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Wollongong City Council
Resident Visitor Business

Assistance to Council Tenants

To help businesses that are negatively impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic, Council will consider applications for rent relief from commercial tenants of premises owned or managed by Council.

Any assistance considered or provided will be in accordance with the NSW Government's Retail and Other Commercial Leases (COVID-19) Regulation 2021, including the Retail and Other Commercial Leases Regulations.  Any assistance must be compatible with relevant State legislation such as the Local Government Act 1993 and will only be for the pandemic period as defined under the relevant legislation.

Applications for assistance to eligible tenants for the period of 1 July 2021 to 31 December 2021 are now open and will be considered for each financial quarter.

To demonstrate eligibility, tenants will need to provide Council with proof that you meet all of the criteria shown in the table below:

CriteriaEvidence needed
Annual turnover of less than $50 million in 2020/2021Tax returns and / or Business Activity Statements (BAS)

Ability to qualify for one of the following government grants:

  • Micro-Business COVID-19 Support Grant; or
  • COVID-19 NSW Business Grant; or
  • JobSaver Grant

Supporting documents to show you've applied for one of these programs.

Confirmation of your eligibility.

Loss of turnover of 30% or greater for the period of 1 July 2021 to 20 December 2021See the 'Documents to include with your application' section below'.

Support for eligible tenants will be applied as:

  1. 50% waiver of rent equivalent to the percentage loss in turnover
  2. 50% deferral of rent equivalent to the percentage loss in turnover to be paid back in equal instalments over a 24 month period or the remaining term of the lease, whichever is greater.

Tenants must provide Council with required documentation.

If assistance for a financial quarter is approved, tenants can submit a further application for a subsequent quarter for the period 1 July 2021 to 31 December 2021 for consideration. Any approved assistance will be applied retrospectively to your account.

If you would like to apply for Covid-19 rental assistance for the period prior to 1 July 2021, please forward these directly by emailing our Property Management Team.

Documents to include with your application

For previous years:

  • Audited financial statements (including profit and loss)
  • BAS Statements (lodged)
  • ATO documents (tax return).

Please note: Council is aware 2020 was a financially impacted year and we are happy to consider financial records from 2019 or 2020 to compare to the current period.

For the current year:

  • Financial statements
  • Cash register receipts
  • Profit and loss statements, etc.

Council's COVID-19 Business Support page also includes information that may assist you with this process.

When you're ready, use the button below to apply.

Apply for rent relief
Apply for rent relief

After you apply

You will receive an email from Council's Property Management team, acknowledging receipt of your application.

If the application is incomplete, and / or the necessary supporting documents have not been uploaded, our Property Management team will contact you and request more details or additional documents before your application can be processed.

If the application is complete and the all of the necessary supporting documents have been uploaded, we will process your application as soon as possible.

If you have any questions, please call Council during business hours on (02) 4227 7111.

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