About temporary leave
Temporary leave is when a care recipient stops receiving Home Care Package services for a while. It is also known as ‘a suspension of home care services’.
A care recipient can take leave from their Home Care Package for many reasons.
As a provider, you must not provide in-home aged care services while a care recipient is on leave.
A care recipient’s leave can affect:
- the basic subsidy amount that we pay
- the supplements that we pay
- the fees that they pay, including basic daily fee and income tested care fee.
A care recipient must tell you the date they will start leave. They do not have to do this in writing.
What you need to do
You must report a care recipient’s leave dates to Services Australia in your monthly claim form.
While they are on leave, you must:
- continue to include any basic subsidy, supplements and fees (which may be reduced) in their monthly statement
- not provide or charge for any services, including care management and package management.
Types of leave
A care recipient can take leave from their Home Care Package for:
- a hospital stay
- transition care – this may follow a hospital stay
- residential respite
- social reasons (this includes any other reason).
Leave balances
A care recipient’s balance for each type of leave resets:
- on 1 July each year
- if their package level changes at any time.
Leave balances transfer with a care recipient if they change providers.
Hospital leave
Subsidy payments
For up to 28 days in a row for each hospital stay, we continue to pay the full basic subsidy and any supplements that apply.
From day 29, the subsidy reduces. The Home Care Package subsidy:
- is payable at 25% of the basic subsidy rate
- does not include any primary supplements
- continues to include other supplements.
Fee payments
If a care recipient is on hospital leave, they continue to pay their basic daily fee.
They also continue to pay their income tested care fee for up to 28 days for each hospital stay. From day 29, the income tested care fee they pay is the lower amount of either:
- their income tested care fee
- 25% of the basic subsidy rate.
Fees are different for care recipients who entered the program before 1 July 2014. If they take hospital leave, you can continue to charge both the basic daily fee and income tested care fee.
Example 1 – hospital leave
These numbers are based on 1 July 2024 fee and subsidy rates. This example applies for people who entered the program from 1 July 2014.
Your care recipient Sarah is on a level 3 Home Care Package. She is not eligible for supplements. She is paying a:
- basic daily fee of $12.42 per day
- maximum income tested care fee of $36.60 per day.
The basic subsidy for a level 3 package is $111.04.
We apply the care subsidy reduction, deducting the maximum income tested care fee from the basic subsidy amount.
The Home Care Package subsidy you receive on Sarah’s behalf is $74.44 ($111.04 minus $36.60).
Sarah suspends her package to go to hospital for 30 days.
For the first 28 days of Sarah’s hospital leave, you continue to receive her:
- Home Care Package subsidy of $74.44
- basic daily fee of $12.42
- income tested care fee of $36.60.
For days 29 and 30, you:
- do not receive a basic subsidy
- continue to receive her basic daily fee of $12.42
- receive a reduced income tested care fee of $27.76.
Sarah pays $27.76, because 25% of the basic subsidy ($111.04 x 0.25 = $27.76) is lower than her income tested care fee ($36.60).
If day 29 was the start of a new financial year (1 July), Sarah’s hospital leave balance would reset.
You would continue to receive the Home Care Package subsidy, basic daily fee and income tested care fee for up to another 28 days.
Transition care leave
A care recipient can access temporary rehabilitation services after a hospital stay through the Transition Care Programme.
Subsidy payments
For up to 28 days in a row for each period of transition care leave, we continue to pay the full basic subsidy and any supplements that apply.
From day 29 the subsidy reduces. The Home Care Package subsidy:
- is payable at 25% of the basic subsidy rate
- does not include any primary supplements
- continues to include other supplements.
Fee payments
If a care recipient is on leave for transition care, they do not pay their basic daily fee.
They continue to pay their income tested care fee for up to 28 days for each period of transition care.
From day 29, the income tested care fee they pay is the lower amount of either:
- their income tested care fee
- 25% of the basic subsidy rate.
Fees are different for care recipients who entered the program before 1 July 2014. If they take transition care leave, they do not pay any Home Care Package fees.
Example 2 – transition care leave after hospital leave
These numbers are based on 1 July 2024 subsidy rates. This example applies for people who entered the program from 1 July 2014.
After Sarah takes 30 days of hospital leave (see example 1) she moves straight into transition care on day 31. She takes transition care leave for 10 days.
Because this is a different type of leave, different rules apply. For the whole 10 days, you receive her:
- Home Care Package subsidy of $74.44
- income tested care fee of $36.60.
However, you cannot collect the basic daily fee for this leave type.
Residential respite leave
Subsidy payments
For up to 28 days of residential respite leave in a financial year, we continue to pay the full basic subsidy and any supplements that apply. The leave days do not have to be taken in a row.
If the care recipient takes more than 28 days of residential respite leave in that financial year, the subsidy reduces. The Home Care Package subsidy:
- is payable at 25% of the basic subsidy rate
- does not include any primary supplements
- continues to include other supplements.
Fee payments
If a care recipient is on leave for residential respite, they do not pay their basic daily fee.
For up to 28 days of residential respite leave in a financial year, the care recipient continues to pay their income tested care fee. The leave days do not have to be taken in a row.
If the care recipient takes more residential respite leave in that financial year, the income tested care fee they pay is the lower amount of either:
- their income tested care fee
- 25% of the basic subsidy rate.
Fees are different for care recipients who entered the program before 1 July 2014. If they take residential respite leave, they do not pay any Home Care Package fees.
Social leave
Subsidy payments
For up to 28 days of social leave in a financial year, we continue to pay the full basic subsidy and any supplements that apply. The leave days do not have to be taken in a row.
If the care recipient takes more than 28 days of social leave in that financial year, the subsidy reduces. The Home Care Package subsidy:
- is payable at 25% of the basic subsidy rate
- does not include any primary supplements
- continues to include other supplements.
Fee payments
If a care recipient is on social leave, they continue to pay their basic daily fee.
For up to 28 days of social leave in a financial year, the care recipient continues to pay their income tested care fee. The leave days do not have to be taken in a row.
If the care recipient takes more social leave in that financial year, the income tested care fee they pay is the lower amount of either:
- their income tested care fee
- 25% of the basic subsidy.
Fees are different for care recipients who entered the program before 1 July 2014. If they take social leave, they can continue to pay both the basic daily fee and income tested care fee.