The full list of IT projects in the 2025-26 federal budget

The final budget before the next federal election includes scant funding for technology projects compared to previous years, with the health portfolio one of few winners. 

Several of the larger spending initiatives included in the budget – such as an expansion of the fibre overbuild by NBN Co – had previously been announced, including funding allocations.

The budget follows much the same pattern as the one delivered in 2022 prior to the last federal election, where the focus was on cost-of-living rather than IT projects.

The sole mention of technology by Treasurer Jim Chalmers in his parliamentary speech was a fleeting reference to artificial intelligence.

Chalmers said Australia "is well placed to respond to ... seismic changes shaping this new world of uncertainty", declaring one of the changes to be a transition "from information technology to AI", although there was no indication of any specific initiatives or funding aimed at building domestic AI capability.

The key projects and agencies to receive funding are:

• $228.7 million in 2025–26 to continue modernising My Health Record and support the digital health reform agenda 
• $207 million over two years from 2025–26 to deliver the second tranche of stabilisation and uplift of the Australian Securities and Investments Commission’s (ASIC) business registers 
• $151 million over four years from 2025–26 to continue enhancements to the National Disability Insurance Agency’s (NDIA’s) fraud detecting IT systems
• $53.2 million in 2025–26 to continue implementation of the Single Assessment System and support the staged digital implementation of the Aged Care Act 2024 to ensure continuity of aged care assessment services
• $37.8 million in 2025–26 for the Aged Care Quality and Safety Commission to support the staged digital implementation of the Aged Care Act 2024
• $17.1 million in 2025–26 to continue to invest in the NDIA’s ability to detect and respond to fraud and non‑compliant payments
• $6.7 million in 2025–26 to extend the operation of the National Anti‑Scam Centre within the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission
• $5.7 million in 2025–26 to extend funding to ensure sustainability of Australia’s electronic [pharmaceutical] prescribing infrastructure 
• $5.4 million in 2025–26 to support the National Emergency Management Agency’s engagement with the states and territories on a national high‑speed and high‑capacity mobile broadband emergency response capability 
• $5.3 million in 2025–26 to the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner to continue its regulatory oversight of the Digital ID and Identity Verification Service programs 
• $3 million over four years from 2025–26 for the Australian Securities and Investments Commission to improve its data analytics capability to better target enforcement activities to deter illegal phoenixing activities, particularly in the construction sector 
• $2.2 million in 2025–26 for the Office of the Commonwealth Ombudsman, the Department of Home Affairs and the Australian Criminal Intelligence Commission to continue to support access to data for law enforcement and national security purposes under the AUS‑US Data Access Agreement 
• $1.8 million in 2025–26 to continue the Measuring Broadband Australia program 
• $300,000 in 2025–26 to AGD to support consultation on a national database for hate crimes and incidents
• Unknown amount for "additional resourcing for the Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet to strengthen IT systems including whole‑of‑government systems"