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Self-Employed

How to register

When performing a covered trade in Victoria under a sole trader or partnership ABN, self-employed Working Subcontractors are required to register as an individual with LeavePlus and also register their business if they employ Workers or Apprentices.

To ensure your registration request as a Working Subcontractor is processed in a timely manner, please ensure you have the following information available to complete the form.

  1. Personal details
  2. Business ABN
  3. Home/postal address
  4. Authorised contact details.

Once you have all the relevant information ready, use the button below to register as a Working Subcontractor.

Register here

As a Working Subcontractor, you may choose whether to pay Long Service Leave Charges towards your own long service leave. This can be a great way to build upon any previous Service you may have already accrued as an Apprentice or Worker.

Choose the ‘Contributing Working Subcontractor (WSC)’ option in the registration form to start making payments towards your own portable long service leave.

Employing Apprentices or Workers?

If you employ Workers or Apprentices under your ABN, you will be required to register your business as an Employer with LeavePlus and contribute for your Workers to comply with the Rules of the Scheme.

Register your business

Before registering with LeavePlus as a Working Subcontractor, please review the information below.

If you are performing work that is covered by the Scheme and you are a director of a company that is providing those services (that is the business has an ACN and not just an ABN), you will be a classed as an employee of the company and a Worker Director, rather than being self-employed.

Employers are required to register and pay Long Service Leave Charges on behalf of all Workers who perform covered work, including Worker Directors.

There is one exception to this classification: a director of a trustee company for a discretionary trust, a family trust say, that receives only distributions from the trust and no other income from the business will not be deemed a Worker Director because no employment relationship exists.

LeavePlus relies on the common law test of employment to determine whether a person is classified as a Worker or a Working Subcontractor according to the arrangement under which they are carrying out work. Complex arrangements often exist, so each case is determined on an individual basis. Penalties may apply if an individual is incorrectly classified.

Here is a list of attributes to consider when determining whether you are a Working Subcontractor or Worker under the LeavePlus Rules. The below distinctions serve as a guideline only. To verify if you are a Working Subcontractor or a Worker, please contact LeavePlus via email info@leaveplus.com.au.

Your status as either a Worker or Working Subcontractor depends on the terms you agreed with the hirer when you made them. The differences between a Worker and a Working Subcontractor are:

  • a Worker is an employee, serves in your business and performs their work as a representative of your business
  • a Working Subcontractor is an individual who is an independent contractor, provides services to your business and performs work to further their own business.

The table below lists qualities typically associated with each kind of contract.

Worker Working Subcontractor
Person is not acting as a separate business and is integrated into the hirer’s business. All the relevant work is done in the name of the hirer’s business. Person is running a business for profit, is registered for GST (if over the turnover threshold), submitting business activity statements and claiming business expenses on their income tax returns.
The hirer has control over how, where and when work will be performed. For instance, the hirer can require attendance at particular times, supervise tasks and direct the person to follow particular methods. Even an experienced tradesperson is subject to direction on when to perform a task or on the standard of the work when they are an employee. Person is responsible for their own hours and work methods and must make good any faulty work. They may also be able to subcontract the work or to assign or delegate it.

A contract exists (which may be verbal) specifying the total outcome and amount to be paid.
Person will be paid on a regular basis in a defined manner, e.g. a specific rate per hour or other time period or a piece rate. Aside from any agreed instalments, the person will be paid per job, or per job stage (‘Price Per Job’).
Bears no financial risk and receives no gain apart from specified daily, hourly, weekly or piece rate. Re-work is at the hirer’s cost. Person is responsible for own financial risk. May hold their own public liability or works insurance.
The hirer provides training and instruction on work methods. The hirer may provide induction training, but unlikely to provide training or instruction on work methods.
Person cannot delegate performance of their tasks to another person outside the hirer’s business (i.e. they cannot sub-contract their work out). May be able to subcontract the work or to assign or delegate it.
Hirer (the employer) is responsible for payments such as superannuation, redundancy payments, sick pay, overtime allowances, WorkCover etc. Entitlements are the person’s own responsibility (with possible exception of superannuation and WorkCover in certain circumstances).
Person does not have the ability to enter into contracts, advertise for work or submit quotes without reference to the employer. May advertise or work for a number of different clients through that business (although it is possible for a business to have only one client). Person is free to enter into contracts without reference to anyone else, can advertise for work or enter into a new contract.
May bring their own tools relevant to their trade but does not supply larger plant, machinery or materials. Generally responsible for all tools, machinery, materials etc. including order, delivery and transport.

You can find more useful information on the ATO website at Difference between employees and independent contractors.