Further extension to the Commercial Tenancy Relief Scheme

The Victorian Government has extended the Commercial Tenancy Relief Scheme until 28 March 2021.

Small business tenants seeking rent relief from 1 January 2021 to 28 March 2021 will need to apply to their landlord in writing with evidence of their eligibility as soon as possible, as a landlord is only required to provide rent relief from the date of application.

If a tenant has already made a request and is seeking further rent relief for this extended period, then they will need to make another request to their landlord supplying the required evidence.

This extension provides a continuation of the Scheme’s supports where:

• commercial landlords are required to provide rent relief that matches their eligible tenant’s fall in turnover from the date the tenant applies with the required evidence
• rent increases and evictions for tenants who have requested rent relief and provided evidence of eligibility are banned
• tenants and landlords who can’t reach an agreement on rent relief can apply for free mediation with the Victorian Small Business Commission (VSBC) to resolve their dispute
• tenants can apply to the VSBC for a binding order for rent relief if their landlord fails to respond to us or does not engage in mediation in good faith.

To make it easier, we’ve created a letter that a tenant can send to their landlord to request rent relief – they just need to fill in the parts highlighted in yellow.

For more information, including the process for tenants and landlords and our responses to frequently asked questions, see our web page for tenants and landlords. If a landlord or tenant has any queries, they can contact us.