The Department of Finance has warned home buyers against applying for the Building Bonus if they are not eligible.
The warning follows the WA Police’s Financial Crimes Squad charging a man in relation to alleged fraudulent conduct involving applications for the grant.
In a statement, the Department said it carefully assessed all applications received and, in some instances, had identified suspicious information, including applicants providing false information about building commencement dates.
“These applications were subjected to further scrutiny and one referral was made to the WA Police Force resulting in a man being charged with four counts of gaining benefit by fraud and five counts of attempting to gain benefit by fraud,” the Department said.
“There are strict eligibility requirements for the Building Bonus Grant and where it is established an applicant has intentionally provided false information, or created fraudulent documents to support a grant application, a criminal investigation will be conducted by the Financial Crimes Squad.”
It said fraudulent claims had resulted in the Building Bonus grant rules being changed to remove eligibility for a grant under consideration and future grants if misleading information was provided.
“The rule change will allow the Department to refuse to pay the grant to a person, company or trust associated with an applicant who has provided misleading information,” the Department said.
The Building Bonus is part of a new COVID-19 Industry Support Fund established to deliver further relief to Western Australians and to continue to stimulate the State’s economy.
The first initiative included in the fund is an additional $30 million boost to the Building Bonus program to meet the higher than expected demand for the successful COVID-19 stimulus measure.
Grants of $20,000 are available to any homebuyer who wishes to build a new house or purchase a new property in a single-tier development (such as a townhouse) prior to completion of construction.
