While You Wait

There are three waits in the aged care system. Most families experience all of them. Nobody tells you what to do during any of them — so the silence fills with anxiety instead of progress. This page fixes that.

1 After calling
My Aged Care 2 After the
assessment visit 3 After approval
& allocation

Wait 1

After calling My Aged Care — before the assessment visit

Typically 2–6 weeks — shorter if you flagged urgency

You’ve registered. An assessor will contact you to arrange a home visit. This gap often feels like nothing is happening. Something is — you just can’t see it. And there’s a lot you can usefully do before the assessor arrives.

✅ Do this now — it changes the outcome

Get a GP letter

Ask the GP to write a brief letter summarising current conditions, medications, and what’s getting harder day-to-day. The assessor will have this when they arrive — and it directly influences the classification level.

Write down a typical hard day

Not the best day. The day when things are difficult. What actually can’t be done, what gets skipped, what causes anxiety. People often understate difficulties to an assessor. Written notes you can refer to prevent that.

List all current medications

Or photograph the pill bottles. The assessor will ask. Having this ready makes the visit smoother and ensures nothing is missed.

Decide who should be there

You can have a family member or support person present. If the person being assessed tends to minimise their difficulties with strangers (very common), a family member who knows the real picture adds important context.

Start researching providers early

You don’t need a result yet — but knowing what providers operate in your area, what their care management fees look like, and whether existing patients seem satisfied takes time. Start now. The Find a Provider tool is the right starting place.

Read about costs so you’re not blindsided

Even a rough understanding of what home care costs means the financial conversation feels less shocking when it comes. Our Costs & Fees guide takes about 10 minutes.

Normal to wonder: “Did the call actually go through? Is anyone doing anything?” You can call My Aged Care on 1800 200 422 to confirm your referral is active. You don’t need a reason — it’s your record and your right to ask.

Wait 2

After the assessment visit — waiting for the result

Typically 1–4 weeks for the formal letter to arrive

The assessor has visited. Now there’s another silence — the result comes by letter, and there’s no tracker, no status bar, no notification. This is one of the most anxious waits because now you have something to lose: a result you’re hoping for.

✅ What to do while the result is being processed

Start shortlisting providers in earnest

Call two or three providers and ask about their care management fees, how they handle unspent funds, and their process for changing care plans. This takes time and you’ll be glad you started before the letter arrives.

Understand the 8 Support at Home levels

Knowing roughly which level fits the situation means you’re not starting from scratch when the letter arrives. Our Support at Home guide explains what each level provides and what funding to expect.

Think about what services would actually help most

The assessment result gives you a budget. The budget needs a plan. What’s wearing the person down most? Personal care, domestic help, transport, social connection? Knowing the priorities before the funding arrives means it gets spent intentionally, not by default.

Prepare for the possibility the result isn’t what you expected

If the level seems lower than the situation warrants, you have the right to request a review. The grounds are straightforward: the assessor’s picture of a typical day was inaccurate. Keep the notes from Wait 1 — they become your evidence.

A note on timelines: Four weeks is typical; longer isn’t unusual. If it’s been more than six weeks with no contact, a follow-up call to My Aged Care (1800 200 422) is entirely reasonable. Reference your registration date.

Wait 3

After approval — waiting for a funded place to be allocated

Varies significantly by level and region — weeks to months

You have an approval. What you don’t yet have is a place — funding must be formally allocated before services begin under Support at Home. This is the wait most people don’t realise exists when they first call My Aged Care.

While it’s real and can be frustrating, it’s not a dead end. This is actually the most productive waiting period of the three.

✅ Move everything forward that doesn’t need the funding to start

Confirm your chosen provider before the allocation comes through

You can sign a service agreement and get on a provider’s onboarding list before funding is active. When the allocation lands, your start time drops from weeks to days.

Ask your provider about CHSP services in the interim

The Commonwealth Home Support Programme provides entry-level help (transport, meals, domestic assistance) that can often start faster than Support at Home. It’s not a substitute, but it’s real help during the gap.

Complete the income and assets assessment with Services Australia

This determines your contribution level. It can be done online before funding starts. If it’s not done when the allocation arrives, you’ll pay the maximum fee until it’s processed. Do it now, not later.

Draft your first care plan

When your provider asks “what would you like to use your funding for?” — have an answer. Think through weekly hours for each support type you want. Your provider will refine this with you, but walking in with a draft saves time and gives you more control over how the budget is shaped.

Set up the home for support workers to arrive

Practically: a key safe or keyholder arrangement, a note about the person’s preferences and routines, and a clear entry point. First visits go better when this groundwork is done.

💡

This waiting period is the one people use worst — and it’s the one where doing the work now saves real time later. Families who arrive at their allocation with a provider chosen, an income assessment submitted, and a draft care plan ready start receiving services weeks earlier than those who start all of this after the allocation arrives.