If you’re a veteran who needs a hand around the house, DVA funds two programs that look almost identical on paper: DVA Household Services and Veterans’ Home Care. Both can cover cleaning, lawn mowing and gardening. Both are paid for by the Department of Veterans’ Affairs. But they run on different rules, use different assessments, and suit different situations. Apply for the wrong one and you could wait longer or receive less support than you’re entitled to.
The rules also shifted on 1 July 2026, which changed who can claim DVA household services in the first place. This guide sets out how each program works, what changed, and how to work out which one applies to you.
HomeFront Australia delivers both. We’re a veteran-run provider, so these are the questions we hear every week from veterans, war widows, and the family members helping them.
The simplest way to think about it: Household Services is compensation for a service-related condition, and Veterans’ Home Care is a small amount of practical help based on your day-to-day needs.
The rest of this article explains each row in plain terms.
DVA Household Services (often shortened to HHS) is a compensation program. DVA covers the cost of domestic tasks you used to do yourself but can’t anymore because of an accepted, service-related injury or condition.
You may be eligible if:
Support can be short-term, for example while you recover from surgery, or ongoing if you have complex health issues. Common services include cleaning, laundry, ironing, shopping, lawn mowing, gardening and meal preparation. Household Services doesn’t include nursing care, and as a general rule DVA can’t pay family members to provide the services.
Applying follows three steps:
With help from your GP, complete the D9319 Claim for Household Services and send it to DVA by email at [email protected] or by post to GPO Box 9998, Brisbane QLD 4001.
Once your claim is processed, DVA arranges an occupational therapist to visit and assess how you manage daily activities.
DVA sends a letter setting out the services you’re approved for, how often, and for how long.
Once you have your Determination Letter, you choose your provider.
Veterans’ Home Care works differently. It isn’t compensation. It’s a program that provides a small amount of practical help so you can keep living at home for longer, and access is based on your assessed needs rather than on an accepted condition.
You can request a VHC assessment if you:
VHC can include domestic assistance, personal care, respite care, and safety-related home and garden maintenance. The home and garden side is aimed at keeping your home safe and free of hazards, rather than routine upkeep.
You start by calling the VHC Assessment Agency on 1300 550 450. An assessor talks through your needs over the phone, then issues a Care Plan and allocates your services to a contracted VHC Service Provider. Some services carry a small co-payment, and your Care Plan sets these out before anything starts.
For the full breakdown of services and steps, see our guide to what Veterans’ Home Care covers and how to access it.
This is the part many veterans haven’t caught up with yet, and it’s the reason a lot of older advice online is now out of date.
From 1 July 2026, the Veterans’ Entitlements Act 1986 (VEA) and the DRCA closed to new rehabilitation and compensation claims. DVA now considers new claims under an improved Military Rehabilitation and Compensation Act 2004 (MRCA). For household help, that means:
What this means in practice: Household Services is now open to a large group of older veterans who previously only had VHC as an option. If you’re a VEA veteran with an accepted condition that makes housework difficult, it’s worth checking whether Household Services now gives you more support.
There’s no single right answer, because it depends on your card, your accepted conditions, and why you need the help. These common situations are a good starting point.
You can also receive DVA services alongside other aged care support, such as the Commonwealth Home Support Programme (CHSP), as long as the services don’t overlap. If your DVA cleaning fully meets your assessed need, you can’t get extra cleaning elsewhere. If it only partly meets your need, a My Aged Care assessment can look at whether more help is available.
HomeFront delivers DVA Household Services Australia-wide and is a contracted Veterans’ Home Care provider in most locations across the country. Because we’re run by veterans, we know how confusing it gets when two programs cover the same jobs.
For DVA household services, we deliver domestic cleaning, laundry and ironing, lawn mowing and gardening, window and gutter cleaning, solar panel cleaning and meal preparation. That comes with:
If you already have your Determination Letter, you can enter your DVA client number, TRN and client reference number on our service request form so we can book your services sooner.
For Veterans’ Home Care, the first call always goes to the VHC Assessment Agency on 1300 550 450. If HomeFront is allocated as your provider, we’ll contact you to arrange times that suit you. Under VHC, HomeFront delivers domestic assistance and home and garden maintenance.
If you have an accepted service-related condition that makes housework hard, DVA household services is usually the first program to look at, and since July 2026 that includes VEA veterans. If your need comes from getting older or finding daily tasks harder, and you hold a Gold or eligible White Card, Veterans’ Home Care is the likely starting point.
If you’re still unsure, call DVA on 1800 VETERAN (1800 838 372) and ask which program suits you. For VHC, call the Assessment Agency on 1300 550 450. For Household Services, lodge the D9319 claim form with DVA.
Once you’re approved, HomeFront can take it from there. Contact HomeFront on 1300 20 60 40, or SMS us on 0485 865 898, and we’ll talk you through what your approval covers and get your services booked. Run by veterans, for veterans, with one point of contact for every service.