Pharmacy Daily | NSW mandates COVID-19 rent relief

COMMERCIAL and retail landlords in NSW who provide rental waivers to tenants impacted by COVID-19 lockdowns, will be eligible for up to $3,000 a month in State Government funding.

The NSW Government reintroduced the National Cabinet's Mandatory Code of Conduct for Commercial Leasing to mandate rent relief for tenants impacted by the pandemic.

NSW Minister for Finance and Small Business, Damien Tudehope, said the Retail and Other Commercial Leases (COVID-19) Regulation 2021 would be extended until 13 Jan 2022, to provide protection to small businesses, noting rent was one of the biggest fixed costs for them.

"We have always encouraged landlords and tenants to come to the table and negotiate, but now we are going one step further by mandating the minimum relief that landlords need to provide impacted tenants," he said.

"It has been very tough for small businesses across NSW and we want to deliver more certainty for business owners who have bills continuing to pile up.

"The Government has not taken this step lightly but we saw last year that the framework set down by the National Cabinet brought tenants and landlords to the table to work out a way forward.

"Now, as part of the feedback from the community, we have ensured small landlords who rely primarily on rental income from commercial properties will also be able to access a monthly $3,000 grant to help ease the burden and ensure they pass on rental relief to tenants."

The Regulation applies to commercial and retail tenants with a turnover of up to $50 million who qualify for the COVID-19 Microbusiness grant, COVID-19 Business Grant or JobSaver Payment, and follows a similar move in Victoria (PD 13 Aug).

It also prohibits a landlord from evicting or locking out a tenant for certain breaches of the lease unless they have first renegotiated rent and attempted mediation.