Grants to support older people in rural and remote areas, and those from diverse backgrounds and life experiences, to access affordable, high-quality in-home aged care.
On this page you will find
What is the Support at Home Thin Markets Grant (SAHTM)?
The Support at Home Thin Markets (rural, remote and specialised) 2025–26 (Round 2) grant opportunity provides flexible funding to help eligible Support at Home providers continue delivering high-quality services in “thin markets” — where there is a gap between the aged care needs of older people and the services available.
This includes providers operating in rural and remote locations (MM3–MM7) and/or delivering specialised services to older people with diverse backgrounds and life experiences.
Support at Home Thin Markets Grant level of support
Total available funding: Up to $100 million for 2025–26.
This grant does not provide a single fixed “minimum and maximum grant per applicant” figure. Instead, each provider’s maximum eligible funding is calculated using a formula based on your current participants.
- Minimum amount: Not stated in the guidelines (funding is calculated based on participant numbers and loadings).
- Maximum amount: Up to one year of funding calculated as:
(eligible participants at time of application) × 365 days × applicable loading(s), rounded to the nearest whole dollar.
Daily loadings (2025–26):
- Specialised service: $1.87 per participant per day
- MM3: $1.42
- MM4: $1.42
- MM5: $3.16
- MM6: $20.83
- MM7: $25.04
Co-contribution / matched funding: Not required / not stated as required in the Grant Opportunity Guidelines. The grant is designed as flexible funding support for business expenses in thin markets, with funding determined by the loading formula and eligibility.
Support at Home Thin Markets Grant important dates
- Closing date: 2:00pm (AEDT) on 14 January 2026
- Register your interest with GrantHelper
Support at Home Thin Markets Grant objectives and outcomes
The intended objective is to provide flexible funding to meet appropriate business expenses, enabling providers in thin markets (who often face higher costs) to set reasonable prices for Support at Home services.
The intended outcomes are to:
- Support older people in thin markets to access Support at Home services at a reasonable price within their quarterly budget
- Support access to high quality Support at Home services consistent with the Statement of Rights and Statement of Principles in the Aged Care Act 2024, regardless of location, background or life experiences
- Improve provider financial viability in delivering high-quality services in thin markets to support service availability
Projects and expenditure eligible for Support at Home Thin Markets Grant support
Grant funds must be spent on goods/services directly related to delivering Support at Home aged care services.
Eligible expenditure may include (not limited to):
- Labour costs: wages and on-costs; training/professional development/supervision; recruitment and retention initiatives tied to service delivery
- Domestic travel/transport: fuel, maintenance/servicing; leasing/hire/reasonable replacement of vehicles used for clients/workforce
- Consumables & supplies / operating costs: stationery/printing/postage; PPE/cleaning; admin and operating costs; rent/rates/utilities; insurance linked to service delivery; business systems, audit and compliance; reasonable local marketing for service availability (not general brand promotion)
- Minor capital costs (no planning approval, no separate capital works agreement): accessibility upgrades; internal refurbishments; energy efficiency improvements; furniture/fittings/equipment for service delivery; ICT hardware/software; vehicles and mobility aids for service delivery
You must incur eligible expenditure between the start and end/completion date of the grant agreement.
You cannot use the grant for:
- Activities not associated with delivering Support at Home services under the Aged Care Act 2024
- Activities relating to other aged care programs (e.g. residential aged care, CHSP)
- Services you are not registered for / people who aren’t eligible/approved
- Purchase of land
- Major capital works (planning approval, new buildings, significant structural changes, works triggering regulatory/plumbing/zoning requirements)
- Overseas travel/activities outside Australia
- Costs already funded (or better funded) by other government sources
- Paying ransom for cybercrime
- Costs incurred preparing the grant application
- General exclusions including retrospective costs; entertainment/alcohol/gifts/hospitality; fines/penalties/legal costs; excessive/luxury purchases; governance costs unrelated to service delivery
Other Support at Home Thin Markets Grant important details that you will need to know
Organisations eligible for Support at Home Thin Markets Grant support
This program is for Support at Home providers delivering Support at Home services. Providers must satisfy eligibility under the guidelines (including meeting base eligibility and at least one of the thin market criteria).
Providers applying under specialised service delivery may rely on:
- Having ≥25% of total Support at Home participants who are Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander; and/or
- Having approved Specialisation Verification (or a submitted and pending SV application).
Support at Home Thin Markets Grant assessment criteria
This is a demand-driven opportunity, so assessment focuses on whether your application is eligible and compliant, supported by the information and attachments you provide. The department:
- Reviews your application against eligibility criteria first
- May seek additional information (including from within the Commonwealth)
- May contact you to correct or explain unintentional errors
- Approves eligible applications until funding is exhausted, in the order they are approved
Specialisation Verification (SV) assessment dependency (important):
- If your SV status isn’t finalised at any outlet, assessment of your Thin Markets grant application may not be finalised until SV outcomes are known.
- Funding will only be approved for outlets where SV status is verified and approved.
- If verification for an outlet is not approved by 20 February 2026, you may not be eligible for funding for that outlet.
- SV assessments typically take up to 20 business days once all required evidence is submitted, and providers are encouraged to submit complete documentation early and respond promptly to RFIs.
Weightings/percentages: No assessment weightings or scoring percentages are provided in the guideline extract for this demand-driven process.
How do I get the Support at Home Thin Markets Grant?
Applicants must:
- Read and understand the guidelines.
- Ensure eligibility for the funding. Applicants that do not meet all the eligibility criteria will not be considered.
- Deliver the project/s as outlined in the application.
- Provide complete information requirements.
To give your application the best chance of being approved quickly (before funding is exhausted), you should be able to demonstrate that:
- You are a current Support at Home provider delivering Support at Home services at the time of application
- You meet at least one thin market eligibility pathway:
-
- You deliver services to participants in MM3–MM7, and/or
- You deliver specialised services supported by either participant composition (≥25% Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander participants) and/or Specialisation Verification (approved or submitted/pending)
- Your participant numbers are accurate and match what you enter in the application form and the estimation tool (e.g., specialised service participants must match the tool)
- You have completed the Thin Markets Grant Funding Estimation Tool correctly and can substantiate your calculation approach (the tool is mandatory)
- Your proposed expenditure is directly linked to service delivery and aligns to eligible costs (and avoids all ineligible cost categories)
- If relying on Specialisation Verification, you can show SV status and that you have planned for timely SV processing (including responding promptly to RFIs)
Application rules to note:
- Only one application per registered provider (if you have multiple registered providers, submit one per registered provider).
- If more than one is submitted, the latest submitted before close progresses.
- If you need to withdraw due to an error, you must withdraw in writing.
Information to prepare for the Support at Home Thin Markets Grant application
You should have ready:
- A completed Thin Markets Grant Funding Estimation Tool (mandatory upload)
- Bank verification documentation (recent bank statement within last 6 months; BSB/account/name visible; balances can be hidden)
- If relevant: evidence relating to Specialisation Verification (approved or submitted/pending), and documentation required for SV to avoid delays
Applying for the Support at Home Thin Markets Grant
Applications are submitted online via the GrantConnect.
Register your interest with GrantHelper to explore your alignment with this grant and how we can assist you to increase your chances of success.
Support at Home Thin Markets Grant resources
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