HELPING CHILDREN WITH AUTISM (HCWA) EARLY INTERVENTION (EI) FUNDINGINFORMATION SHEET FOR FAMILIES

Once deemed eligible by the Autism Advisor, what can my child access?

  • Up to $12,000 in total early intervention funding (dependant on your child’s birthday);
  • Up to $6,000 maximum per financial year;
  • A panel of FaHCSIA approved early intervention service providers through which to access the funding.

What can the funding be used for?

  • Eligible early intervention therapies listed on FaHCSIA’s website under the service providers in your state;
  • Eligible resources that your FaHCSIA panel provider has determined:
  • Are integral to your child’s therapy;
  • Support your child’s Individual Service Plan;
  • Do not exceed a maximum of $2,100 per financial year and $4,200 in total.

What you cannot use the funding for:

  • To subsidise the gap in Medicare funded services or any services that are fully funded by government;
  • FaHCSIA will not pay for cancelled or missed appointments. This will be the responsibility of the family.

My fees are higher when paying with HCWA EI funding than if I pay privately, is this normal?

  • Fees for panel provider services are determined by the organisation delivering services. The fees are influenced by market rates and not set by government. To be eligible for inclusion on the panel, an organisation must demonstrate value for money and a fee schedule associated with providing services. This aims to support families to make choices about the services they can access and to plan how they will spend their funding package. The early intervention panel provider fees are listed on the FaHCSIA website at:
  • If you have concerns about fees charged by any individual provider, you can contact the ASD Support Helpdesk on freecall 1800 778 581 or email and provide details of the particular organisation to which you are referring.

Early Intervention funding under the Helping Children with Autism (HCWA) package is aimed at providing increased access to early intervention for children who have been diagnosedwith an Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD). The funding supports the delivery of multidisciplinary evidence based early intervention to facilitate improved cognitive, emotional and social development until the child’s 7th birthday.

Autism Advisors provide families and carers with information aboutearly intervention programs and support available through the HCWA program.Autism Advisors are located in the Autism Association in each state or territory and contact details can be foundon the Department of Families, Housing, Community Services and Indigenous Affairs (FaHCSIA) website at

Children must have a Letter of Introduction from an Autism Advisor to be eligible to receive funding for Early Intervention funding under the HCWA package.

If your family lives in an outer regional or remote or very remote area as defined by the Australian Bureau of Statistics’ Accessibility/Remoteness Index of Australia as ARIA+, you may be eligible for a $2,000 Outer Regional, Remote and Access Support Payment. The Autism Advisors in each state and territory will be able to advise you if you are eligible for this payment.

What can Early Intervention funding be used for?

  • FaHCSIA has established a panel of early intervention service providers. Families can choose the service that best suits their child. Your Autism Advisor can provide you with further information about available service providers. A list of Panel providers in your state or territory can be found at:
  • The funding will support the provision of structured and intensive early intervention services, such as one-on-one intensive activities and tailored group and individual programs that can be delivered in a range of settings.
  • Families can choose to use the funding to pay for whole sessions or can choose to use the funding for a portion of a service and use their own money to pay for the rest of the service. This option provides flexibility to accessed subsidised intervention therapy over multiple years.
  • A Questions and Answers document has been developed to assist parents with further information regarding purchasing resources with Early Intervention funding. It is available on the FaHCSIA website at:

FaHCSIA’s role in the funding package

  • FaHCSIA will reimburse panel members in arrears on behalf of families for services delivered.
  • FaHCSIA will email a monthly activity statement to families if they have processed claims in the preceding month. This will have information on where they have spent their funds and how much of the funding has not yet been claimed.
  • Families who do not have an email address will receive their statement via postal mail.Families who have not had claims processed during the month will not receive a new statement.

What if I am unhappy with my service provider?

  • Your first step should be to try toresolve these issues directly with the service provider to reach an amicable solution.
  • If this is unsuccessful, you may contact FaHCSIA with your issue by telephoning the Helping Children with Autism Enquiry Line on 1800 778 581 or by emailing .

Other components of the HCWA Strategy

There are other components of the HCWA Strategy that may benefit your family:

  • Early Days Workshops – information for parents carers of pre-school and school aged children with ASD. More information on Early Days can be accessed at: or phone 1800 289 177
  • PlayConnect Playgroups – 150 playgroups specifically for families and children with ASD or ASD like symptoms. More information on the PlayConnect Playgroups can be accessed at
  • ASD website – specific information on effective therapies and location information available through
  • Medicare items – for diagnosis and early intervention treatment for children aged under 13 years
  • Positive Partnerships – professional development for teachers and school staff who work with students with ASD. More information can be accessed
  • Six Autism Specific Early Learning and Care Centres have been established, across Australia. They provide early learning programs and specific support for children with ASDs in a long day care setting. Further information is available at

The Helping Children with Autism (HCWA) package is in addition to existing services available to people with disability, their families and carers. These services include:

  • The Respite Support for Carers of Young People with Severe or Profound Disability Program. The program assists carers of young people and is delivered through a national network of 55 Commonwealth Carer Respite and Carelink Centres;
  • Programs for people with ASD or disability in general offered by state and territory governments and education authorities;
  • Financial assistance for carers of people with disability or severe medical conditions in the form of Carer Payment and Carer Allowance (for more information about these payments visit Centrelink’s website at or call them on 13 27 17); and
  • Non financial assistance for parents and carers through Commonwealth Carer Respite and Carelink Centres (1800 052 222).

Where can I get further information on the package?

More information about the Helping Children with Autism packageis available from the FaHCSIA website at the Department of Health and Ageing website at and the Department of Education, Employment and Workplace Relations website at