How aged care funding works
The Australian Government pays registered providers to deliver aged care services through:
- subsidies and supplements
- capital grants
- program grant funding.
Older people who receive government-subsidised aged care may contribute to their costs. They do this by paying aged care contributions, fees and charges.
Subsidies and supplements
The Australian Government pays subsidies to registered providers on behalf of each person receiving government-subsidised:
- Support at Home
- residential aged care
- residential respite
- Transition Care Program
- Multi-Purpose Services Program.
Supplements help with the cost of meeting specific care needs for eligible participants. We include supplement amounts in subsidy payments and some program funding grants.
Find out more about subsidies and supplements.
Allocated places
For some programs, you need an allocation of government-subsidised aged care places before you can get subsidies.
- Multi-Purpose Services Program – registered providers can apply for allocated places for flexible aged care.
- Transition Care Program allocate time-limited places.
As of 1 July 2025, residential aged care places are assigned directly to eligible older people, instead of allocated to a specific provider.
Capital grants
Organisations can apply for capital grants through the Aged Care Capital Assistance Program (ACCAP) to support aged care infrastructure projects.
Program grant funding
Registered providers may also apply for funding grants through the following aged care programs: