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While first instalment payments are now closed, a second instalment payment is available to an eligible employer who received a first instalment payment in the following categories:

  • Employers of retrenched automotive industry workers and dairy industry workers who started an eligible job between 1 July 2016 and 30 June 2018.
  • Employers of unemployed people living in the Latrobe Valley and retrenched workers from the Hazelwood Power Station who started an eligible job between 1 January 2017 and 30 June 2020.

You can apply quickly and easily to access second instalment payments.

  1. Gather required information

    You will need to provide the following information by email when submitting your claim:

    • Back to Work reference number (this is the reference number provided to you after you made the initial claim for the employee. If you don't know your reference number, which starts with BTW, contact us for assistance).
    • Employer legal and trading names, ABN or ACN, address, WorkSafe employer number and State Revenue Office customer number (if available). 
    • Your bank account details (we pay you electronically) including account name, BSB and account number.
    • Employee name and date of birth.
    • Job details including start date, salary details and job location postcode.

    We collect this information in order to administer payments under the Back to Work Scheme. If it is not provided, we may not be able to process and pay the claim. It cannot be disclosed unless the employee consents or the disclosure is authorised by law.

    Under the Back to Work Act 2015, the State Revenue Office can retain and use the information for administering this scheme or a taxation law, and disclose information to the Treasurer of Victoria, the Department of Treasury and Finance, WorkCover and Victoria Police. Information used for the purpose of a taxation law can be disclosed to other Commonwealth and state agencies, including the ATO and Centrelink.

    The Commissioner of State Revenue is required to publish a quarterly report detailing the total amount paid under the Back to Work Scheme, along with the postcode and eligibility criteria for which payments are made. The information is statistical and does not identify personal information. The names of employers receiving more than 100 Back to Work payments per quarter is made public.

    Supporting evidence

    For each employee you wish to claim the second instalment for, we require you to provide the following:

    • A signed and dated copy of the employment or training contract (detailing employment start date or date of enrolment, salary, leave entitlements and hours of employment).
    • Copies of pay slips (detailing hours worked and salary) that fall within the below periods:
      • One month from employee start date.
      • One month prior to and including date of lodgement of original application.
      • One month prior to and including date of lodgement of second instalment application.
    • The most recent pay as you go (PAYG) summary.

    If you are claiming for an employee that was claimed under the long term unemployed category, you will need to provide for each employee, the supporting documentation you used at the time the initial application was lodged to confirm eligibility for this employment category.

    We also require you to submit a copy of your WorkCover certificate of currency. 

    Penalties can apply if you:

    • Fail to keep records to enable your eligibility for a Back to Work payment to be properly assessed.
    • Include false or misleading information in a Back to Work record.
    • Fail to keep your Back to Work records for five years.
    • Wilfully damage or destroy a Back to Work record.
  2. Claim your payment

    The second instalment payment is available to an eligible employer who received a first instalment payment for their eligible employee. It is payable 9 months after lodging the first instalment claim provided the eligible employee has been continuously employed in an eligible job in that 9-month period and is still employed by the eligible employer at the time the second instalment claim is lodged.

    To lodge a claim for a second instalment payment, email backtowork@sro.vic.gov.au with all required information and supporting documents.

    Employers are encouraged to keep track of the date from which the second instalment payment is available and make their claim by email.

Next Steps

If the claim is approved, payments are made by electronic funds transfer directly into the nominated bank account within 25 working days of lodging the claim.

Contact us for assistance.

Last modified: 22 November 2023

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