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Residential aged care costs, fees, and government assistance

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Published on   4 Apr 2025

Let’s look at the fees, costs, and government assistance available to help you transition to a residential aged care home of your choice.

Everyone’s care requirements and financial situation are different, so what and how you end up paying may be different for other residents.

Costs associated with living in a residential aged care home

Each aged care home sets its own prices up to a maximum limit set by the Commonwealth Government, so costs will vary between homes. How much you pay depends on the aged care home that you choose, and a ‘means test’ that will look at your income and assets.

The cost for residential aged care is divided into three fees

  • Basic daily living fee – living expenses such as meals, cleaning, facilities management, and laundry.
  • Accommodation cost – a contribution of full payment of your room.
  • Means-tested care fee – the cost to meet your healthcare needs.

Basic daily fee

When you’re a resident in an aged care home, you are asked to pay a daily fee as a contribution toward the cost of care and living expenses. This includes meals, cleaning, facilities management and laundry.
The daily fee also contributes to the cost of personal care support for assistance with things like dressing and toileting, therapy, some medical services, care and medical consumables, and mobility aid.
This fee is equivalent to 85% of the annual single basic Age Pension and is adjusted in March and September at the same time as the Age Pension.

Accommodation cost

The accommodation charge of your room is based on a means assessment and depends on the value of your assets and income when you enter care.

As a general guide

If you have income below $27,840 and assets below $50,500, the Australian Government will pay your accommodation costs.
If you need to pay for part of your accommodation, due to higher income and assets, the Australian Government will pay the remaining costs.
Whether you have to pay toward your accommodation or not, everyone entering an aged care home needs to agree on a room price in writing with their aged care home.

Means tested care fee

Depending on your financial situation, you may be required to pay the costs of your individual care needs. You can get an idea of what you may have to pay by using the My Aged Care residential care fee estimator.
There are annual and lifetime caps on means tested care fees. These are set by the Commonwealth Government.
Once you reach your annual cap, your means tested care fee is reduced to zero. You will start paying the fee again on the next anniversary of the date you entered residential aged care.

Optional services that incur a fee 

Aged care homes may also offer additional services that incur an additional service fee. These may include things like hairdressing or access to paid TV. You only need to pay for the services that you use, and it’s up to you to decide what additional services you would like.
Additional, optional, services are offered by some aged care homes for an extra cost. The fees for these services are not covered by a government subsidy. If you agree to pay these optional fees for the services, you will need to pay this amount yourself. There are no extra service costs at Anglicare Southern Queensland residential aged care homes, however, we can help facilitate and accommodate your needs.

We are here to help you through the process.

By calling us on 1300 610 610, we can support you in finding the right level of care for your loved one. We understand that there’s a lot to consider when you move into a residential aged care community. We would love to show you around an Anglicare Southern Queensland Residential Aged Care Home near you. Contact 1300 610 610 or email [email protected] to arrange a tour.

Access our services

We’re here for you. Submit this form or call us to access an Anglicare service or program. Our team is available between 7am and 5pm weekdays on 1300 610 610.

Enquire Now or Book a Tour

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