Support Payments
These payments help people dealing with health problems and hardship as a result of the bushfires.
The Initial Emergency Payments provide some other options for support.
| Payment | Purpose | Amount |
|---|---|---|
| Exceptional Hardship | To assist individuals and small businesses facing immediate hardship, distress or misfortune as a result of their contribution to the bushfire effort. | Up to $8000 |
| Severe Injury | To assist people who have been hospitalised and require surgery or further hospital treatment. | $7500 lump sum |
| Severe Injury Transition to Home | To assist severely injured victims of the 2009 bushfires with their transition from hospital to home. | $50,000 lump sum plus up to $50,000 for those eligible |
| Winter Needs | To assist families and individuals to buy the essentials they need this winter. | $2000 per household |
| Psychological Support Packages |
To provide support for children and young adults, counselling services for people who need more support and forums in which people can share their experiences. |
Vouchers for up to six sessions are issued |
| Psychological Support Package 2 | To provide support for older people, families, men and women, who may be experiencing stress, trauma and isolation, to cope and reconnect with their communities. | $4.2 million for community based programs |
| Transitional Support | To support those who lost their primary residence in the bushfires in their transition to permanent accommodation. | Up to $15,000, depending on eligibility |
| Compassionate Financial Support | To provide some financial assistance to individuals who lost an immediate family member in the 2009 bushfires and are suffering financial hardship due to that loss. |
May be eligible to receive an immediate payment of $25,000. Some further support may be available to those eligible for the first payment, and in extreme financial hardship, of up to $50,000 with a needs based assessment. |