Your Guide to Support at Home

Support at Home is the Australian Government's program for in-home aged care — it replaced Home Care Packages and the Short-Term Restorative Care Programme from 1 November 2025. The Commonwealth Home Support Programme (CHSP) will move across to Support at Home no earlier than 1 July 2027. It funds a wide range of everyday support, all built around what actually helps you stay independent at home:

• Personal care, domestic assistance and cleaning
• Nursing and allied health
• Meal preparation, gardening and home maintenance
• Home modifications and social support

There are 8 ongoing classification levels instead of the old 4 package levels, so support can be matched more precisely to your needs — and your budget is allocated each quarter.

10% of each quarterly budget is set aside to fund care management — the work your provider does to coordinate and review your care.

Short-term support and equipment

As well as ongoing services, Support at Home includes separate short-term funding that doesn't come out of your quarterly budget:

• Assistive Technology and Home Modifications (AT-HM) scheme — funding for equipment such as mobility aids, and home modifications such as grab rails or ramps, assessed at a low, medium or high funding tier.
• Restorative Care Pathway — up to 16 weeks of goal-focused allied health and nursing support (around $6,179, or up to around $12,359 when eligible) to help you regain independence after an illness, fall or change in health.
• End-of-Life Pathway — around $25,737 over up to 16 weeks for people a doctor or nurse practitioner has assessed as having about 3 months or less to live, so they can be supported to stay at home.

What will I pay?

The government funds most of the cost. Depending on your income and assets, you may contribute towards some services:

• Clinical care — such as nursing, allied health and (from 1 October 2026) personal care: no contribution.
• Independence services — such as transport and social support: a moderate contribution.
• Everyday living services — such as cleaning, gardening and meals: the highest contribution.

Services Australia works out your contribution rate through a means assessment, and there is a lifetime cap on contributions. If you were approved for a Home Care Package on or before 12 September 2024, you won't pay more than you would have under the old program. You can estimate your costs with the fee estimator on My Aged Care.

Before you can access funded services, you need an aged care needs assessment through My Aged Care. You can apply in whichever way suits you best:

• Online — takes about 10–15 minutes, you'll need your Medicare card on hand
• By phone — call My Aged Care on 1800 200 422
• In person — book an appointment with an Aged Care Specialist Officer at a Services Australia centre on 1800 227 475

For the assessment itself, have ready: your Medicare card plus one other form of ID (licence, healthcare card, passport or DVA card), your GP's contact details, and a list of your current medications and any support you already receive.

After your assessment, you'll receive a Notice of Decision — a letter outlining your approved supports — along with a support plan, sent by post or email (or viewable in your My Aged Care online account). Keep both somewhere safe; you'll need them when arranging services.

If you don't agree with the outcome, you have the right to request an internal review — contact My Aged Care to start that process.

What to do with your letters and referral code

You may receive two letters from My Aged Care. The first is your Notice of Decision, which lists the services you are approved for and includes your support plan. The second is a funding letter, which tells you that your Support at Home funding is now available.

Here is what to do next:

1. Keep both letters and your support plan somewhere easy to find.
2. Contact one or two providers and ask questions. You do not have to commit at this stage. Bring your Notice of Decision, support plan and any means assessment outcome to those conversations.
3. Check that your chosen provider can deliver everything you are approved for, because all your Support at Home services must come from one provider.
4. Once you have decided, give that provider your referral code. It is in your letter, and if you cannot find it, it is also in your My Aged Care online account. The code lets your provider view your support plan and accept your referral.
5. Sign a service agreement. This is a written agreement that sets out the services, who provides them and what they cost. Services cannot start until it is signed.

If you decide to change providers later, you will need to reactivate your referral code through My Aged Care online or on 1800 200 422.

This summary is based on guidance published by My Aged Care and was last checked on 20 October 2026. Rules can change, so please confirm the details at myagedcare.gov.au or on 1800 200 422. If you would like help understanding your letters, our team at Guardian Home Support is happy to talk it through.

Once approved, you can choose a registered Support at Home provider to deliver your services — and you're free to change providers later if your needs or preferences change. When comparing providers, it's worth looking at:

• Pricing, and how transparent it is
• Flexibility — can services adjust as your needs change?
• Reputation and how established they are locally
• Whether they understand your personal, cultural or lifestyle preferences

Guardian Home Support is a registered Support at Home provider across Perth Metro, Rockingham and Mandurah — see our full range of services or get in touch if you'd like to talk it through.

Already receiving Support at Home from another provider? See how to switch to Guardian Home Support — it takes a few simple steps and you keep your approval.

Once you've chosen a provider, they'll work with you to arrange and schedule your services. Your plan isn't set in stone — it's reviewed at least once a year, or sooner if your circumstances change, so support can keep adjusting as your needs do.

This is exactly where Guardian Home Support can help — not just with that first call to My Aged Care, but with ongoing care management and making sure your funding is being used well, for as long as you need us.