Regional Skills Relocation Grant Frequently Asked Questions

The NSW Government has made $1.7 million available for grants of up to $12,500 (GST exclusive) to Eligible Businesses/Employers to recover upfront costs associated with recruiting and relocating identified skilled workers to regional NSW. Each grant can include eligible relocation costs of up to $12,500, including in-situ interview costs of up to $1000, and recruitment assistance costs of up to $2,500.

The Eligible Business must receive confirmation of Regional Skills Relocation Grant pre-approval prior to hiring an employee for Eligible Costs to be claimed in respect of that employee i.e., the Business looking to hire an employee must first apply to the RSRG and receive approval confirmation from the Department of Regional NSW, prior to filling the vacant position/hiring the employee. 

Funding remains available for eligible claims until the funding is exhausted.

Applicants will be notified in advance, via email, if funding is near full allocation. 

To be eligible for funding, employers must be a private business, or co-operative operating as a legal entity in an Eligible Industry and:

• be relocating to, or setting up in, regional NSW and creating at least five new ongoing full-time equivalent (FTE) jobs (a mix of skilled and unskilled positions) in the local community, or
• already operating in regional NSW and seeking to recruit Eligible Employees. 

The relocation grants are not available to public sector organisations, including state and local governments.

Eligible Industries are key industries that drive growth in regional economies and are typically categorised as engine industries, emerging engine industries, and enabling industries. Key industries are aligned with key NSW Government policies, priorities, and strategies, including:

• 20-Year Economic Vision for Regional NSW
• 2040 Economic Blueprint; and
• the relevant Regional Economic Development Strategy (REDS).

These policies, priorities, and strategies also reflect each Functional Economic Region’s (FER) competitive impact and the ability to trade the goods outside the local area or sell their services to non-locals. 
Examples of Eligible Industries include:

• agribusiness and forestry
• resources and mining
• tourism (where regionally significant and/or iconic)
• health and aged care (where serving populations from out of region)
• freight and logistics
• advanced manufacturing
• renewable energy
• technology-enabled primary industry.

Further information on Eligible Industries.

Also refer to additional information on industry eligibility. 
 

In reviewing applications, the impact of a business on local competition is considered to avoid advantaging or disadvantaging businesses legitimately competing in the same immediate market. 

Retail and restaurants are considered ineligible because they only operate and sell locally. 

Other ineligible industries include hospitality (except where the business is unique to the existing market and considered regionally significant and/or iconic), retail, localised trades and administrative services that serve only the local or regional community.

The NSW Government assisted local councils to develop Regional Economic Development Strategies (REDS) based on the concept of a functional economic region (FER). FERs represent relatively self- contained areas of common economic interest, usually including more than one local government area. The REDS are informed by economic data and community input and help to better target specific industry investments to grow or establish a regional competitive advantage. The REDS provide a clearly articulated economic development strategy for the region that can be used to inform and guide the economic development activity of councils and business.

Further information on the REDS is available on the Department of Regional NSW website
 

The business must be seeking employees that:

• are relocating from a Metropolitan Area within NSW, or from location Outside of NSW, to Regional NSW, to a residence that is at least 50 kilometres from the original residence, and is:
  • within the same Function Economic Region as the Eligible Business or  
  • within 100 kilometres of the Eligible Business 
• are Australian citizens or permanent residents on the date they start employment.
• have an occupation that features on the Commonwealth Skilled Occupation List for the Skilled Work Regional (Provisional) visa (subclass 491 and 489)

NB: This list of occupations is specifically designed to meet the needs of regional Australia.

At the Department’s discretion, other occupations may be considered if there is a demonstrated need. 

If the position you are seeking to fill is not on the Skilled Occupation List, you will need to select ‘Other’ in the drop-down menu in the Business Eligibility Application form. Write the title of the position you need to fill and demonstrate the need for this position. This could include the length of time a business has been recruiting for the position or providing evidence of a shortage of skilled candidates for this position in the regional area.

If the business is unable to strongly demonstrate the need to fill a position not listed on the Commonwealth Skilled Occupation List than it would be considered ineligible. 

For the purpose of this grant, Metropolitan Areas are defined as Greater Sydney (including Blue Mountains, Hawkesbury and Wollondilly LGAs), Wollongong LGA and Newcastle LGA.

For the purpose of this program, Regional NSW is defined as all of NSW excluding Greater Sydney, Newcastle and Wollongong.

‘Outside of NSW’ refers to a location outside of NSW i.e., a suburb located in Perth or Queensland, or an international location.

You can hire an employee currently living overseas only if they are an Australian Citizen or Permanent Resident at the time of commencing the role.

No. This program is to provide eligible businesses with grants for skilled employees they hire. Individuals can not apply for the grants.

Eligible Businesses register their interest by email, providing their business name, location, and industry, to regionalnsw.business@regional.nsw.gov.au. Registered businesses operating in eligible industries will then be invited to complete a Business Eligibility Application Form via SmartyGrants.

SmartyGrants is the online grants administration system used by the Department. 

The application and assessment process will take between 2-6 weeks to gain pre-approval for your business. Please allow up to 6 weeks for pre-approval confirmation (if successful) before filling the role and/or hiring a potential candidate.

Start by registering your businesses interest with Department of Regional NSW by emailing an enquiry with your business name, location and industry to the Department of Regional NSW at regionalnsw.business@regional.nsw.gov.au. Businesses considered to be operating in an Eligible Industry will be invited to apply.

To apply you will need to complete an eligibility form (Business Eligibility Application Form) via SmartyGrants. When Applicants apply via SmartyGrants they will receive a Business Registration Number. This registration number will start with RSRGB-xxxx and should be saved for future reference.

Once approved you will be sent a Letter of Offer and Approval which you will need to sign and return to the Department within 7 days to accept the offer. You will be given pre-approval IDs for the roles you intend to fill, and you are able to include the relocation grant offer in your recruitment process.

Once approved you will have 12 months to hire an Eligible Employee.

Unsuccessful applicants will be sent an email response with feedback.

When you have filled the role (ie. the date the Eligible Employee commences) you need to notify the department within 5 business days by activating the grant using the ‘RSRG Activation Form - Employee Details’ form - on Smarty Grants. The Department will verify the eligibility of the employee and provide confirmation of grant activation. You will then be sent instructions via email for claiming reimbursement. 

The 12-month pre-approval for your business is only for the pre-approved skilled positions identified. If you would like to add more positions to your pre-approval you will need to begin a new application by submitting another Business Eligibility Application Form via SmartyGrants.

Once the Eligible Employee has been in the role for a minimum of 3 months, but no more than 6 months, the business can lodge a claim for Eligible Costs using the reimbursement claim form they will be sent. This link will be sent via email, once the employee activation form has been approved, and will be visible/accessible in your SmartyGrants portal. 

To receive the grant payment the Eligible Business is required to submit a reimbursement claim form, an invoice to the department and provide evidence that relocation costs and external recruitment assistance costs have been paid in full and reimbursed to the employee (by the business).
 

Applicants will receive reminders prior to the expiry of their pre-approval and will be given the option to extend their pre-approval for the position.  If the role that you have been pre-approved for has changed, you will need to apply again with a new Business Eligibility Application form.
 

Businesses operating in an Eligible Industry seeking to employ Eligible Employees with an occupation on the Commonwealth Skilled Occupation List for the Skilled Work Regional (Provisional) visa (subclass 491/489) can register their interest with the Department of Regional NSW at regionalnsw.business@regional.nsw.gov.au and will be invited to apply.

Once a business has received pre-approval for the employee role, they will have 12 months to fill the position from the date of issue. 

Relocation expenses covered by this grant are for the following:

• Furniture removal including removalist services or trailer/truck or ute hire to relocate the employee’s home/residence
• Pet boarding for up to three months
• Travel for employee and immediate family to relocate
• Temporary accommodation for up to three months, including short-term, temporary or transient accommodation such as a hotel, motel, Airbnb or boarding house
• Furniture storage for up to three months.

No. Access to support for in-situ candidate interviews or for pre-employment site-visit costs (of up to $1000) is included in the grant total of $12,500. Note these costs can only be claimed in arrears if the prospective employee is successfully recruited.

Eligible Businesses can claim up to $2500, as part of the total grant, to access qualified recruitment services, or HR professionals, to provide tailored recruitment assistance for the pre-approved role/s. The business can apply to be reimbursed once a candidate has been successfully employed. 

Please note, recruitment assistance from external providers is eligible for reimbursement only if it has occurred after the date of pre-approval for the role. Recruitment conducted internally through the business is not considered to be eligible for reimbursement. 

No. Only services from external providers are considered eligible recruitment assistance costs as part of this grant. Evidence will be required at reimbursement stage to evidence external recruitment was used. 

If you choose not to utilise the grant for in-situ interview support or recruitment assistance costs, the full $12,500 allocation will be available for eligible relocation expenses.

Pet relocation costs may include pet transportation via road or freight, and kennel/boarding costs for pets during the relocation period.

The term ‘public sector’ refers broadly to the entities that exist and people employed for public purpose. For the purpose of this program, the public sector includes all three levels of government (federal, state and local), statutory authorities and government corporations.

Grant applications will be deemed ineligible if the business itself has received any other funding (full or partial) from any other person (including any government agency in Australia) for relocation assistance, or if the business fills an identified role with an employee who has received funding (full or partial) from any other person (including any government agency in Australia) for relocation assistance.

No. Financial assistance is only available for skilled employees relocating from a Metropolitan Area in NSW, or from Outside of NSW to Regional NSW. Proof of relocation will be required to activate the grant and enable the reimbursement of relocation expenses.

If the employee starts their role with the business before the business receives pre-approval, the employee would not be considered an Eligible Employee under this program, nor would the business be eligible for reimbursement. 

The business needs to apply for the RSRG and receive pre-approval confirmation prior to hiring a candidate for their skilled occupation. Evidence of employee commencement will need to be provided at the Grant Activation – Employee Details stage.

Yes. All applicants with a current RSRG pre-approval (that is active), will be eligible for reimbursement of costs incurred from 9 February 2023, in alignment with the publication of the refreshed RSRG Guidelines.

Eligible employees must:

• remain in the role for a minimum of 3 months before the business can lodge a claim for reimbursement of relocation costs
• have commenced their role with the business in the regional location after the organisation received pre-approval confirmation
• Businesses can only claim relocation and recruitment assistance costs incurred after pre-approval and during the employee commencement period (three months)
• Businesses must have received notification of grant activation – successful employee outcome - to submit a reimbursement claim
• Note reimbursements must be claimed prior to the employee being in the role for more than 6 months.

Businesses will be required to provide copies of invoices, with evidence of payment, submitted to them by the eligible employee. Evidence of payment can include receipted invoices, copies of the general ledger, extracts of business bank statements, or direct deposit receipts. Evidence of payment must evidence employee details including names, address and/or correct amounts.

Reimbursement payments will be made in arrears upon submission of the reimbursement claim form. Supporting documents showing expenses incurred in the relocation and recruitment assistance services, as well as evidence of payment will need to be included. Only the relocation and recruitment assistance costs outlined in the guidelines will be reimbursed up to $12,500 exclusive of GST. 

Grants will be paid electronically to the nominated business account within 6-8 weeks of submitting a complete and correct reimbursement claim form. 
 

Businesses that have submitted a reimbursement claim form can email regionalnsw.business@regional.nsw.gov.au to enquire about the status of their payment. 

Please note, grants will be paid electronically to the nominated business account within 6-8 weeks of submitting a complete and correct reimbursement claim form.
 

The grant is not a taxable supply and therefore no GST will be attached to the payment. The payment will be GST-exclusive and the total available for each grant is to the maximum value of $12,500.
Businesses will need to issue an invoice to the Department of Regional NSW exclusive of any GST, and attach this, along with copies of the relevant relocation invoices and evidence of payment, to the reimbursement claim form.

Example: The eligible employee has submitted invoices to the business totalling $8,800 including GST. The business will reimburse the employee $8,800 and invoice the Department of Regional NSW $8,000 (excluding GST) when they submit their reimbursement claim form. The business may be able to claim a tax input credit for the GST of $800 through their accounting processes.
 

Yes, in our opinion the grant will be assessable income in the hands of the employer/grant recipient.

All information provided by the Department of Regional NSW is general in nature and is designed to aid employers/grant recipients to formulate their own conclusions on Australian regulatory matters. The information must be applied to your current circumstances only. The employer/grant recipient should seek independent advice regarding the income consequences pertaining to the Regional Skills Relocation Grant. 

If the grant is used to reimburse or pay for eligible relocation costs as specified in the letter of approval and the employer meets all the requirements under the Fringe Benefits Tax Assessment Act 1986 with respect to relocation costs, the reimbursed payments to employees will most likely be exempted from fringe benefit tax.

All information provided by the Department of Regional NSW is general in nature and is designed to aid employers/grant recipients to formulate their own conclusions on Australian regulatory matters. The information must be applied to your current circumstances only. The employer/grant recipient should seek independent advice regarding the fringe benefit tax consequences pertaining to the Regional Skills Relocation Grant.

If you would like further information about the Regional Skills Relocation Grant or other financial assistance, you can contact the Department of Regional NSW (see contact details below).