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OFFICIAL: Rebate increase to $350K confirmed in the budget

Last week, the Treasurer THE HON JOSH FRYDENBERG MP said in his budget speech, “We are also providing tax relief for around 1,000 small brewers and distillers.”
 
The Australian Distillers Association celebrates Treasurer Josh Frydenberg’s commitment to increase the excise refund cap for small distillers and brewers from $100,000 to $350,000 per year as part of the 2021-22 Federal Budget. 
 
This decision marks an important first step in the campaign to unleash the potential of the Australian spirits industry and will deliver much needed assistance to more than 400 craft distillers around Australia, most of whom are based in rural and regional areas. 
 
This announcement provides much needed relief for hundreds of craft distillers around the country that were severely impacted by COVID-19. It means craft distillers will have more capital available to help their businesses grow and to employ more locals.
 
We have great ambitions to grow Australia’s world-class distilling industry and this is a great first step that will help the industry to grow. The announcement from the Treasurer means more jobs – especially in regional Australia and importantly jobs that people will love. Craft Distillers are passionate about the innovative and world class products they make.
 
The Australian Distillers Association was part of an alliance with Spirits and Cocktails Australia that called on the Government to provide Fair and Sustainable Tax Reform for Producers and Suppliers of Spirits in Australia that recognised that we pay the third highest spirits tax in the world. This tax burden is not fair and acts as a handbrake to growth.

The incredible support from Spirits and Cocktails Australia was exceptional. Special thanks goes to their Chair, Angus McPherson and Greg Holland and his team including Nicole, Lee and the team they put together to ensure there was the right message, given to the right people, in the right way that was supported by an effective media campaign.

The spirits category in Australia will be stronger and more sustainable because of the outcomes we have achieved so far from this partnership. This result would not have been possible without the support and resources from Spirits and Cocktails Australia as we campaigned together for Fair and Sustainable Tax reform because we are all in this together.

The news was announced a week prior to the budget and received wide and favorable coverage including front pages of most newspapers. Since it was confirmed in the budget, it has been even more widely reported and the coverage has been incredibly positive across the country. Click the pic above to see the article in the Financial Review that features Vanessa and David from Manly Spirits or click here to see an article featuring Clyde Morton, founder of Canberra-based Big River Distilling. There was excellent radio and local coverage as well which championed that Australian Distillers would put the savings provided by the rebate increase directly back into jobs in the industry.
Where to now?
Many members have already told me they are putting together position descriptions, job advertisements and revising business plans as a result of the increase that comes into effect on 1 July 2021. This is what it is all about. Creating jobs and reinvesting into the industry.

During this coming week I will provide a Fact Sheet that gives all ADA members the information they need to know about the details of the tax changes from 1 July. Keep an eye on your inbox for the Fact Sheet arriving early during the week.

In the meantime, if you are going to hire someone, or make an investment in a new still, please let me know. This is a great  opportunity to maintain the media stories and acknowledge the decision by the government to grant this rebate increase. It is also an opportunity to support those MPs that supported us during the campaign. If you wrote a letter to your MP, it is now time to thank them.

Invite them to your distillery and encourage them to take a photo while they are there. Let me know when this happening so I can keep track of this, especially if they agree to visit you.

We all know that this rebate increase is incredibly important and will make a real difference to small and medium businesses across the Australian Spirits Industry. We also know there is much more work to be done when it comes to the impact of government on our industry so I will continue to keep you updated and engaged about the challenges we face around labeling, point of sale restrictions, export incentives, maturation requirements, and much more. Of course, we also know we asked for three things in our pre-budget submission - and we only got one of our asks, we will continue to campaign for the other two components into the future.
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