The 1 October change that makes personal care free for Support at Home participants is now just weeks away, and the government has moved to make sure providers explain it properly, issuing an official toolkit to help them inform older people and families. It’s a small but telling sign the change is imminent and real. Here’s the plain-language guide to what’s happening and how to make sure your provider gets it right.
What’s Happening
From 1 October 2026, personal care under Support at Home, help with showering, dressing, grooming and continence, moves into the clinical supports contribution category, which is fully government-funded. In practical terms, older Australians will no longer pay contributions for these services.
To support the change, the Department of Health has released a toolkit that Support at Home providers can use to inform older people, their families and carers about the personal care contribution change. There are also provider webinars and information sessions running, with the department and Services Australia attending to answer questions.
Why the Toolkit Matters
The toolkit is a genuinely good sign for families, because it means the change is being actively communicated rather than left to chance. A common problem with policy changes is that the people affected are the last to hear about them clearly. Here, the government is arming the providers, who talk to participants directly, with plain materials to explain what’s changing.
“Support at Home providers can use this toolkit to inform older people, their families and carers about the personal care contribution change,” the department states.
For you, that means you should expect your provider to proactively let you know how the change affects your statement, and if they don’t, you have every right to ask.
What It Means for Your Costs
The bottom line is simple: from October, you stop paying contributions toward personal care. How much you save depends on your situation. Self-funded retirees, who have been contributing the most toward these services, save the most in dollar terms; full pensioners, who contributed less, save less but still benefit.
Clinical care such as nursing was already fully funded. Other services, domestic assistance, gardening, some social supports, still carry means-tested contributions. So October expands the fully-funded core; it doesn’t make everything free.
How to Make Sure Your Provider Gets It Right
Here’s the practical part. Because your provider is responsible for updating your service agreement and statements to reflect the change, a little attention on your part ensures it lands correctly. Expect your provider to contact you before October about the change; if they don’t, ask them directly how it affects you. Read any updated service agreement they send rather than signing on the spot. And crucially, check your statements after 1 October to confirm the personal-care contribution has genuinely disappeared, errors happen, and you’re the person most likely to catch one.
Be alert, too, that periods of change attract scammers. The government and My Aged Care will never phone asking for your bank details to “process” this, it’s automatic, with nothing to pay for and no information to hand over.
What You Need to Do
Reassuringly little. There’s no application, no form, no eligibility test, if you receive personal care under Support at Home, the change applies automatically. Your job is simply to stay informed: expect communication from your provider, read what they send, and check your October statement. The official information and toolkit details are on the My Aged Care news page.
The Bottom Line
Free personal care is weeks away, and the government issuing a provider toolkit shows the change is imminent and being actively communicated. From 1 October you stop paying contributions toward personal care, automatically, with self-funded retirees saving most. Expect your provider to explain it, read what they send, and check your statement afterward to confirm it’s right. A genuinely good change, and a little attention ensures you get the full benefit. This is general information, not aged care, medical or financial advice.
Epik Wire covers aged care in plain language for older Australians and their families. Subscribe to our newsletter to stay informed.
