The Essential Household Contents Grant (EHCG) helps people who are uninsured, or unable to claim insurance, and who meet an income test, by providing a contribution towards repairing or replacing essential household contents that have been damaged or lost in a disaster.

This Grant has been activated for:

• Tropical Cyclone Alfred March 2025
• North and Far North Tropical Low from January 2025
• Tropical Cyclone Kirrily January 2024
• Tropical Cyclone Jasper December 2023
• Toowoomba fires November 2023
• North Queensland fires October 2023
• Bundaberg and Gladstone bushfires October 2023
• Western Darling Downs bushfires October 2023
• Northern and Central Queensland monsoon and flooding March 2023
• Western Downs bushfire February 2023

Grants of up to $1,765 for single adults and up to $5,300 for couples or families to help with replacing or repairing essential household contents, such as beds, linen and whitegoods, that have been lost or damaged in a disaster.

Income test (how much you earn)

Your gross (before tax) weekly income must be less than or equal to:

• individual: $1,179 ($61,322 per year)
• couple: $1,630 ($84,782 per year)
• sole parent, one child: $1,632 ($84,841 per year)
• couple, one child: $2,021 ($105,125 per year).

For each additional child, add $391 per week.

For each dependent adult, add $451 per week.

The income test is applied to all adults over the age of 18 on the application.

Adult dependents over the age of 18 are encouraged to submit their own application.

How it's paid

You will receive payment by either:

• electronic funds transfer (EFT) to the bank account you listed in your application. The timing depends on when your bank processes the payment.
• cheque sent to the address listed in your application.

Note: Some of the grants require additional information, before they can be processed. If they need more information to process your application, they will call you. This call will come from a private number.

Eligibility:

You can be a tenant or an owner-occupier in the home that was affected. People who aren’t Australian citizens can also apply for this grant.

You must meet all of these requirements:

You must meet all these requirements:

• your principal place of residence (home) is in an eligible area for a disaster event
• you were living in your principal place of residence (which includes a caravan or boat) when the disaster happened.
• your essential household items were lost or damaged as a result of the disaster.
• you must own the essential household items which you are claiming for.
• you must not hold an insurance policy that covers you for expenses or losses sustained during the disaster
• if you hold an insurance policy:
  • you do not have coverage for a particular event (e.g. storm/flood) and/or
  • you must have evidence that the insurance claim has been declined.
• you must qualify under the income test

• Phone: 1800 173 349