SUPPORT AT HOME PROVIDER REGISTRATION & SETUP
Become a registered Support at Home provider
HCPA helps you structure your Support at Home business, prepare your application and compliance systems, and get ready for registration and market entry.
Under the Aged Care Act 2024, organisations delivering Australian Government-funded aged care need to be registered with the Aged Care Quality and Safety Commission in the categories that reflect the services they intend to deliver. Support at Home also operates under a single-provider model, with each participant linked to one provider responsible for coordinating their services and care management.
Still deciding whether entering the Support at Home market is the right opportunity for you?
Recent aged care reforms are creating opportunities for capable providers to enter the Support at Home market as demand for home-based care continues to grow.
However, registration requires significant investment, strong governance, suitable responsible persons and systems that demonstrate the organisation is ready to deliver aged care safely. HCPA can help you assess the opportunity, service model, people and likely investment before you commit, then support you through registration and market entry.
Who is well suited to starting a Support at Home business?
There is no single professional background required to start a Support at Home provider. What matters is whether the people behind the organisation can demonstrate the healthcare experience, governance capability and financial oversight needed to operate in a regulated aged care market.
What do you need to start a Support at Home business?
Support at Home registration is shaped by the services you want to deliver, the registration categories you need and the capability of your organisation. These decisions affect your Quality Standards, responsible persons, workforce, audit pathway and the systems you need before entering the market.
Planning them together can help you start with a stronger operating model and build foundations that can support future growth or scale.
1. Define your registration scope
The Aged Care Quality and Safety Commission registration model uses six provider categories based on the services delivered. Support at Home providers responsible for a participant need Category 4 with care management, with additional categories required for services such as nursing or home modifications.
You then apply to the Aged Care Quality and Safety Commission with evidence covering areas such as:
- business and organisational structure
- responsible persons and qualifications
- financial capability
- policies, risk and quality systems
- evidence of how services will operate
Your scope should match the services, workforce and governance capability your organisation can realistically support when it enters the market.
2. Complete your assessment
The Commission may conduct an early review of key parts of a new-provider application before formal assessment fees are paid.
If significant changes are needed, you may be able to withdraw, strengthen the application and resubmit, or continue into formal assessment.
During assessment, the Commission considers the organisation’s suitability, responsible persons, governance, financial capability and ability to meet the relevant registration requirements.
Strong preparation before lodgement can reduce requests for further information and avoidable delays.
3. Complete your registration audit
A new provider applying for Category 4, 5 or 6 will ordinarily undergo a registration audit against the strengthened Aged Care Quality Standards.
Because Support at Home providers need Category 4 care management, audit readiness is a central part of entering the market.
The audit examines your governance, systems and processes and may include discussions with governing-body and senior-management representatives.
The Commission then considers the application and final audit report before making its registration decision.
HCPA can help prepare your systems and responsible persons for audit, address nonconformities and organise the evidence needed to progress.
4. Plan timeframes and costs
There is no single end-to-end timeframe for registration. The Commission currently aims to decide an application within 90 calendar days once all required information and fees are received, or, where an audit is required, from receipt of the final audit report.
As at August 2026, Commission fees can include entity assessment, category-specific assessments and registration audit costs. View current aged care registration fees.
Startup costs can also include professional support, responsible persons, technology, insurance, workforce preparation and working capital.
Based on HCPA’s experience, approximately $50,000–$100,000 may be a useful planning range for some new providers, depending on their registration scope, existing infrastructure and operating model.
Planning these costs early can help you enter the market with sufficient capital to support the business while participant revenue builds.
Why work with HCPA when starting a Support at Home business?
Strong Support at Home applications align the service model, registration categories, responsible persons, financial capability and compliance systems before the application is lodged.
HCPA helps you move beyond completing forms and build an application around how the organisation will actually operate, including the governance and Quality Standards evidence the Commission and its auditors expect to see.
It is never too early to speak with HCPA. Whether you are still assessing the opportunity, preparing to enter the market or ready to register, we can help you understand the commercial, operational and regulatory requirements and plan the right pathway forward.
Our aged care team can support the application, organisational evidence, policies and procedures, business planning and audit preparation, helping you start with stronger foundations for future growth and scale.
Backed by HCPA’s Compliance Guarantee
Eligible HCPA registration services are backed by the Compliance Guarantee. If approval is not achieved due to HCPA’s compliance work following three attempts, HCPA provides a full refund and you keep the work completed.
How HCPA helps you start a Support at Home business
Define your registration scope
HCPA reviews your service model, planned services, responsible persons and workforce to identify the registration categories and requirements that apply.
Build your application
Prepare for your audit
HCPA maps your systems to the Aged Care Quality Standards and prepares responsible persons for the audit process and likely questions.
Progress your registration
HCPA supports Commission feedback, audit findings and final requirements as you move towards registration and market entry.
Our experience helping businesses enter regulated markets
businesses supported
consultants
first-time approval rate
client revenue generated
HCPA’s aged care team brings practical experience across provider registration, compliance documentation, organisational structures and audit preparation.
For Support at Home applicants, we apply that experience to registration scope, responsible persons, governance and audit readiness, helping you enter the market with stronger foundations to grow and scale.
Frequently asked questions about starting a Support at Home business
How do I become an approved Support at Home provider in Australia?
To deliver Australian Government-funded Support at Home services, you need to become a registered provider with the Aged Care Quality and Safety Commission in the categories that match your services.
The process includes defining your registration scope, preparing organisational and responsible-person evidence, completing the application and undertaking the required audit.
What workforce, service model and systems are needed to launch a Support at Home business?
Your workforce and systems need to match the services you intend to deliver and the older people you plan to support.
Key considerations include responsible-person capability, appropriately qualified workers, care management, governance, risk, complaints, incidents, financial systems and the operational processes needed to coordinate home-based care.
Which registration categories does a Support at Home provider need?
The provider responsible for a participant must hold Category 4 with the service type care management.
Additional categories depend on the services being delivered. For example, domestic assistance and transport sit within Category 1, assistive technology and home modifications within Category 2, and nursing within Category 5.
Who are responsible persons in an aged care provider?
Responsible persons are people who hold specified governing, operational or nursing responsibilities within the provider.
The Commission considers their suitability and may require evidence of their duties, experience, qualifications and professional registration where relevant.View the Commission’s responsible-person requirements.
What causes Support at Home registration delays?
Common causes include weak pre-application preparation, incomplete evidence, unsuitable responsible-person arrangements, outdated compliance documentation, requests for further information and audit nonconformities.
Preparing the organisation, people and evidence before lodgement can reduce avoidable rework.
What happens during early engagement?
The Commission may conduct a high-level review of key parts of your application before formal assessment fees are paid.
If substantial changes are needed, you may be given the option to withdraw, strengthen the application and resubmit, or continue into formal assessment.Learn how the Commission’s early engagement process works.
How long does Support at Home provider registration take?
There is no single end-to-end timeframe because preparation, assessment, audit and requests for additional information can all affect the process.
The Commission’s current service commitment is to make a registration decision within 90 calendar days once it has the information and fees it needs, or, where an audit applies, from receipt of the final audit report.
Is starting a Support at Home business a worthwhile opportunity?
It can be. The Support at Home reforms are creating a growing market for home-based aged care, with additional participants expected to enter the program as the reforms continue.
The opportunity is strongest for businesses that can meet the registration requirements, put appropriate governance in place and deliver reliable services to older Australians.
The market entry requirements are significant, so commercial opportunity should be assessed alongside the capital, responsible persons and systems required to start the business successfully.
How much does it cost to start a Support at Home business?
There is no fixed startup cost. Commission assessment and audit fees form only part of the investment.
You may also need to budget for consulting and professional support, insurance, responsible persons, technology systems, workforce preparation and working capital.
Based on HCPA’s experience, approximately $50,000–$100,000 can be a useful planning range for some new providers, although actual costs depend on the registration scope, existing infrastructure and operating model.
What do new Support at Home providers commonly underestimate?
Responsible-person capability is one of the most commonly underestimated requirements. Providers need people who can demonstrate appropriate oversight across corporate, clinical and financial governance.
Technology and working capital are also important. Care-management or client-management software, accounting systems and sufficient funds to cover early operating costs can all affect how ready the business is to start and grow.
Do I need dedicated premises to start a Support at Home business?
Support at Home services are primarily delivered in participants’ homes, so the model does not generally depend on operating a dedicated care facility.
You still need appropriate organisational systems, technology and any administrative arrangements required to manage staff, clients and service delivery effectively.
Can an NDIS provider enter the Support at Home market?
Yes. Existing NDIS providers may bring relevant experience in care delivery, workforce management and regulated services.
However, Support at Home operates under aged care legislation and has different registration, governance and Quality Standards requirements. The business should assess those requirements separately rather than assuming existing NDIS systems are sufficient.
What mistakes should I avoid before starting a Support at Home business?
One of the biggest mistakes is progressing too far with the application before identifying suitable responsible persons and establishing clear corporate, clinical and financial governance.
Overly complicated business structures can also make the registration process harder to navigate, while underestimating startup capital and operational systems can create problems after approval.
Planning the people, structure, technology and financial requirements before you apply can create a stronger pathway into the market.
What happens after my Support at Home registration is approved?
Once registered, you move into ongoing obligations under the Aged Care Act, your registration categories and the strengthened Aged Care Quality Standards.
Your governance, workforce, quality and care-management systems then need to continue operating effectively as you start supporting participants and grow or scale.
What Our Clients Say
Amazing service and incredibly friendly, helpful staff. We engaged HCPA for our NDIS registration, and they guided us step by step through the entire process from start to finish. Thanks to their professionalism and support, we successfully completed our NDIS Registration Audit on the first attempt with zero non-conformities. I highly recommend HCPA to anyone looking to become an NDIS service provider. Thank you so much to the entire HCPA team for helping us achieve our goal!
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Patience with no forced selling
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With the two very helpful and friendly calls I have received since I enquired online for information, I am very happy with the thought of working in this field to provide technical and outdoor garden work for clients potentially moving forward.
