Who Is Eligible for My Aged Care in Australia?

Your parent's mobility has declined, they're struggling with daily tasks, and you know they need help. But before you can access government-funded aged care services, you need to understand one thing: does your parent actually qualify?

The good news is that My Aged Care eligibility criteria are relatively straightforward. The challenging part is navigating what comes after — the registration, the assessment, and the funding classifications that determine how much support your parent receives.

Basic Eligibility Requirements

To access government-subsidised aged care through My Aged Care, your parent must meet three core criteria:

Age requirement: They must be 65 years or older, or 50 years or older for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people. Younger people with disability, dementia, or other conditions may also qualify through specialist pathways.

Residency status: They need to be an Australian citizen or hold a permanent resident visa. Some temporary visa holders may access limited services, but full eligibility requires permanent residency or citizenship.

Care needs: They must have care needs that cannot be fully met through informal support (family, friends) or mainstream health services alone.

There is no income or asset threshold for eligibility itself. Financial circumstances only affect how much your parent contributes toward the cost of their services — not whether they can access the system.

What Services Does My Aged Care Cover?

Once eligible, your parent can be assessed for several categories of support:

• Commonwealth Home Support Programme (CHSP): Entry-level services like domestic cleaning, transport, and meal delivery for people with lower-level needs. CHSP is scheduled to transition into the Support at Home program no earlier than July 2027.
• Support at Home program: The main home care funding stream, with eight classification levels providing quarterly budgets from $11,010 to $80,137 per year.
• Residential aged care: Full-time care in a registered facility for people whose needs can no longer be safely managed at home.
• Short-term care pathways: Including transition care after hospital discharge and short-term restorative care.

How to Check Your Parent's Eligibility

The fastest way to confirm eligibility is to contact My Aged Care directly:

1. Call 1800 200 422 (Monday to Friday, 8am to 8pm, Saturday 10am to 2pm) or register online through the My Aged Care website
2. During the initial phone screening, a contact centre officer will ask about your parent's age, residency, and broad care needs
3. If eligible, your parent receives a Client Record Number and is referred for a formal needs assessment

You can make this call on your parent's behalf. If you plan to help manage their care ongoing, register as a Registered Supporter during this call — this gives you authorised access to their My Aged Care record under the new Aged Care Act 2024.

The Eligibility Screening vs the Needs Assessment

A common source of confusion: eligibility screening is not the same as the needs assessment. The screening confirms your parent can enter the system. The needs assessment — conducted later by a Single Assessment System (SAS) assessor during a home visit — determines what level of care they're approved for.

The screening takes about 15 to 20 minutes on the phone. The needs assessment is a separate, in-depth evaluation lasting one to three hours.

How your parent performs during the needs assessment directly affects their funding classification. Many older Australians unintentionally downplay their difficulties during the assessment, which can result in a lower classification than they need.

What If Your Parent Doesn't Meet Standard Eligibility?

Some situations fall outside the standard pathway:

• Under 65 with disability: The NDIS is the primary funding source, but people aged 50-64 with age-related conditions may access My Aged Care
• Veterans: Those with a DVA Gold or White Card may access aged care through the Department of Veterans' Affairs pathway, which runs parallel to My Aged Care
• Temporary visa holders: Generally not eligible, but emergency situations may be handled through state health services

If your parent is approaching 65 and you can see their care needs increasing, registering early gives them a head start. The system has historically carried wait times of 25 days or more for assessment appointments, and longer for funding allocation.

Your Next Step

Confirming eligibility is the first step in a process that includes registration, assessment, means testing, provider selection, and service agreement execution. Each stage has its own rules, deadlines, and potential pitfalls.

The My Aged Care and ACAT Assessment Guide walks through every stage with checklists, scripts for the registration call, and a 7-day functional diary to help your parent's assessment accurately reflect their daily challenges.

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