Policy Bulletin 2025/10: Family law ELA – removal of means test for ELA services for clients of FamAC

15 September, 2025

The Legal Aid NSW Board has approved the removal of the means test for Extended Legal Assistance (ELA) services for clients of the Family Law Service for Aboriginal Communities (FamAC).

Background

ELA service type was introduced in 2017 as a new way to provide and record a single legal assistance service to clients with complex needs, rather than providing multiple discrete services. The ELA Means Test does not apply to applicants who have complex needs. The Board has approved adding FamAC clients to the list of clients with complex needs who are not required to satisfy a means test to be eligible for an ELA service.

What has changed?

The family law ELA policy has been amended to make clear that ELA services provided to clients of FamAC are not means-tested.

Details of the policy are published on Policy Online:

Start date

This change formalises a pilot that has been in place since August 2024. See Policy Bulletin 2024/9 for details.

Contact

For further information, contact the Client Eligibility Unit at: T-CEU@legalaid.nsw.gov.au.