Support at Home Program Explained: What Replaced Home Care Packages
If you or a parent were relying on a Home Care Package to stay living safely at home, the rules have changed. On 1 November 2025, the Australian Government replaced the Home Care Packages Program with a new system called Support at Home. It is the biggest shift in in-home aged care in almost a decade, and it affects everyone — from people just beginning to think about support, to families already managing a parent's care from another suburb or state.
If the change has left you confused, you are not alone, and the terminology does not help. This guide explains, in plain English, what the Support at Home program is, how it differs from the old Home Care Package levels, what it costs, how to apply, and — just as importantly — what it does not cover. By the end you will know exactly where your family stands and what to do next.
What is the Support at Home program?
Support at Home is the Australian Government's funded in-home aged care program. It helps older people who want to keep living in their own home — rather than move into residential aged care — by paying for a mix of services matched to their assessed needs. That can include clinical care such as nursing and physiotherapy, help with personal care like showering and dressing, and everyday support such as cleaning, meals and transport.
It launched on 1 November 2025 and replaced two older programs: the Home Care Packages Program and the Short-Term Restorative Care Programme. A third program, the Commonwealth Home Support Programme (CHSP), which provides entry-level help, will move across to Support at Home later — no earlier than 1 July 2027 — so for now it continues as normal.
The aim of the reform is simple: get people the right level of support faster, make funding fairer and more transparent, and help more Australians stay independent at home for longer.
Who is Support at Home for?
Support at Home is for older Australians — generally aged 65 and over (or 50 and over for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people) — who need some help to keep living safely and independently in their own home. That covers a wide spectrum: from someone who simply needs a hand with cleaning, transport and the occasional nurse visit, right through to a person with complex health needs who would otherwise have to consider residential care.
It is equally relevant to the families supporting them. If you are an adult child watching a parent become less steady on their feet, forget the odd medication, or grow more isolated at home, Support at Home is the main government-funded pathway to get help in place — and understanding how it works puts you in a far stronger position to advocate for the right level of care.
Why the government replaced Home Care Packages?
The old Home Care Package system had supported hundreds of thousands of Australians, but it carried well-known problems. Waiting times were the biggest: many people waited months — often eight months or more for a higher-level package — between being approved and actually receiving funding. Package funds were also frequently underspent and left sitting in accounts, while the four broad funding levels did not always match a person's real needs.
The Royal Commission into Aged Care Quality and Safety highlighted these issues, and Support at Home is a direct response. It introduces more funding levels for a closer fit, delivers money in smaller and more manageable amounts, and separates out things like equipment and home modifications so people no longer have to save up their care budget to afford them.
A quick recap: the old Home Care Package levels
To understand what has changed, it helps to remember how Home Care Package levels worked — because the language still appears everywhere, and many people continue to search for it. There were four levels, each with an annual budget set by the government (2024–25 amounts shown, which are indexed over time):
- Level 1 — basic care needs — around $10,500 a year
- Level 2 — low-level care needs — around $18,600 a year
- Level 3 — intermediate care needs — around $40,500 a year
- Level 4 — high-level care needs — around $61,400 a year
Your level was decided by an aged care assessment, and the funding followed you to a provider of your choice. If you have been researching questions like “how much is a Level 3 home care package” or “how much is a Level 4 home care package”, the figures above are your answer under the old system — and they are the foundation the new Support at Home levels are built on.
How Support at Home is different: the eight classification levels
The single biggest change is that four Home Care Package levels have become eight Support at Home classification levels. More levels means funding can be matched far more closely to what each person actually needs, instead of forcing everyone into one of four broad bands.
The approximate funding for each ongoing classification is shown below. These are the government's estimated amounts and are indexed over time, so treat them as a guide and confirm current figures through My Aged Care.
| Classification level | Approx. quarterly budget | Approx. annual funding |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | ~$2,750 | ~$11,000 |
| 2 | ~$4,000 | ~$16,000 |
| 3 | ~$5,500 | ~$22,000 |
| 4 | ~$7,500 | ~$30,000 |
| 5 | ~$10,000 | ~$40,000 |
| 6 | ~$12,000 | ~$48,000 |
| 7 | ~$14,500 | ~$58,000 |
| 8 | ~$19,500 | ~$78,000 |
At the top end, the highest classification provides around $78,000 a year — noticeably more than the roughly $61,400 that the old Level 4 package offered — so people with high needs can now receive more support at home before residential care becomes the only option.
The three types of support
Under Support at Home, every service falls into one of three categories. This matters, because the category determines how much (if anything) you contribute:
- Clinical care — nursing, physiotherapy, occupational therapy, podiatry and care management. The government fully funds these, so you pay nothing towards clinical care, regardless of your income or assets.
- Independence — help to stay independent day to day: personal care such as showering and dressing, mobility support, respite for carers, and social support.
- Everyday living — practical household help such as cleaning, gardening, meal preparation, shopping and transport.
The split reflects a simple principle: essential clinical and health-related care should not depend on your bank balance, while everyday tasks people ordinarily pay for themselves attract a larger contribution.
What you'll contribute
Support at Home is means tested. How much you contribute depends on the type of service and your financial situation — specifically your Age Pension status, assessed through Services Australia. As a general guide:
- You contribute nothing towards clinical care.
- Full Age Pensioners pay the lowest contributions — a small share of independence services and a modest share of everyday living services.
- Part-pensioners and Commonwealth Seniors Health Card holders pay somewhere in the middle.
- Self-funded retirees pay the most — up to around half the cost of independence services and the majority of everyday living services.
The exact percentages are set by the government and can change, so the figure that matters for your family will come out of the means assessment. The key point is that no one is charged for clinical care, and pensioners are protected with the lowest rates.
There is also an important safeguard — the “no worse off” principle. If you were already receiving a Home Care Package, had been assessed as eligible, or were on the National Priority System on or before 12 September 2024, your contribution arrangements will be no worse than they were under the old system. Existing recipients are not left out of pocket by the switch.
Quarterly budgets and carrying over unspent funds
Rather than one large annual pool, Support at Home funding is released in quarterly budgets — a quarter of your classification's annual amount every three months. This keeps funds flowing steadily and reduces the big unspent balances that built up under the old system.
To keep some flexibility, you can carry unspent money from one quarter into the next — up to $1,000 or 10% of your quarterly budget, whichever is greater. That lets you save a little for a bigger service or a busier month, without letting thousands of dollars sit idle.
Equipment, home modifications and short-term pathways
One of the most practical improvements is that equipment and home changes are now funded separately, so you no longer have to save your care budget to afford them. The Assistive Technology and Home Modifications (AT-HM) Scheme provides dedicated funding — up to around $15,000 — for things like rails, ramps, shower modifications, walkers and other aids that make the home safer.
Support at Home also includes short-term pathways for specific situations:
- A Restorative Care Pathway — intensive, time-limited allied health and reablement support to help someone recover function after a fall, illness or hospital stay.
- An End-of-Life Pathway — higher funding, up to around $25,000 over roughly three months, so people nearing the end of life can be supported to remain at home with dignity.
How to access Support at Home
The entry point is the same as before: My Aged Care. The steps are:
- 1. Register with My Aged Care, online or by phone, and answer some questions about how you are managing.
- 2. Complete an assessment. A single assessment workforce now determines both your eligibility and your classification level.
- 3. Get approved, receive a classification, and choose a registered Support at Home provider.
- 4. Agree on a care plan and start receiving services, working within your quarterly budget.
If your needs change over time, you can be reassessed and moved to a higher classification. It is worth registering early — even before you think you need much — because assessment and provider set-up take time, and being in the system makes it far easier to scale support up when you need it.
What Support at Home doesn't cover — and how to fill the gap
Support at Home is generous and flexible, but it pays for scheduled services — a nurse's visit, a cleaner, a few hours of personal care — delivered at set times. What it is not designed to provide is a friendly voice every single day, a reliable check that a parent is okay this morning, or a gentle reminder to take medication at the right time between visits.
That daily layer of reassurance is exactly the gap CareCob fills. Every day, Grace — CareCob's friendly AI companion — calls your parent on their ordinary home or mobile phone (no app, no new device, nothing to learn) for a warm chat, a wellbeing check and a medication reminder. If something does not sound right, or a call is missed, the family is notified straight away by SMS and through a simple dashboard.
For families managing care around a Support at Home package — often from a distance — CareCob is the everyday safety net that sits between the funded visits. It does not replace nursing or personal care; it makes sure that on all the other days and hours, someone is still checking in. That is peace of mind funding alone cannot buy.
Give your family everyday peace of mind with CareCob. Start a 30-minute free trial, book a demo, or view pricing — CareCob Essentials from $59, Personal $149/month, or an Enterprise plan for care providers.
What existing Home Care Package recipients need to know?
If your parent already had a Home Care Package, they were automatically moved to Support at Home and kept a broadly equivalent level of funding. Any unspent Home Care Package balance was preserved, and the “no worse off” principle protects their contribution arrangements. In short, existing recipients do not need to reapply — but it is a good moment to review the care plan, check the new classification, and make sure the support still matches the person's needs.
Frequently asked questions
When did the Support at Home program start?▼
Support at Home began on 1 November 2025, replacing the Home Care Packages Program and the Short-Term Restorative Care Programme.
What replaced Home Care Packages in Australia?▼
The Support at Home program replaced Home Care Packages. Existing package recipients were moved across automatically and keep an equivalent level of funding.
How many Support at Home levels are there?▼
There are eight ongoing classification levels, compared with the four Home Care Package levels they replaced — allowing funding to match a person's needs more precisely.
Do I have to reapply if I already had a Home Care Package?▼
No. Existing recipients were transferred automatically, kept their unspent funds, and are protected by the “no worse off” principle, so their contributions are no higher than under the old system.
How do I apply for Support at Home?▼
Start by registering with My Aged Care online or by phone, then complete an assessment. If approved, you are given a classification and can choose a registered provider to begin services.
Does Support at Home pay for daily companionship or check-in calls?▼
Generally no — funded care covers scheduled clinical, personal and household services, not a daily companionship call. A service like CareCob complements your package by providing a daily check-in, wellbeing chat and medication reminder, with alerts to family.
What happened to the Short-Term Restorative Care and CHSP programs?▼
Short-Term Restorative Care was folded into Support at Home from 1 November 2025 and now runs as the Restorative Care Pathway. The Commonwealth Home Support Programme (CHSP), which offers entry-level help, continues separately for now and will transition into Support at Home no earlier than 1 July 2027.
Can I keep my existing aged care provider?▼
In most cases yes. Providers moved across to the new system, so if your parent was happy with their previous Home Care Package provider they can generally continue with them under Support at Home — but it is always worth confirming the provider is registered and reviewing the new care plan and pricing.
How long does it take to be assessed for Support at Home?▼
Timeframes vary with demand and the complexity of a person's needs. Because assessment and provider set-up can still take weeks to months, the best move is to register with My Aged Care early — being in the system makes it much easier to scale support up quickly when it is needed.