Budget October 2022-23

The Australian Government is investing $537.5 million to DVA in the 2022-23 October Budget. In 2022-23, $11.5 billion will be allocated to the veteran support system.

The Budget includes a range of measures to support the Government’s response to the Interim Report from the Royal Commission into Defence and Veteran Suicide, including 500 new frontline staff to address the compensation claims backlog and deliver faster decisions for veterans and families.

Additionally, funding has been allocated to modernised DVA’s IT systems and to improve the administration of the claims processing system and veterans’ services. The Government is investing in creating a pathway for legislation improvement to address longstanding complexities in the veteran support system. Funding has also been allocated to establish the modelling capabilities to better forecast future demand for DVA services and bolster DVA’s capabilities for critical functions.

A number of measures have been announced to provide further support for the health and wellbeing of our veterans and families, including establishing 10 more Veterans’ and Families’ Hubs across the country to improve access to tailored and localised support services for the around half a million veterans and families.

The Government is investing in greater support for Australian Defence Force personnel as they transition to civilian employment with a new Veteran Employment Program that aims to raise awareness and champion veteran employment by ensuring veterans’ skills and experience are understood and valued by the civilian workforce and the wider Australian community.

The Budget provides an increase to the Totally and Permanently Incapacitated (TPI) Payment to support around 27,000 of our most vulnerable veterans.

Funding has been provided to support the development of an accommodation facility in Darwin for veterans who are experiencing homelessness or at risk of homelessness.

Commemoration and recognition of the service and sacrifice of our veterans is another key theme in the Budget, which included a measure to establish an ongoing grants program to mark the previously unmarked private graves of First World War veterans.

To learn more about the full Veterans’ Affairs Budget package, visit the Budget 2022-23 page on the DVA website.