Financial Hardship Assistance for aged care may reduce or cover eligible fees and contributions if you cannot afford them after paying essential living expenses. Centrelink assesses your income, assets, aged care costs and everyday expenses. If approved, the Australian Government pays some or all of the eligible amount through the aged care funding system.
Key Takeaways
- Apply using the Aged Care Claim for Financial Hardship Assistance form, known as SA462
- You need an aged care income and assets assessment before Centrelink can assess your claim
- Your assessable assets must be below the current financial hardship threshold, excluding assets you cannot sell or borrow against
- Gifting limits apply. You generally cannot have gifted more than $10,000 in a financial year or $30,000 across 5 financial years
- Financial Hardship Assistance may apply to Support at Home, permanent residential aged care and residential respite care
- From 1 October 2026, approved personal care under Support at Home will be fully funded when you have available program funding
What Is Financial Hardship Assistance?
Your aged care fees or Support at Home contributions are usually worked out using your income and assets.
But that calculation does not always show the full picture. You may still have regular expenses to pay each week or month, including rent, food, power bills, medication, insurance or the cost of keeping your home.
After those costs are paid, there may not be enough left to meet your aged care fees or contributions.
Financial Hardship Assistance is a separate process from your original income and assets assessment. The first assessment works out the usual amount you may be asked to pay. Financial Hardship Assistance may be available if those costs still leave you without enough for essential living expenses.
It may be available if you receive:
- Support at Home services
- Permanent residential aged care
- Residential respite care
If your application is approved, the Australian Government may pay some or all of the relevant fees or contributions, depending on your circumstances and the type of care you receive.
What Costs Can It Help With?
What Financial Hardship Assistance covers depends on the type of aged care you receive.
It doesn’t cover higher everyday living fees, additional fees or extra service fees in any setting. Those are agreed between you and your provider and stay payable in full.
See our Schedule of Aged Care Fees and Charges for more information.
Support at Home
Under Support at Home, you may be asked to contribute towards independence and everyday living services. This co-contribution is based on your income and assets assessment.
Financial Hardship Assistance may reduce those contributions if paying them would leave you without enough for essential living expenses.
Clinical care does not attract a contribution. From 1 October 2026, approved personal care, will also be fully funded when it is included in your support plan, and you have available Support at Home funding.
Personal care includes help with tasks such as showering, dressing and non-clinical continence management. Financial Hardship Assistance may still help with contributions for other services, such as cleaning, gardening, transport and help around the home.
Residential Aged Care
Financial Hardship Assistance may also help with some of the costs in residential aged care.
What help is available depends on when you entered care. People who entered an aged care home from 1 November 2025 are generally covered by the newer fee arrangements.
Under these arrangements, assistance may be available for eligible amounts relating to:
- Basic daily fees
- Hotelling contributions
- Non-clinical care contributions
- Accommodation costs
If you entered an aged care home before 1 November 2025, earlier fee arrangements may apply. In those arrangements, Financial Hardship Assistance may help with the basic daily fee, means-tested care fee and eligible accommodation costs.
Centrelink can confirm which fee arrangements apply to you and what assistance may be available.
Residential Respite Care
Financial Hardship Assistance may also help with the basic daily fee for a residential respite stay. It doesn’t cover any other respite charges.
If you’re planning a respite stay, ask the aged care home how much you’ll be charged and which part of that is the basic daily fee. You can then check with Centrelink whether Financial Hardship Assistance applies in your circumstances.
Who Can Apply?
Before Centrelink can assess a Financial Hardship Assistance claim, you will generally need to:
- Have a current calculation of your aged care costs
- Have assessable assets below the current financial hardship threshold
- Be within the gifting limits
- Provide the information and documents needed to support your application
If you are applying for assistance with Support at Home contributions, you must have started receiving care after 1 July 2014.
If you started receiving home care before that date, speak with your provider and Centrelink about the arrangements that apply to you.
How Much Can You Have in Assets?
Your assessable assets need to be below the current financial hardship threshold.
The threshold is linked to the Age Pension and changes when pension rates are indexed, usually 20 March and 20 September. Check the current financial hardship threshold and aged care fee details before applying.
Some assets may be excluded if you can’t sell them or borrow against them. These are called unrealisable assets.
Centrelink gives these examples:
- A property that has been actively on the market for at least six months but hasn’t sold
- A jointly owned property where the other owner doesn’t agree to sell
- A property where a family member has lived for 10 years or more
- A farming property you depend on for income
- An asset that has been frozen
- Money that has been misappropriated, where legal proceedings have started
Your home isn’t automatically excluded. However, it may be treated as an unrealisable asset if it meets one of these conditions.
You’ll need evidence to support this part of your application. This may include:
- A property valuation
- Documents showing how long a property has been on the market
- A statement from another owner confirming they don’t agree to sell
- Documents showing who lives at the property and for how long
What Are the Gifting Limits?
Centrelink also considers gifts you’ve made.
There’s a cap on what you can gift in a single financial year, and a separate cap across the current financial year and the previous four financial years together. Go over either one and it can affect your claim, so check the current gifting limits before you apply.
A gift can include money, property or another asset you’ve given away. It can also include an asset you sold for less than its market value.
For example, if you transferred part of a property to a family member for less than it was worth, Centrelink may treat the difference as a gift.
If you’re unsure whether a past gift could affect your application, check with Centrelink before lodging the form. A qualified financial adviser can also explain how the gifting rules apply to your personal situation.
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Prepare Your Financial Hardship Application
Before completing the Aged care claim for financial hardship assistance form (SA462), gather the information Centrelink will need to understand your circumstances.
This may include:
- Your current aged care fee advice or calculation of your cost of care
- Details of your income and assets
- Information about gifts you have made
- Details of your regular living expenses
- Evidence for any assets you cannot sell or borrow against
- Your provider’s name, if you have already started receiving care
If an authorised person is applying on your behalf, they may need to provide identification and evidence that they can act for you.
Submit Your Claim
Once you have the required information, complete the SA462 form and attach the supporting documents requested.
You can submit your claim through your Centrelink online account or post it to Centrelink using the address shown on the form.
If you receive Support at Home, tell your provider that you have applied. Ask how they will manage your contributions while Centrelink considers your application.
If Centrelink needs more information, respond by the date it gives you.
What Happens After You Apply?
Centrelink will consider the information in your SA462 form, your current aged care cost calculation and the supporting documents you provide. They may contact you if they need more information.
If you receive Support at Home, tell your provider that you’ve applied and ask how they’ll manage your contributions while Centrelink considers your claim. Your provider should pause collecting contributions while the application is being assessed.
Those contributions aren’t automatically waived, however. If your application isn’t approved, you may still need to pay any contributions that became due during that time.
If you’re in residential aged care, your provider doesn’t have to pause your fees while your claim is assessed. Ask them how they’ll handle payments in the meantime and keep a record of what you’ve paid.
If Your Application Is Approved
Centrelink will send you a letter explaining the assistance you will receive.
The letter should tell you:
- Which fees or contributions are covered
- How much assistance you will receive
- When the assistance starts
- How long it applies
- Whether you need to provide more information or apply again later
Keep this letter with your aged care paperwork. Your provider may need a copy to apply the decision to your fees or contributions.
If Your Application Is Not Approved
If Centrelink does not approve your application, contact them to discuss the decision.
Ask whether they need further information from you and check the outcome letter for information about requesting a review of the decision.
You can also:
- Talk with your provider about the services you receive and what they cost
- Contact an aged care advocate for help understanding the decision
- Book an appointment with an Aged Care Specialist Officer at Services Australia
- Speak with a qualified financial adviser about your financial situation
The Financial Information Service provides free information about financial matters, including the Home Equity Access Scheme. It does not provide personal financial advice.
Is the Home Equity Access Scheme an Option?
The Home Equity Access Scheme is a government loan for eligible people who own Australian real estate.
It lets you access a fortnightly loan using the equity in your property as security. It is separate from Financial Hardship Assistance and must be repaid, including interest.
It may be an option to consider if you own a home but have limited income or available savings. Speak with Centrelink and consider getting advice from a qualified financial adviser before making a decision.
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