Advice and support
Government funding / National schemes
The four national schemes that help Australians with the cost of continence products, what each one actually pays for, and how to apply.
Four national schemes matter for continence: the Continence Aids Payment Scheme pays eligible people a yearly amount to spend on any product, the NDIS funds products as part of a participant's plan, DVA supplies products free to eligible veterans, and aged care funding covers continence care as a service rather than disposable products.
Most people should check CAPS first. It is the broadest, the least restrictive about which products you buy, and in several states you need to have used it before the state scheme will help.
Read the full CAPS 2026-27 guide: eligibility, payment and how to apply
CAPS is a payment, not a product delivery. The money lands in your account and you spend it on whatever continence products you actually use, bought wherever you like. You can take it as one payment in July, or split it across July and January.
Services Australia now states that you can receive CAPS and Support at Home at the same time, provided you meet the CAPS criteria. Older guidance saying home care rules you out is out of date, though a specific exclusion still applies where continence aids were included in a home care plan before 1 November 2025.
A health professional completes the clinical section of the form first. That can be your GP, a continence nurse, a registered nurse, a physiotherapist, an occupational therapist, an Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander health worker or a medical specialist. You can then apply online through your Medicare account in myGov, or on the paper form. CAPS is not backdated, so apply as soon as you are eligible.
Official information: Services Australia and the Department of Health, Disability and Ageing. Phone 1800 239 309, Monday to Friday.
The NDIS does not set a dollar figure for continence. Products are funded as consumables within your core supports budget, based on an assessment of what you reasonably and necessarily need. That assessment is usually done by a continence nurse, who also prepares a continence plan.
Official information: ndis.gov.au, phone 1800 800 110. The NDIS is moving to a new planning framework, so check the current guideline when you apply.
Through the Rehabilitation Appliances Program, DVA supplies continence products at no cost to eligible veterans. This is a supply arrangement rather than a payment: products come from DVA's contracted national suppliers, ordered by your health professional.
DVA covers pads, pants, catheters, and bed and chair protection for urinary or faecal incontinence, including disposables. Your prescriber completes a continence products order form, which stays valid for two years before reassessment. Each order can cover up to three months of supply, and repeat orders can be placed by phone. Allow around two weeks for processing.
Official information: dva.gov.au, phone 1800 838 372 for veterans and families. Because DVA orders through its own contracted suppliers, ask your prescriber what is available on contract.
This is the area most often misunderstood, and the rules changed recently. The Support at Home program replaced Home Care Packages and the Short-Term Restorative Care Programme on 1 November 2025. Instead of four package levels there are now eight ongoing classifications, plus short-term pathways including one for assistive technology and home modifications.
Disposable adult absorbent products are not funded as an entitlement under the assistive technology list. If you rely on disposable pads, pull-ups or all-in-one products, aged care funding is generally not the route to pay for them. CAPS usually is, and Services Australia confirms the two can now be held together.
The Commonwealth Home Support Programme, reached through My Aged Care, similarly funds continence advisory services and continence management rather than a disposable product subsidy.
Official information: My Aged Care, phone 1800 200 422. From 1 October 2026 the Australian Government will fully fund personal care services, which includes non-clinical continence management, for approved participants.
| Scheme | What you receive | Disposable products | Phone |
|---|---|---|---|
| CAPS | $739.40 a year, paid to you | Yes, your choice | 1800 239 309 |
| NDIS | Assessed funding in your plan | Yes, where assessed | 1800 800 110 |
| DVA RAP | Products supplied free | Yes | 1800 838 372 |
| Support at Home | Care services and washable products | No | 1800 200 422 |
Whichever scheme you use, the product still has to fit and hold. Answer a few questions and we will send free samples to try at home. Consumers can order up to 4 free samples.
If you're a healthcare professional, you can access a wide range of exclusive resources and order up to 40 free samples. Register today and let us help you make a difference in delivering trusted and affordable continence care. You are usually the person completing the clinical section of these applications, so samples help you recommend with confidence.
Please register with your organisation's email address so we can verify you as a healthcare professional. Registrations made with a personal address are set up as customer accounts.
Last reviewed: 27 July 2026. CAPS is re-rated each July, and aged care funding is changing again from 1 October 2026. Every figure here links to the scheme that sets it, but the scheme's own website is the only current source. Please check there, or call the scheme, before you rely on an amount or a rule, and where anything here differs from the scheme's own information, the scheme is correct. This is general information, not financial or medical advice. These schemes are run by government, not by Ontex, and products are bought from distributors.
Next: state and territory schemes, which sit on top of these. Or explore the full continence range, the guide to incontinence pads, or find a distributor. For free, confidential advice, the National Continence Helpline is 1800 33 00 66.
