Projects under central oversight
The central oversight and assurance processes described in the previous section ensure the Australian Government can closely monitor and report on the performance of all its major digital projects. This section sets out the projects now under central oversight and assurance, and changes since the Major Digital Projects Report 2025.
The number of projects under central oversight and the investment amounts will continue to change over time. This can be due to new projects starting, projects closing and reclassification of projects, including projects previously considered out of scope now meeting the criteria for inclusion following changes such as additional investment.
Central oversight now covers 103 active projects with an additional $254.6 million in investment since 2024
Since the last report in March 2025, 15 projects entered central oversight through the IOF, and 19 left, bringing the total of active projects down by 6 to 103. This includes the remaining 89 projects that reported in 2025 under oversight, with 3 projects currently paused.
Of the 19 projects leaving central oversight, 17 have closed and one has been removed in accordance with the reporting criteria. One project came under oversight in 2025 and then closed. It is therefore counted as both joining and leaving central oversight.
Projects that have been paused are either waiting for the necessary legislation and/or necessary entities to be established or have paused temporarily to move resourcing to vital areas to serve the responsible agency’s purpose for an expected period of time.
While the number of projects under central oversight has decreased, mainly due to project closures, the amount of investment has increased by $254.6 million. This is due to contributions both from incoming projects, and continuing projects that have received additional funding.
Of the 15 projects that have come under assurance oversight:
- 8 projects funded in the 2024–25 Budget are being delivered across 7 agencies
- 7 projects funded in the 2024–25 Mid-Year Economic and Fiscal Outlook (MYEFO) are being delivered across 4 agencies
- these added projects are in the Healthcare and aged care, Resources and the environment, Tax and super, and Government sectors.
Note: This is the duration of one project, rather than an average as other figures are not for publication (NFP).
Note: This includes one project that joined assurance oversight and closed since the previous report in March 2025.
The number of projects and their total budget remained relatively stable over the past year. Most (81.6%) active projects under central assurance oversight are Tier 2 or Tier 3 projects, which is consistent with the bulk of active projects continuing from last year.
Flagship digital investments (Tier 1) continue to represent the lowest proportion of active projects, experiencing a 0.1% increase from 18.3% in 2025 to 18.4% in 2026. These projects have the longer-than-average duration of 4.5 years. This reflects the fact that these are strategically significant projects, which are more complex and therefore carry a high level of risk. The $469.1 million total budget increase in Tier 1 projects over the past year is mainly due to some existing projects receiving previously agreed funding and several projects rolling up into one overarching program.
While the average duration of Tier 1 and Tier 2 projects remains similar to last year, the average duration of Tier 3 projects has increased by over three-quarters of a year (0.8 years). This longer average delivery period for Tier 3 projects is due to a combination of project extensions, legislative delays, additional funding and delivery issues. Some Tier 3 project timelines have also been affected by delivery issues in dependent projects or shifting agency priorities.
Most new projects under central assurance oversight are smaller and less complex
Compared with last year, fewer projects (71.7% less) joined central oversight. This reflects lower levels of new funding decisions in the most recent Budget. This was influenced by the 2025 federal election and caretaker conventions, which limited the number of proposals progressing to approval compared with non-election years.
A total of 13 out of the 15 projects new to assurance oversight this year are Tier 2 and Tier 3 level investments, consistent with DTA advice strongly encouraging smaller, less complex projects. This is evident through our recommendations for APS agencies modernising the software systems that streamline their core business processes (Enterprise Resource Planning modernisations) to develop essential features only, while minimising customisations.
We encourage smaller projects because they have greater chances of success. Smaller projects generally experience fewer complexities and are agile, resulting in a more efficient and effective responses to delivery challenges as they emerge.
Nearly half of the continuing projects under central assurance oversight have changed their end dates
Since the last report, 48.3% of the projects that continued under oversight reported changes to their completion dates. While a few are projected to finish ahead of schedule, the majority are now expected to conclude later than originally planned.
Project timelines may change due to a combination of internal and external factors affecting delivery. Common causes include technical challenges, resource constraints and vendor performance issues that affect delivery of milestones. In some cases, external dependencies such as legislative changes and evolving international policy requirements cause schedule adjustments. There are also instances where the substantial work has concluded to schedule, but agencies opt to keep project arrangements intact while they embed change and ensure intended outcomes are achieved.
Many digital projects are delivered in smaller sequential phases or tranches, each providing defined functionality and benefits. This method is in line with DTA advice as it reduces risk and enables flexibility to adapt to changing requirements. For some projects, a change in end date is due to the overall project receiving funding for the next tranche of work. For others, a change reflects a more refined end date following additional planning for future tranches.
The DTA will capture agency insights through Digital Maturity Assessments. Released in March 2026, the Digital Maturity Assessments will help agencies make smart, future-focused digital investment and resourcing decisions to better support the users of their digital services.
