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Funding and Budgets

Learn how your funding is determined and what factors may affect your budget.

FAQ's

What your Funding Can and Cannot Pay For?

How Does Spending Approval Work?

The three service types and what you pay?

What will I pay based on my pension status?

Assistive Technology and Home Modifications (AT-HM)?

FAQ's

What if my Funding Runs Out Before the Quarter Ends?

What happened to my Unspent Home Care Package Funds?

How Your Quarterly Budget Works?

Funding Levels Explained?

Funding During Hospital Stays or Holidays?

What if my funding runs out before the end of the quarter?

If you use your whole quarterly budget early, your government funded services for that quarter are paused until the next quarter begins. This is why we plan your budget across the quarter rather than spending it all at the start.

If you are running low, your options are:

  • Ask us to adjust your care plan so your remaining funds last the quarter
  • Use any unspent Home Care Package balance if you have one
  • Pay privately for extra services in the meantime if you choose
  • Ask for a reassessment if your needs have genuinely increased

Local Guardians manages your budget proactively and will flag it with you well before you run out, so there are no surprises.

 

I had unspent money from my old Home Care Package. What happened to it?

If you were on a Home Care Package before Support at Home started, any money you had not spent moved across with you. You did not lose it.

Your unspent Home Care Package money is:

  • Held in a separate balance from your new quarterly budget
  • Not affected by the quarterly rollover cap, so the full amount stays available
  • Used first for assistive technology and home modifications, and for extra services once you have used your quarterly budget

Your care advisor can tell you your unspent balance and help you plan the best way to use it.

 

How does the quarterly budget work, and what happens to money I do not spend?

Your yearly funding is released in four equal quarterly budgets, in July, October, January and April. You do not get the whole year at once. This keeps your funding steady and available across the year.

If you do not spend all of a quarter, some money rolls over to the next quarter. There is a cap on how much can roll over. You keep whichever of these two amounts is higher:

  • $1,000, or
  • 10% of your quarterly budget

Anything above that cap goes back to the government at the end of the quarter. Rollover only carries one quarter forward, it does not build up all year. Your Local Guardians care advisor keeps an eye on your budget so you make the most of it and do not lose funds you could have used.

 

What are the Support at Home funding levels and how is my level decided?

Support at Home has eight funding levels, called classifications. When you are assessed through My Aged Care, an assessor looks at how much help you need with daily living, health and staying independent at home. Based on that, you are placed in one of the eight levels. The higher the level, the more funding you get.

These are the current yearly amounts. They are set by the government and can be indexed each 1 July.

  • Level 1: $10,698 a year
  • Level 2: $15,982 a year
  • Level 3: $21,920 a year
  • Level 4: $29,545 a year
  • Level 5: $39,535 a year
  • Level 6: $47,957 a year
  • Level 7: $58,122 a year
  • Level 8: $78,106 a year

Your yearly funding is split into four quarterly budgets so it is spread evenly across the year. 10% of the budget is set aside for care management, which pays for your care plan, coordinating your services and government reporting. The rest is for your actual care and services.

What if my needs increase? Can I be reassessed for more funding?

Yes. If your health or your needs change, you can ask for a reassessment through My Aged Care. This can move you to a higher funding level if the assessment supports it.

Common reasons people ask for a reassessment:

  • A fall, hospital stay or a new diagnosis
  • Your current funding no longer covers the help you need
  • A carer is no longer able to help as much as before

You can call My Aged Care on 1800 200 422 to request a review, or speak to your Local Guardians care advisor and we can help you start the process and explain what to expect while you wait.

 

What happens to my funding if I go into hospital or on holiday?

Your Support at Home funding does not disappear while you are away. If you go into hospital or take a holiday, your regular services pause and your funding keeps being set aside for you. When you come home, we restart your services.

A few things worth knowing:

  • Tell us as early as you can so we can pause services and avoid charges for support you are not using
  • If you are coming out of hospital, we can help arrange extra help at home while you recover
  • Because your funding keeps accruing, you may have a little extra available in the budget when you return

Call your care advisor if a hospital stay or holiday is coming up and we will sort out the details with you.

Get In Touch

VIC & TAS: (03) 7067 0555

NSW & ACT: (02) 7227 7661

QLD & NT: (07) 2139 7090

WA & SA: (08) 6383 8819