Home > For Health Professionals > Aged care > Working in aged care

Working in aged care

Aged Care Education and Training Incentive Program

The Aged Care Education and Training Incentive (ACETI) program provides incentive payments to eligible aged care workers who undertake specified education and training programs.

Overview:

In the 2010-11 Budget the Australian Government provided $59.9 million over four years for a national incentive program that will provide payments to eligible aged care workers who undertake further studies to enhance their career as a personal care worker, an enrolled nurse or a registered nurse.

The Aged Care Education and Training Incentive (ACETI) Program provides incentive payments to eligible aged care workers who undertake specified education and training programs to upgrade qualifications and build their career in aged care.

This program builds on current workplace training programs that support people working in the aged care sector.

The Department of Human Services delivers the ACETI Program through funding from the Department of Health and Ageing.

Payment related questions should be directed to the Department of Human Services Medicare Program Aged Care Enquiries Line on 1800 195 206.

Who is eligible?

In order to be eligible to receive an incentive payment, aged care workers must meet all the following criteria:

• Be an Australian citizen or permanent resident; and
• Be employed on a full time, part time or casual basis providing direct care in and by an eligible aged care service*:
  • at the commencement of their training (in order to receive the commencement payment);
  • at the successful completion of their training and during your training (in order to receive the completion payment).
• Have a commitment to working in the aged care sector; and
• Commence an eligible training course between 1 July 2010 and 30 June 2014. Commence means the official start date of the eligible training course, not the date of enrolment.

*An eligible aged care service is a Commonwealth funded residential aged care service, a service providing Commonwealth funded community care or flexible care service including CACP, EACH or EACH-D, or Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander flexible care services.

Under current arrangements, Home and Community Care (HACC) services are not eligible for incentive payments under the ACETI Program.

Eligible courses:

Vocational Education and Training courses

Previous Course Code	New Course Code	Name of Course
CHC30208	CHC30212	Certificate III in Aged Care
CHC30308	CHC30312	Certificate III in Home and Community Care
CHC40108	Unchanged	Certificate IV in Aged Care
CHC40208	CHC40212	Certificate IV in Home and Community Care
CHC40608	Unchanged	Certificate IV in Leisure and Health
BSB40807	Unchanged	Certificate IV in Frontline Management
CHC52208	CHC52212	Diploma of Community Services Coordination

Enrolled Nurse Training courses

Previous Course Code	New Course Code	Name of Course
HLT51607	HLT51607	Diploma of Nursing (Enrolled/Division 2 nursing)
HLT43407	Unchanged	Certificate IV in Nursing (Enrolled/Division 2 nursing)

Registered Nurse Training courses

Course Code	Name of Course
BN	Undergraduate Bachelor of Nursing *Note: Other Registered Nurse training courses may be considered eligible if registration from the Nursing and Midwifery Board of Australia is obtained on completion.

Note: The Guidelines for Applicants will be updated shortly to reflect any changes to course codes.

How much will be paid?

Eligible aged care workers who successfully complete a course will receive two incentive payments - a commencement payment and a completion payment.

Incentive payments are dependent on the level of study. Applicants undertaking eligible:

Vocational Education and Training courses

will receive $500 after commencement of the course and $500 on successful completion of the course.

Enrolled Nurse Training courses

will receive $1,000 after commencement of the course and $1,500 on successful completion of the course and registration with the Nursing and Midwifery Board of Australia as an Enrolled Nurse; and

Registered Nurse Training courses

will receive $2,000 after commencement of the course and $3,000 on successful completion of the course and registration with the Nursing and Midwifery Board of Australia as a Registered Nurse.

To be eligible for an incentive payment, aged care workers must have commenced training on or after 1 July 2010.

Payments are contingent on the availability of funds. The Department may at its discretion, defer or not make a payment once funding has been exhausted.

Please refer to Class Ruling CR 2011/69 for more information on the taxation implications of receiving one of these payments.

Do these payments have to be used for a specific purpose?

No. The incentive payments are provided by the Commonwealth as financial assistance to aged care workers. Aged care workers do not have to spend incentive payments on training costs. It is entirely their choice on how to spend the incentive payments.

How long do I have to apply?

Applications for the commencement payment must be made within six months of commencement of training in an eligible course.

How to apply

Application forms are now available to download. There are two application forms, one for the commencement payment and one for the completion payment. If an aged care worker believes they are eligible to receive the incentive payments, they should download, print and complete the application forms, and return them to the address on the form. Aged care workers must lodge a commencement form before lodging a completion form.
Commencement Application Form (PDF 1070 KB)
Completion Application Form (PDF 750 KB)

Please refer to the ACETI Guidelines for Applicants below for additional information regarding eligibility, course information and application requirements.
Guidelines for Applicants in HTML and PDF

Further information regarding the Aged Care Education and Training Incentive Program can be obtained by contacting Aged Care Information on 1800 200 422.

Payment related questions can be directed to the Department of Human Services Medicare Program Aged Care Enquiries Line on 1800 195 206.

Additional Information

Fact Sheet 1 - Contact details for course information

Promotional Material

• Brochure - Aged Care Education and Training Incentive Program
• Poster - Aged Care Education and Training Incentive Program

Top of page