Aged care home modifications: funding and first steps in Australia

Which home modifications might help?

My Aged Care’s home-adjustments service includes prescribed smaller changes and larger access work, with clinical support to check suitability. It excludes unprescribed work and costs above the provided budget. The examples below are prompts for an assessment, rather than a shopping list.

A shower chair or walking frame is equipment; altering the bathroom or entrance is work to the home. The AT-HM scheme covers these as separate assistive-technology and home-modification supports. Approval for one does not establish a budget for the other.

Where is the AT-HM funding list?

Use the Department's official Assistive Technology and Home Modifications list, available as PDF and Word. The resource page is dated 20 July 2026; the reviewed PDF says last updated 17 July 2026. It separates inclusions, conditional inclusions and exclusions. Start from the resource page when checking for a newer version.

Section 6 covers home modifications. Selected examples include shower units, wash basins, fixed grab bars, plumbing fittings and taps, fixed ramps and stairlifts. A listed item is not automatic funding approval. The scheme guidance ties support to assessed needs and the support plan; all home modifications require an occupational therapist's prescription.

1. Identify the exact item or proposed work and the relevant inclusion category.
2. Ask the provider which assessment, prescription and any additional evidence are required.
3. Confirm your approval, allocated funding, contribution and the complete installed scope before committing.

The item list and the funding-tier amounts answer different questions. The rate table below uses the dated October 2026 schedule, rather than treating the item list as a personal spending allowance.

AT-HM list and scheme guidance checked 28 October 2026; the October rate schedule was also rechecked. The list examples above are selected prompts, not a complete product catalogue or an individual funding decision.

Who pays for aged care home modifications?

My Aged Care lists home adjustments through the Commonwealth Home Support Program, Support at Home and Transition Care. The assessor determines the relevant programme. The figures here concern Support at Home’s Assistive Technology and Home Modifications (AT-HM) scheme; they are not a CHSP allowance or an NDIS entitlement.

Support at Home: current home-modification tier budgets

The Department’s schedule effective 1 October 2026 lists these home-modification budgets in Australian dollars. They are assessed funding tiers, not an automatic payment to every older homeowner.

The usual completion period is 12 months. High-tier complex work may receive an extension to 24 months with evidence; an extension is not automatic. These are not annual renovation grants. Older pages may still show AU$500, AU$2,000 and AU$15,000: use the current schedule and confirm which allocation applies to you.

The Department explains approval and allocation: your Notice of Decision and support plan record approval, while access also depends on allocated funds and provider arrangements. AT-HM uses a separate funding queue from ongoing services. If you transferred from a Home Care Package, ask how unspent Commonwealth HCP funds must be used first.

Will I have an out-of-pocket contribution?

Participants generally contribute towards modifications and most associated services. Prescriptions and wraparound clinical services are government-funded under the scheme. My Aged Care’s costs guide explains how financial circumstances and earlier approvals affect contributions, and where to seek financial-hardship assistance. Ask for a written breakdown of the provider’s price, funded amount and your contribution.

Keep any GST treatment, insurance decision and privately chosen extra work as separate budget lines. A funding-tier figure is not an installed quote.

How to request an assessment and plan the work

1. Prepare the resident’s priorities. Write down the task, what currently happens, what the resident wants to change and any assistance already available. My Aged Care’s preparation guide lists documents and explains how a trusted person or interpreter can support the assessment.
2. Use the appropriate My Aged Care route. First-time applicants can use the assessment application, which checks age and needs. If you are already registered, have been assessed or need immediate care, that page directs you to call 1800 200 422 instead of completing the first-time form.
3. Clarify the prescribed scope. Under AT-HM, all home modifications require an occupational therapist’s prescription within their professional scope. Ask how it addresses the support plan and who arranges the assessment, design and installation.
4. Confirm funding and responsibilities before committing. Record the approval, available allocation, contribution, timing and person coordinating the work. Ask how owner consent, required permits, contractor selection and completion checks will be handled. Keep written decisions with your project record.

Questions to take to the provider and installer

Use this original planning checklist alongside the prescribed scope. Ask each provider to identify what is included, excluded or still an allowance.

• Purpose: Which assessed task does each proposed change support, and what alternatives were considered?
• Complete price: Does the quote include assessment, drawings, approvals, materials, installation, disposal, making good and any GST?
• Who pays: What comes from the approved allocation, what is your contribution, and which optional extras are private purchases?
• Practical access: How will the resident enter, wash and use essential rooms while work is under way?
• Changes: Who authorises hidden-work costs or design variations, and how will you receive the revised price?
• Handover: Who checks the completed work, explains its use, supplies warranties and deals with defects or future maintenance?

For a rental or shared building, record who must approve changes to the property. For an urgent change in circumstances, contact your assessor or provider about interim support and a review rather than assuming a quoted installation date is guaranteed.

Looking for support outside Australia?

Use the same task-and-quote planning approach, then check the programmes for your own country. Australian AT-HM rates and approvals do not apply abroad.

Frequently asked questions