Prime Minister Anthony Albanese was at the SES Lismore base on Brunswick Street at midday announcing an addition to the Federal Government's Disaster Recovery Allowance.

The announcement will not please local business owners who were optimistic about receiving government support for loss of income over the last week.

"I can say that from tomorrow, eligible workers and sole traders in South East Queensland and Northern NSW, who have lost income as a direct result of ex Tropical Cyclone Alfred, will be able to access up to 13 weeks of income support that will click in and be available for applications from two o'clock tomorrow.

"People can check on their eligibility by logging in now to the My Gov website or the Services Australia website."

While sole traders will be happy, small business owners who are registered as a company will feel let down by the federal government as the support measures have failed to take a further step to include many businesses in the CBD, South and North Lismore.

The difference between sole traders and companies is in their legal, tax and reporting obligations. The set-up costs for sole traders is less than that for a company.

Mayor Steve Krieg was disappointed today's announcement did not include a small business owners.

"13 weeks income support is the exact same package after the 2022 flood, but the circumstances are vastly different as most of our staff are going to back at work this week. It's the actual employers, in my opinion, that need the support but haven't had the income generated from doing business over the last week, which means that suppliers are going to struggle to get paid.

"While I welcome any sort of income support relief, 13 weeks is a bit exorbitant, and I would prefer to see the money go to the actual employers, the small businesses themselves, to be able to stay in business, and pay not only their staff, but their suppliers as well."

To be eligible for the Disaster Recovery Allowance, a person’s income must have fallen below the average Australian weekly income as a result of the floods.

Applications will open at 2pm local time, Tuesday 11 March.

Before they claim, people can check their eligibility on the Services Australia website at: Natural disaster support (Services Australia).