What you’ll pay on Classification 8

Last updated 21 August 2026

Figures current as at 21 August 2026: quarterly budgets indexed 1 July 2026; lifetime caps indexed 20 March 2026; median prices from the mid-2026 National Summary of Support at Home Prices.

The short version

Classification 8 is the top of the scale: $20,034.28 a quarter ($80,137.12 a year) - morning-and-evening care, every day.
Clinical care - nursing, allied health and care management - is free for everyone, and personal care becomes free for everyone from 1 October 2026.
Contributions apply only to independence services (5-50% of the price) and everyday living services (17.5-80%).
The budget itself is not means-tested - everyone on this classification gets the same amount. Only your share of each service’s price depends on your means.

The largest budget in the program - and what stays free

Classification 8 funds around $1,541 a week of services, typically built on two visits a day. The scale of the budget doesn’t scale your contribution rate: the same rules apply as on Classification 1. Clinical care - nursing, allied health, and care management (capped at 10%, about $2,003 a quarter here) - is free for everyone, and from 1 October 2026 personal care joins it. What’s left to contribute toward is your share of independence and everyday living services, at 5-50% and 17.5-80% of the price respectively.

Three worked examples

Stated assumptions: mid-2026 national medians (personal care ≈ $115/hr, cleaning ≈ $110, social support ≈ $111, community respite ≈ $130, physio ≈ $194, enrolled nurse ≈ $145); a 13-week quarter; weekday rates with no surcharges. Gwen’s percentages are an illustrative mid-range for a part pensioner - Services Australia’s means assessment sets the true rate. At heavy service volumes, small price differences compound, so treat these as illustrations only.

Arthur, full pensioner

Classification 8 · $20,034.28/qtr: Weekly: 10 hrs personal care (morning and evening, most days), 2 hrs cleaning
His contribution: ≈ $96/week
Why: 5% across ten personal care hours ($57.50) and 17.5% on the cleaning ($38.50). From 1 October 2026: ≈ $39/week.

Gwen, part pensioner

Classification 8 · $20,034.28/qtr: Weekly: 9 hrs personal care, 1 hr cleaning, respite for her husband; physio each fortnight
Her contribution: ≈ $346/week
Why: Illustrative mid-range rates: 25% on independence ($291.25) and 50% on the clean ($55); physio free. From 1 October 2026: ≈ $88/week.

David, self-funded

Classification 8 · $20,034.28/qtr: Weekly: 8 hrs personal care, 2 hrs cleaning, 1 hr social support; a nurse each fortnight
His contribution: ≈ $692/week
Why: Around 50% of the independence lines ($515.50) and around 80% of the cleaning ($176); nursing free. From 1 October 2026: ≈ $232/week.

1 October 2026 matters most at the top

Nowhere does the 1 October 2026 change land harder than Classification 8, where personal care fills most of the roster. Arthur’s week drops from about $96 to about $39. Gwen’s falls from about $346 to about $88, and David’s from about $692 to about $232 - the contributions on his eight personal care hours, around $460 a week, simply end. Until then, self-funded participants at this level accumulate toward the lifetime cap faster than anyone else in the program.

Already had a package or an approval on 12 September 2024?

The “no worse off” grandfathering arrangements protect people who, at 12 September 2024, had a Home Care Package, were on the National Priority System, or had been assessed or approved. If that’s you, you keep HCP-era fee arrangements for life - full pensioners who paid no income-tested care fee keep paying $0 - and a lower lifetime cap applies. Read how grandfathering works.

Whatever your rates, contributions don’t run forever. Once your non-clinical contributions reach $137,917.01 over your lifetime, you stop contributing altogether - and the cap is $86,185.23 for grandfathered participants. If contributions are genuinely unaffordable, financial hardship provisions exist through Services Australia; nobody should go without care because they can’t contribute.

Big budget, big decisions

At $80,000 a year, choosing the right provider is worth real care - prices, surcharges and roster reliability vary widely. Tell us your situation and we’ll help you compare properly.

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Common questions

Is anything above Classification 8 available if my needs keep growing?

Classification 8 is the highest ongoing level, but it isn’t the only funding. Assistive technology and home modifications have their own AT-HM scheme (tiers of $500, $2,000 and $15,000 over 12 months), and short-term pathways exist for restorative care and end-of-life support. Talk to My Aged Care on 1800 200 422 about what fits.

Realistically, when would David hit the lifetime cap?

At about $692 a week he’d contribute roughly $36,000 a year, reaching the $137,917.01 cap in under four years - sooner if he’d already paid home care fees under the old system, which count toward it. From October his pace slows to roughly $12,000 a year. Grandfathered participants stop at $86,185.23.

Does twice-daily care leave any budget spare?

Arthur’s mix uses about $1,370 of his roughly $1,541 weekly capacity before the care management fee, so at median prices it fits - narrowly. Dearer providers or seven-day surcharges can tip a roster over, which is why the quarterly plan in your service agreement, and each monthly statement, deserve a close read.

I’m grandfathered from an old Level 4 package - do these numbers apply to me?

Probably not in full. If you had a package or approval on 12 September 2024, your contribution rates are capped at HCP-era levels - around 0-25% for part pensioners and about 25% at most on non-clinical services for self-funded retirees - and the lower lifetime cap applies. See grandfathering.

Sources

Support at Home Program Manual - service categories, individual contributions and classification budgets.
Department of Health, Disability and Ageing, health.gov.au - Support at Home classifications and quarterly budgets (indexed 1 July 2026).
Department of Health, Disability and Ageing - National Summary of Support at Home Prices (median service prices), 2026.
Services Australia, servicesaustralia.gov.au - aged care means assessment; lifetime cap on non-clinical contributions (indexed 20 March 2026).