Do I need a new Mental Health Care Plan?

What to know before you see your GP

Mental Health Care Plans can be confusing. You might wonder if you need a new one every year. Or whether your referral has expired. Or why you have to go back to your GP partway through.

At this time of year, it is common for people to check in about how Medicare sessions work and what needs updating. This post clears up the most common misunderstandings, using simple examples to show what is actually required.

If you are planning to access therapy in the new year, it is worth knowing how it all fits together. Especially if you want to avoid delays with bookings or rebates.

You do not need a new plan every year

Your Mental Health Care Plan is usually valid for 12 months or longer. You only need a new plan if your circumstances have changed significantly or it has been more than a year since your last one.

What you need more often is a referral. This is a document your GP provides that links to your plan and gives you access to Medicare-subsidised sessions.

How the referral system works

When your GP writes the initial referral, it covers six sessions. After those six are used, you need to return for a review. If things are tracking okay, they can provide a re-referral for four more sessions.

This gives you a total of ten Medicare-subsidised sessions in a calendar year.

You can continue therapy after the ten are used, but you will not receive the rebate for additional sessions.

Medicare resets in January

At the start of every calendar year, your Medicare session count resets. That means you can access ten new rebated sessions, even if your plan was written the year before.

You can continue using any leftover sessions from a referral in the new year. You do not need to get a new referral just because the calendar changed. Only return to your GP when you have used the first six sessions on your most recent referral.

A common example

You get a new Mental Health Care Plan and referral in November 2025. You use four sessions before the year ends.

In January 2026, your Medicare balance resets. You still have two sessions left from your original referral. You can use those first. Once those are finished, you can return to your GP to request a re-referral for four more sessions. That gives you full access to your ten sessions for 2026.

Can I have more than ten sessions?

Yes. Medicare only provides rebates for ten sessions per year. You can still attend therapy beyond that limit, but you will need to pay the full fee for any additional sessions.

Some clients choose to see therapists privately, without using a Mental Health Care Plan at all. This might be because they want more flexibility or because the therapist they are working with does not offer rebates.

Download our flowchart

How to access a medicare rebate for psychological services.