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Helping practitioners when they need it most

The COVID-19 pandemic has placed a financial strain on practitioners and to help alleviate some of that strain, the VBA supported close to 3000 building and plumbing practitioners by providing more than $600,000 in fee relief to those on JobKeeper and JobSeeker payments.

The VBA’s fee relief scheme saved plumbers up to $357 and building practitioners up to $985, enabling them to maintain their registration amid challenging times.

The fee relief program supported close to 2000 building practitioners, waiving more than $430,000 in registration fees.

More than 680 plumbers were also supported, generating more than $190,000 in savings.

In addition to the VBA’s fee relief scheme, $196.6 million worth of cash grants to support construction businesses most affected by lockdown restrictions was announced by the Victorian Government earlier this month.

VBA fee relief

The new support package provides a one-off payment to eligible businesses, including sole traders, covering the restrictions period from 21 September to 4 October.

More than 70,000 construction businesses in Melbourne, the City of Greater Geelong, Surf Coast Shire and Mitchell Shire could be eligible for Business Costs Assistance Program Round Four – Construction grants.

The payment is currently set at $50 for people who have lost from eight to 20 hours work or a full day work – over seven days – and $750 for 20 hours or more of lost work.

To find out more about the support package, eligibility criteria and when applications open, visit this Business Costs Assistance Program page.