The 2026–27 Budget contains several measures of relevance to pro bono and legal assistance funding. The largest allocations include $793.7 million for Closing the Gap investments, $308.6 million to ending gender-based violence, $182.6 million to address systems abuse in the Child Support Scheme, and $167.4 million to strengthen the integrity of the migration system (including $74.2 million to increase the efficiency of merits and judicial review processes and establish a pre-filing duty lawyer pilot). Other relevant measures include continued funding for the National Strategy to Prevent and Respond to Child Sexual Abuse, and $7.7 million to extend the Economic Pathways to Refugee Integration program.
Closing the gap further investments
- The Government will provide $793.7 million over five years from 2025–26 (and $176.1 million ongoing) to achieve better outcomes for First Nations people under the National Agreement on Closing the Gap.
- Funding includes:
- $299.0 million over five years from 2025–26 (and $161.7 million per year ongoing) to create an additional 3,000 jobs under the Remote Jobs and Economic Development program, bringing the total number of jobs funded under the program to 6,000
- $144.1 million over two years from 2026–27 to continue to meet urgent infrastructure needs of the Aboriginal Community Controlled Health Services sector to deliver better health services to First Nations people
- $55.5 million over three years from 2026–27 for the Clontarf Foundation to extend its existing program for the 2027 and 2028 school years to support school engagement for at‑risk First Nations young men
- $53.0 million over five years from 2025–26 to complete the construction of dialysis units and associated workforce accommodation under the Better Renal Services for First Nations Peoples Budget measure and to provide operational funding to support delivery of renal dialysis services at these sites
- $44.4 million over four years from 2025–26 to extend funding for the ten existing Birthing on Country services which provide First Nations‑led maternal care
- $42.8 million over five years from 2025–26 (and $9.3 million per year ongoing) to establish permanent, statutory arrangements for the National Commission for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Children and Young People to support better outcomes for the safety and wellbeing of First Nations children and young people
- $32.7 million over three years from 2026–27 to expand the Store Efficiency and Resilience Package to support an additional 75 remote stores to improve storage and operational capacity
- $30.0 million over three years from 2026–27 to continue support for the Australian Indigenous Education Foundation to provide secondary school scholarships for high‑achieving First Nations students for the 2027 and 2028 school years
- $27.4 million over four years from 2025–26 to expand the Low‑Cost Essentials Subsidy Scheme enabling 225 remote stores across Australia to apply
- $23.8 million over two years from 2026–27 to extend the Indigenous Boarding Provider grants program for rural and remote First Nations students for the 2027 school year
- $18.9 million over four years from 2026–27 (and $5.1 million per year ongoing) to help 13YARN manage growing call volumes, continue vital community and digital engagement and train and upskill crisis supporters to deliver text‑based support to First Nations people
- $6.3 million over three years from 2026–27 for a national First Nations housing peak body to represent the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander housing sector and support better housing outcomes for First Nations people and communities
- $4.5 million in 2026–27 to support the Coalition of Peaks secretariat function and its ongoing work relating to the implementation of the National Agreement on Closing the Gap.
- The Government will support the commissioning of two First Nations youth mental health services in remote locations directly through the National Aboriginal Community Controlled Health Organisation.
Electoral participation
Indigenous Electoral Participation Program
- The Government will provide $36.6 million over four years from 2026–27 (and $7.9 million per year ongoing) to the Australian Electoral Commission to extend the Indigenous Electoral Participation program.
Ending gender-based violence
- The Government will provide $308.6 million over five years from 2025–26 (and $15.9 million per year ongoing) to further support women and children leaving violent relationships and strengthen the frontline family, domestic and sexual violence workforce.
- Funding includes:
- $218.3 million over five years from 2025–26 to support initial actions under the Our Ways – Strong Ways – Our Voices: National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Plan to End Family, Domestic and Sexual Violence 2026–2036 to end violence against Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander women and children
- $61.2 million over four years from 2026–27 (and $15.9 million per year ongoing) to support the next phase of the 500 new frontline and community sector workers initiative
- $11.7 million over six months in 2026–27 to continue the Family Violence and Cross Examination of Parties Scheme to protect victims of family violence in family law proceedings
- $5.4 million in 2026–27 for the eSafety Commissioner to continue the Technology‑Facilitated Abuse Support Service to assist frontline workers and victim‑survivors to navigate and respond to tech‑facilitated abuse.
Social services
Addressing Systems Abuse in the Child Support Scheme
- The Government will provide $182.6 million over four years from 2026–27 (and $19.6 million per year ongoing) to close loopholes enabling weaponisation, financial abuse, and non‑compliance in the child support scheme to make it safer and more effective for children and parents.
- Funding includes:
- $78.6 million over four years from 2026–27 (and $13.9 million per year ongoing) to provide stronger protections for parents in Private Collect arrangements, improve pathways from Private Collect into Agency Collect, remove requirements for open exchange of information, and give Services Australia greater ability to stop abuse and weaponisation
- $39.6 million over four years from 2026–27 (and a $2.1 million per year save ongoing) to ensure more child support is paid in full and on time by expanding the use of employer withholding and enabling faster disbursements of payments to child support recipients through legislative and system changes
- $23.3 million over four years from 2026–27 (and $4.6 million per year ongoing) to improve the awareness and understanding of options available to separated parents entering the child support scheme and its interactions with Family Tax Benefit
- $22.0 million over four years from 2026–27 (and $0.6 million per year ongoing) to improve the accuracy of child support assessments by strengthening tax lodgement enforcement, extending Single Touch Payroll data sharing arrangements, and improving Australia's international child support arrangements
- $18.4 million over four years from 2026–27 (and $2.6 million per year ongoing) to increase the use of Departure Prohibition Orders to recover child support debts from payer parents with large arrears.
Immigration
Strengthening the Integrity of the Migration System
- The Government will provide $167.4 million over four years from 2026–27 to strengthen the integrity of Australia's migration system.
- Funding includes:
- $74.2 million over four years from 2026–27 to the Federal Court of Australia and the Federal Circuit and Family Court of Australia (FCFCOA) to address misuse of the protection visa system by increasing the efficiency of the merits and judicial review processes, and to establish a pre‑filing pilot for a duty lawyer legal assistance service in the Sydney and Melbourne FCFCOA registries
- $46.4 million over four years from 2026–27 to strengthen systems capability across the migration system
- $27.0 million over two years from 2026–27 to continue information and education activities to improve migrant workers' awareness of workplace safeguards, protections and compliance measures related to migration law
- $19.8 million over four years from 2026–27 to the Department of Home Affairs for enhanced scrutiny of onshore and offshore student visa applications, ensuring the integrity of the international student visa system.
Child sexual abuse prevention
National Strategy to Prevent and Respond to Child Sexual Abuse – continuation
- The Government will provide $12.1 million in 2026–27 to the Attorney‑General's Department, National Indigenous Australians Agency, Australian Federal Police, Australian Communications and Media Authority, Australian Institute of Criminology, and the Treasury to continue initiatives to prevent, disrupt and combat child sexual abuse, and maintain support services for victims and survivors of child sexual abuse.
Economic pathways to refugee integration
Home Affairs – additional resourcing (relevant sub-measure)
- $7.7 million in 2026–27 to extend the Economic Pathways to Refugee Integration program to boost refugee employment.
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