Home  |  Support at Home

Support at Home, explained simply.

On 1 November 2025, Support at Home replaced Home Care Packages as the Australian Government’s in‑home aged care program. Here’s what actually changed, and what it means for you.

What Support at Home is

Support at Home is the Australian Government program that funds aged care services delivered in your own home. It replaced both the Home Care Packages Program and the Short‑Term Restorative Care Programme on 1 November 2025, after a four‑month delay from the original July 2025 start date.

The purpose hasn’t changed: it exists so older Australians can stay living at home for longer, with the right help, instead of moving into residential care before they need to. What changed is how the funding is structured and how it’s paid for.

If you were already receiving a Home Care Package before November 2025, you transferred across automatically. You didn’t need to reapply, and you shouldn’t have lost services in the changeover.

What actually changed

Eight funding levels instead of four. Home Care Packages had four levels. Support at Home has eight classifications, which allows funding to be matched far more closely to what someone actually needs rather than rounding them into a broad band.

Budgets are now quarterly, not annual. Your funding is released in three‑month blocks. If you don’t use it all, you can carry over the greater of $1,000 or 10% of that quarter’s budget into the next one — so there’s less pressure to spend for the sake of spending, but large unspent balances no longer build up indefinitely.

Services are grouped into three categories — clinical care, independence, and everyday living — and how much you contribute depends on which category a service falls into.

Care management is funded separately. Ten per cent of each quarterly budget is set aside for care management, rather than being negotiated out of your service hours.

Price caps apply. Providers can no longer charge whatever they like for a given service, which makes comparing providers considerably easier than it used to be.

The three service categories

Clinical care covers nursing, allied health such as physiotherapy and occupational therapy, and care management. This category is fully funded by the government — you don’t contribute to it.

Independence covers personal care, assistive technology and home modifications. This attracts a means‑tested contribution.

Everyday living covers domestic assistance, meals, transport and social support. This carries the highest contribution rate, on the basis that these are costs most people would have anyway.

An important change is coming on 1 October 2026. Personal care — showering, dressing and continence support — moves out of the independence category and into clinical care. From that date the government fully funds it, which means many people will pay less for the daily support they rely on most.

What this means when choosing a provider

Because price caps and contribution rates are now set nationally, providers compete much less on headline price and much more on the things that actually affect your experience: whether you get the same worker each visit, how quickly they respond, whether they turn up when they said they would, and whether you have any real say in who comes into your home.

iCare4U is a registered provider delivering Support at Home services across Melbourne’s eastern and south‑eastern suburbs and the Mornington Peninsula. We’re owner‑operated and locally based — not a call centre — and you choose your own support worker rather than being assigned whoever is available.

If you’re not sure whether you’re eligible, or which classification you might fall into, talk to our team — we can explain how assessment works and what to expect. You can also read more about our aged care services or switching providers.

Program details and funding amounts are set by the Australian Government and can change. For figures specific to your situation, check with My Aged Care on 1800 200 422 or speak with our team.

Not sure where you stand?

Our local team can walk you through Support at Home and what you may be eligible for. No obligation.