The aged care (ACAT) assessment: how to get it done urgently, and how to prepare for the home visit

Last updated 20 August 2026

The short version

One assessment now covers everything: the Single Assessment System, using the Integrated Assessment Tool, usually during a visit to your home.
The assessment decides your classification - which of eight funding levels you get - and your priority in the queue. It's the single most consequential conversation in the whole journey.
The classic mistake: putting on a brave face. Describe your worst days, not your best ones.
Have family present and bring GP notes or hospital paperwork - supporting evidence genuinely helps.
Applied and heard nothing while things get worse? The priority on a referral can be reviewed. How to get an urgent assessment is below.

What the assessment is, and what's decided on the day

Since aged care assessments were unified under the Single Assessment System, one assessment covers the lot - Support at Home, the Commonwealth Home Support Programme, short-term pathways and, if it's ever needed, residential care. You won't be bounced between different assessment bodies.

An assessor arranges a time and comes to your home. They work through the Integrated Assessment Tool - a structured set of questions about how you manage day to day: moving around, showering and dressing, cooking and eating, memory and thinking, your mood, your home's safety, and the support you get from family and friends. They'll also want to see a little of how you live - how you get to the door, the state of the garden path, whether there are rails in the bathroom.

From this one conversation flow three big outcomes:

your classification - one of eight levels that sets your quarterly budget;
your priority category - which determines how long you wait for funding; and
any short-term pathways - assistive technology and home modifications funding, restorative care, or end-of-life support.

The "good day" trap

This is the mistake we hear about most. The assessor visits, you've had a decent morning, the kettle goes on, and you say you're "managing fine, mostly". A generation raised not to make a fuss is being under-classified for exactly that reason. The assessor can only fund the needs you describe. If showering is frightening three days a week, say so - even if it wasn't today.

Applied and heard nothing? How to get an urgent aged care (ACAT) assessment

This is the situation we hear about most from adult children: you applied through My Aged Care weeks or months ago, got a reference number, and then silence - while Mum has had another fall, or Dad is about to be discharged from hospital with no help lined up. The assessment is not simply first in, first served. Every referral carries a priority, and that priority can be changed when the situation changes. Your job is to make sure the assessment organisation knows it has changed.

How long an assessment normally takes

There is no guaranteed timeframe. When you apply, My Aged Care gives the referral a priority and sends it to the assessment organisation for your area, which works through its list in priority order. With the backlog the system is carrying, a standard referral can sit for months in some regions - areas with fewer assessors, and regional and rural areas in particular, are slower than the big cities. A referral marked urgent is handled far faster, often within days, and in hospital it can happen before discharge.

What the assessment service treats as urgent

The person is in hospital and cannot safely go home without services.
A recent fall, especially a fall with injury or more than one fall.
The person lives alone and is no longer safe - leaving the stove on, wandering, not eating, not managing medications.
Carer breakdown: the spouse or child holding everything together is ill, exhausted or cannot continue.
A palliative or terminal diagnosis, or a sudden decline such as rapid weight loss.

If any of these apply, say so in exactly those words. "She's getting worse" is easy to file; "she fell twice last week, lives alone and is skipping her tablets" is a risk the assessor has to act on.

The steps to escalate, in order

Ring My Aged Care with the reference number and ask for the referral priority to be reviewed. Describe what has changed since you applied. If you are not the person's representative yet, ask to be set up as one so they will talk to you.
Ask the GP to write to the assessment organisation stating the risk plainly - falls, weight loss, medication errors, cognitive decline, the carer's situation. A GP can also lodge or update the referral directly, and a referral from a doctor flagging risk carries real weight.
If the person is in hospital, ask the ward social worker or discharge planner for an inpatient assessment before discharge. Hospital assessments are routinely done at the bedside and are the fastest route there is. Do not agree to a discharge date until there is a plan for care at home, and say so to the treating team. Our guide to home care after a hospital stay covers this in detail.
Ring the local assessment organisation directly. My Aged Care can tell you which organisation holds the referral. Ask whether it has been received, what priority it carries and whether it can be reviewed in light of the new information.

What to say on the phone

Keep it short and concrete. Give the reference number, then: who the person is, what has happened in the last few weeks, why they are not safe as things stand, and what will happen if nothing changes. Mention the date of any fall or hospital admission, any weight loss, any missed or doubled medications, and whether the carer can keep going. Ask directly: "Can the priority on this referral be reviewed, and what do you need from us to do that?" Write down the date, who you spoke to and what they said, and follow up if nothing happens within the time they give you.

What can start while you wait

Pushing for an urgent assessment does not mean sitting with nothing in the meantime, and none of the following slows the assessment down:

Transition care after a hospital stay, arranged through the hospital before discharge.
Commonwealth Home Support Programme services on an interim basis - some providers can start basic help such as personal care, meals or domestic assistance quickly while the full assessment is pending.
Privately paid carers for the gap, which many families use for a few weeks rather than risk a bad fall.

See what can start while you wait for how each of these works.

After an urgent assessment is approved

An urgent assessment ends the same way as any other: a Notice of Decision with a classification and a priority category. A high priority moves the person up the National Priority System, but funding is still allocated in turn rather than on the day, so you will want a provider lined up who can begin as soon as the budget lands rather than starting the search then.

Need care to start quickly once the assessment comes through?

Tell us where the person lives, what has happened and what help they need now. We'll match you with a provider who can start fast and can also help with interim services while you wait. Free, no obligation.

Get matched with a provider Care after a hospital stay

How to prepare - a practical checklist

Keep a one-week diary before the visit. Note everything you struggled with or avoided: the shower you skipped, the meal that became toast, the washing that stayed in the basket, the night-time toilet trips that felt risky.
Describe your worst days. A useful phrase: "On a bad day, I can't…". Bad days are precisely what the funding is for.
Have a family member or carer there. They can gently fill gaps - "Actually, Dad hasn't driven since March" - and take notes while you talk.
Gather your paperwork. A medication list, a note from your GP summarising your conditions, any hospital discharge summaries, and specialist letters. Ask your GP for a summary letter before the visit - most are happy to help, and it grounds the assessment in evidence.
Don't tidy away the truth. If the house shows that you're struggling, let it. You're not hosting; you're being assessed.
Mention your carer's load. If a spouse or child is propping everything up, say what would happen if they couldn't. Carer strain affects priority.

Want to talk it through before the visit?

We can help you think about what to raise at your assessment, and what usually gets missed. Free, no obligation.

Get matched See the 8 classifications

After the visit: the Notice of Decision

Once the assessment is finalised, you receive a Notice of Decision. Read it carefully - it contains:

your classification (levels 1-8), which sets your quarterly budget;
your priority category for the National Priority System;
any short-term pathways you've been approved for, such as assistive technology and home modifications funding or restorative care; and
information about what to do if you disagree with the decision.

If the classification doesn't reflect what you actually need - or your needs change while you wait - you're not stuck with it. See our guide to reviews and reassessment.

Good to know

The assessment system is under real strain - the backlog reached about 98,600 earlier this year, and in August 2026 five peak bodies including COTA and OPAN publicly called for action on waits and on the assessment tool itself. None of that changes your part: prepare well, describe your needs fully, and put your evidence on the table.

Common questions

Does the assessment cost anything?

No. Assessment is free, and so is reassessment later if your needs change.

How long does the home visit take?

Allow a good part of the morning or afternoon - it's a thorough, structured conversation, not a quick form. Don't book anything close afterwards, and don't rush it: unhurried answers are fuller answers.

How long does an aged care assessment take in Australia from applying to the visit?

It depends on the priority given to the referral and on how stretched the assessment organisation in your area is. Standard referrals are taking months in many regions at the moment; urgent referrals are handled in days, and people in hospital are usually assessed before they go home. If the person's situation has worsened since you applied, the priority can be reviewed - see how to get an urgent assessment above. After the visit, the Notice of Decision usually follows within a few weeks, and funding is then allocated through the priority system rather than immediately.

Can my daughter answer questions for me?

The assessor will want to hear mainly from you, but family are welcome and their input matters - especially about things you might downplay. Some assessors will also ask the carer some questions privately, which is normal and useful.

What if I'm not happy with the outcome?

Your Notice of Decision explains your options, and our reassessment guide walks through them - from a priority review to a full reassessment to a formal review of the decision.

I was assessed under the old system. Does that still count?

Yes. Existing approvals carried over when Support at Home began on 1 November 2025, and former Home Care Package holders were transitioned automatically with their funding protected. Your approval doesn't expire while you wait.

Approved and waiting?

Interim help can often start within weeks - you don't have to wait for your full budget with nothing.

See what can start now Get help finding services

Sources

My Aged Care, myagedcare.gov.au - assessment and Single Assessment System pages, accessed 20 August 2026.
Department of Health, Disability and Ageing, health.gov.au - Single Assessment System and Integrated Assessment Tool information, accessed 20 August 2026.
Support at Home Program Manual - classifications, priority categories and Notices of Decision.
Joint statement by aged care peak bodies including COTA and OPAN, 18 August 2026 - on assessment and wait times.