self-employed people, who can’t work while they’re self-isolating or because they need to self-isolate while they’re waiting on a test result.
About the COVID-19 Leave Support Scheme
COVID-19 Leave Support Scheme is for when people need to self-isolate and can’t work from home.
The Leave Support Scheme is a weekly payment, paid at a flat rate of:
- $600 a week for workers who were working 20 hours or more a week (full-time)
- $359 a week for workers who were working less than 20 hours a week (part-time).
To be eligible the worker will need to meet certain health criteria, eg: they have COVID-19 or are a close contact. They must also have been told to self-isolate for at least four consecutive days.
When a worker needs to self-isolate for at least 11 calendar days or more, an employer or self-employed person can apply for a second weekly payment. More payments can be applied for every further seven days of self-isolation.
Employers can apply for casual workers and people who work variable hours. Use the average hours worked in the last eight weeks to work out what rate to apply for.
Learn more about COVID-19 Leave Support Scheme
About the COVID-19 Short-Term Absence Payment
COVID-19 Short-Term Absence Payment is for when a worker or self-employed person needs to self-isolate while they’re waiting on a COVID-19 test result and they can’t work from home.
Workers may also be eligible if they need to support a dependent (eg children or a family member with a disability) who has to stay home because they’re waiting on a COVID-19 test result.
It’s a one-off payment of $359 for each eligible worker.
It can only be paid once in any 30-day period (unless a health official or doctor tells the employee to get another test).
Learn more about COVID-19 Short-Term Absence Payment
Help with school costs
Getting kids ready for the start of a new year can be expensive. People struggling to pay school costs may be able to get support from us. We can help with uniforms and stationery as well as school fees (not school donations) and costs for activities.
Income limits for help with these, and other urgent and essential costs, have been increased temporarily. You can find out more about help with urgent or unexpected costs on the Work and Income website. Learn more here
Help with finding work
Even with COVID-19, there are plenty of jobs right now and lots of ways we can help people looking for work or thinking about retraining.
To help find a job, people may need to get more skills. There are courses to help with this and we may be able to pay the course fees or other costs. We can also help people with their CV or preparing for interviews.
People don’t need a vaccine pass to get help from us, but it will make it easier to access job opportunities and training.
Learn more about finding work here
