Support at Home Funding Calculator 2026

Support at Home in Plain English

Support at Home is the Australian Government in-home aged care program that commenced on 1 November 2025 under the new Aged Care Act 2024. It replaces Home Care Packages and brings together help that lets older people stay in their own homes for longer. Instead of four package levels, there are now eight classification levels, each with a set annual budget. Carevo is a connection platform: we help you find vetted Support at Home providers, we do not deliver the care ourselves.

How the Eight Classification Levels Work

Your classification level is set by a Single Assessment of your care needs, not by your income. The annual budget runs from $10,731 at Level 1 and $16,034 at Level 2, through the indicative mid-levels, up to $78,106 at Level 8. Budgets are indexed each year on 1 July, so the figures above apply to the current settings and will rise over time. Your budget is released in quarterly amounts, which is roughly the annual figure divided by four, and a limited amount of unspent funds can be carried into the next quarter.

How Your Contribution Is Worked Out

Support at Home splits services into three groups, and your contribution depends on the group and on your means status. Clinical care, which covers nursing and allied health, is fully government funded for everyone, so you pay nothing toward it. For independence services, full pensioners contribute around 5% and self-funded retirees around 50%. For everyday living services, full pensioners contribute around 17.5% and self-funded retirees around 80%. Part-pensioners and Commonwealth Seniors Health Card holders fall on a tapered rate between those two ends. Every figure here is an estimate: Services Australia sets your exact rate from your income and assets.

Personal Care and Price Caps: Two Dated Changes

From 1 October 2026, personal care is fully government funded. It moves into the clinical supports category, so participants stop contributing toward it. That is why this calculator shows personal care under clinical care at 0%. Separately, government price caps on Support at Home services were scheduled for 1 July 2026 but were deferred in May 2026, with no confirmed new date. Until caps apply, providers set their own prices within the program rules, so the same service can cost more with one provider than another. It is worth comparing a few providers before you commit.

The No Worse Off Guarantee and Lifetime Caps

If you were receiving a Home Care Package, or were assessed as eligible for one, on or before 12 September 2024, the "no worse off" principle applies. You keep at least your prior funding level and pay the same or lower contributions under Support at Home. There is also a lifetime contribution cap, which is $130,000 for new entrants and about $84,571 for grandfathered Home Care Package recipients. Once you reach your cap, you stop making contributions toward independence and everyday living services. Use this calculator as a starting point, then confirm the detail with Services Australia and a provider.