Self-Employment Assistance 001-02100000

For Services Australia staff, the Self-Employment Assistance Operational Blueprint provides necessary information to cover both programs. See the Resources page for further information.

Self-Employment Assistance offers flexible services to help people who are interested in becoming self-employed or people who are existing micro-business owners. Participants can choose the services they wish to access, selecting from 6 free services including:

• Exploring Self-Employment Workshops
• Small Business Training (fully meets mutual obligation requirements and may meet the short course guidelines for the Education Entry Payment (EdEP))
• Business Plan Development
• Business Advice Sessions
• Business Health Checks (for existing micro-business owners), and
• Small Business Coaching (fully meets mutual obligation requirements)

Further detail on each of these is available on the Department of Employment and Workplace Relations (DEWR) website.

If eligible, Self-Employment Allowance may be paid for up to 39 weeks.

Small Business Coaching under Self-Employment Assistance:

• is administered by DEWR
• is delivered by Self-Employment Assistance Providers
• runs for 52 weeks

Participation in some elements is considered to be an approved activity for payments with mutual obligation requirements.

If the customer is already connected to an employment services provider, they should be advised to contact their provider for information.

All other customers should be advised to search for their local Self-Employment Assistance provider on the Workforce Australia website.

To be eligible, customers must satisfy all of the following criteria:

• be at least 15 years of age (a customer must be 18 years of age to access Small Business Coaching)
• be an Australian citizen, or the holder of a permanent visa, or a nominated Visa holder (including a New Zealand Special Category Visa, Temporary Protection Visa Holder and a Safe Haven Visa Holder)
• have working rights in Australia (that is, not be on a student, visitor or other non-work visa)
• not be an undischarged bankrupt
• not already be in education and/or employment for more than 25 hours per week

If the customer is already self-employed or already has a business idea, their local Self-Employment Assistance provider will work with them to assess whether their business or business idea is eligible.

Note: Community Development Program (CDP) job seekers cannot participate in Self-Employment Assistance while connected to a CDP provider.

Business mentoring and support is an essential component of Self-Employment Assistance. Participants will receive business mentoring for 52 weeks under the Small Business Coaching phase. Participants will also receive advice about organisational, financial and marketing issues to support the development of their business.

Participants can receive Self-Employment Allowance for the first 39 weeks of the 52 week Small Business Coaching phase. The amount of Self-Employment Allowance payable will not be affected by income from the job seeker's business, as the allowance is paid by DEWR.

The Self-Employment Assistance provider can arrange additional mentoring and support for some individuals and Indigenous Australian job seekers where they consider it to be appropriate.

Most Self-Employment Assistance participants transfer from their income support payment to Self-Employment Allowance after they complete Small Business training and commence in Small Business Coaching.

Certain customers may be receiving a higher rate of income support than the amount paid under Self-Employment Allowance, for example:

• JobSeeker Payment (JSP) and Special Benefit (SpB) job seekers who are single with a dependent child
• JSP and SpB single principal carers with long term exemptions
• JSP and SpB job seekers aged 55 and over, who have been in receipt of an income support payment for more than 9 continuous months, and
• JSP and SpB job seekers who are assessed as either 'Illness Separated', 'Respite Care Couple' or 'Partner in prison'
• JSP and SpB job seekers who are single and have a partial capacity to work (0-14) hours

These job seekers, if they have no affecting income, should be eligible to continue to receive a partial rate of their income support payment on top of their Self-Employment Allowance after the dollar-for-dollar reduction is applied.

Customers in receipt of Austudy and Youth Allowance (job seeker, apprentice and student) will automatically cancel 'CPP - Customer on Precluding Payment' when DEWR notify they are in receipt of Self-Employment Allowance. Other customers may cancel 'SEA - Self-Employment Allowance' if they are no longer eligible for their income support payment due to receipt of Self-Employment Allowance.

Customers in receipt of the below payments can choose to remain on their income support payment while participating in Small Business Coaching, up to the maximum of 52 weeks. All other pension/payment and Small Business Coaching eligibility criteria must be met. Alternatively, they may elect to receive the Self-Employment Allowance and a partial rate of their income support payment.

• Carer Payment (CP)
• Age Pension
• Parenting Payment (Partnered and Single)
• Disability Support Pension (DSP)
• Department of Veterans' Affairs (DVA) Partner Service Pension, or
• War Widow(er) Pension

Self-Employment Assistance rental assistance is available for up to 26 weeks to Small Business Coaching participants if eligible. Payment of this is determined by DEWR.

Self-Employment Allowance recipients who do not receive an income support payment may be eligible for a Low Income Health Care Card (LIC).

Customers may concurrently participate in DES or PNX and Small Business Coaching. Once a job seeker is participating with DES or PNX, their DES or PNX provider may refer them to participate in Self-Employment Assistance, which includes Small Business Coaching.

Participating in Small Business Coaching and DES or PNX satisfies the mutual obligation or participation requirements for income support payments. Participants will still be required to report regularly to Services Australia to receive income support payments, including when they are on partial rates. Any business income must be declared and assessed as normal.

The amount of Self-Employment Allowance paid is equivalent to the 'single, 22 and over, with no children' rate of JobSeeker Payment (JSP). Self-Employment Allowance reduces relevant income support (including add-ons) on a dollar-for-dollar basis, meaning some participants may no longer be entitled to their income support payment.

Note: customers receiving Self-Employment Allowance cannot obtain early release of superannuation. Self-Employment Allowance is specifically excluded by this legislation. Queries regarding this should be referred to Department of Employment and Work Relations National Customer Service Line.

The maximum period that Self-Employment Allowance is payable to a participant is 39 weeks from the start of the 52 week Small Business Coaching period.

As a result, these customers may contact the agency to test their eligibility for an income support payment for the final 13 weeks of Small Business Coaching. Provided these customers meet all other eligibility requirements, participation in Small Business Coaching does not preclude them from income support.

Participation in Small Business Coaching fully satisfies a customer's mutual obligation requirements or compulsory participation requirements. This means the job seeker will not be referred to a provider when they claim an income support payment during the last 13 weeks of Small Business Coaching, because they are already connected to a Self-Employment Assistance provider and not eligible for other employment services.

See the Process page for coding procedures when a Small Business Coaching participant contacts the agency to claim an income support payment, or to have their rate of payment restored to the correct rate, following their Self-Employment Allowance ceasing after 39 weeks. Note: the Small Business Coaching participant will be prompted by their provider to supply their Self-Employment Allowance cessation letter as evidence.

Small Business Coaching participants who were receiving JobSeeker Payment (JSP), Special Benefit (SpB) or Youth Allowance (YA) and whose payment was reduced or cancelled due to receiving the Self-Employment Allowance, will receive an advice from DEWR to verify that their Self-Employment Allowance has ceased.

After the 39 weeks, the system will automatically zero the Self-Employment Allowance on the Other Government Payments (OGP) screen.