What is a registered NDIS provider?
Registered providers go through an application process to become registered. This means:
- their business and key personnel have been checked to make sure they’re suitable
- they've been audited to make sure they follows the rules and comply with the NDIS Practice Standards
- their key personnel and staff in risk-assessed roles all have an NDIS worker screening clearance
- they need to have systems and procedures for handling complaints and incidents effectively
- they've received a certificate of registration
- they need to report anything that affects their ability to provide NDIS supports to us
- they follow all conditions or registration.
Providers are generally registered for 3 years.
Details of registered NDIS providers are published on the NDIS Provider Register.
See section 73E of the National Disability Insurance Scheme Act 2013 for more information.
Unregistered providers haven’t gone through a registration application and audit process. They:
- can only provide supports and services to self-manage or plan-managed NDIS participants
- can’t provide any of the supports where registration is mandatory.
They still need to follow the NDIS Code of Conduct.
Who needs to be registered?
Some providers must be registered because of the supports and services they provide.
Providers must be registered if they provide:
- specialist disability accommodation (SDA)
- specialist behaviour support services, as a:
- specialist behaviour support provider, or
- a provider who implements restrictive practices (an implementing provider)
- supports or services to NDIS participants with NDIA-managed funding
- plan management services
- supported independent living (SIL)
- NDIS digital platform services
- residential aged care providers who have NDIS participants living in their facility.
Other providers can choose if they’re registered. See What are the benefits of being a registered provider?
If you're unsure if your profession or business falls under the above categories, you can follow these steps to understand how the services you provide are classified:
All NDIS providers claim payment for their services under NDIS 'support items'. These are also known as 'support line items' or 'line items'. The National Disability Insurance Agency (NDIA) publishes the list of NDIS support items:
Contact the National Disability Insurance Agency (NDIA) at 1300 311 675 or provider.support@ndis.gov.au for advice on:
- what line item is appropriate for your profession or the services your business provides
- billing or claiming for a specific support item or registration group.
Once you know your NDIS support items, you need to find the registration groups that apply to those items.
Find the registration group in the support catalogue
- Find your NDIS support item or line item in the catalogue.
- Find the information in the columns for 'Registration group number' and 'Registration group name'.
- For example, your support item could have number '0122' and name 'Hearing Equipment'.
Find the registration group if you know the support item number
Every NDIS support item has a support item number or line item number. This number includes the registration group.
In the NDIS support item number: 01_013_0107_1_1 – Assistance with self-care activities – Standard Saturday
- 01 is the support category
- 013 is the sequence number
- 0107 is the registration group
- The first 1 is the outcome domain
- the second 1 is the support purpose.
So the registration group is 0107.
Look at the Registration groups or classes of support page, choose your registration group or groups, and check if you need to be registered.
- If any say you do need to be registed, you can now apply for registration.
- If they don't say you need to be registered, you can still choose to apply for registration. See What are the benefits of being a registered provider?
What are the benefits of being a registered provider?
NDIS provider registration helps make sure that supports and services delivered under the NDIS are safe and good quality.
The benefits of being a registered provider are:
- it can improve participant safety and the quality of the supports you provide, as you’ve demonstrated:
- you’re complying with the NDIS Practice Standards
- you have systems in place to manage risks, incidents and complaints
- you can provide NDIS funded supports and services to all participants, including:
- those with an NDIA-managed plan
- those who access the types of supports that require registration
- you’re listed at Find a registered provider, which helps participants find and learn about your services
- some support coordinators and other services prefer to connect NDIS participants to registered providers
- NDIS participants know you’ve been checked and follow the rules and standards for NDIS supports and services
- ongoing registration conditions and audits support you to continuously improve how you deliver supports and services.
Applying for provider registration comes with administrative and audit costs. You need to consider your individual circumstances.
Providing NDIS supports and services under another NDIS provider’s registration or brokerage of supports that need registration
Some providers have 'facilitation' or ‘brokerage’ arrangements for delivering supports and services. This is where an unregistered provider deliver supports under another providers registration. The unregistered provider may be an entity, sole trader or subcontracted employee or worker.
When this happens, the registered provider:
- must be the one that claims payment for supports and services
- is responsible for all supports and services delivered under their registration, including those delivered by the contracted provider
- makes sure anyone delivering supports under their registration complies with conditions of registration, including the NDIS Code of Conduct
- takes responsibility if anyone providing supports under their registration doesn’t comply with conditions and of registration
- must make sure the facilitation or brokerage arrangements are transparent to participants, and participants know who is responsible for delivering their supports
For information about responsibilities, compliance and audit in a subcontracting or brokerage arrangement, see Providing NDIS supports and services under another NDIS provider’s registration.
Conditions of registration
The registration of a NDIS provider is subject to conditions. These conditions include:
- compliance with the applicable NDIS Practice Standards
- compliance with the NDIS Code of Conduct
- compliance with applicable state, territory and Commonwealth laws
- having effective systems and practices for managing complaints and managing incidents
- ensuring workers in certain roles, including key personnel, have NDIS Worker Screening clearances:
- meeting notification requirements
- meeting quality audit requirements
- if applicable, meeting behaviour support requirements, including reporting the use of regulated restrictive practices to the NDIS Commission.
See section 73F of the National Disability Insurance Scheme Act 2013 for a list of all registration conditions.
The NDIS Commission can impose additional conditions on a provider’s registration. These conditions are included on the certificate of registration and on the NDIS Provider Register.
Additional conditions
Personal support providers
Additional conditions apply to registered NDIS providers who deliver personal supports to participants who live alone as part of registration group 0107 – Assistance with daily personal activities.
If the participant gets personal support from one worker only, the provider must:
- assess the risks to the participant, and
- monitor the quality of, and participant satisfaction with, the supports.
See Registration conditions for personal support providers (Registration group 0107).
Audits for new registered providers
New registered providers may be required to complete parts of a quality audit involving NDIS participant engagement. This must be completed within a certain timeframe from when the provider started delivering services to participants.
Key personnel
Key personnel are individuals who hold significant roles within an NDIS provider organisation. They play a crucial role in ensuring the safety and well-being of NDIS participants.
Who are key personnel?
People who are:
- responsible for executive decisions
- responsible for, or have authority or significant influence over, planning, directing or controlling provider activities.
This can include the CEO, executive staff, managers and/or board members.
See section 11A of the National Disability Insurance Scheme Act 2013 for the full legal definition.
When applying to become a registered provider, NDIS providers must provide the details of all their key personnel. The NDIS Commission uses this information to assess the providers suitability to be registered, and considers whether these personnel have past convictions, enforcement actions, fraud, or any other events that might make them unsuitable.
Registered NDIS providers need to inform the NDIS Commission about changes to their key personnel during their registration period:
- changes to your key personnel
- events that might impact how suitable key personnel are to make executive decisions
Board Members
All Board Members are considered key personnel in accordance with section 11A of the National Disability Insurance Scheme Act 2013. All key personnel are required to have a Worker Screening clearance in accordance with the Worker Screening Rules.
Some Board Members, but not all, may be subject to 'worker-specific' requirements as per the Provider Registration and Practice Standard Rules. This may relate to inductions, competency requirements, mandatory training. This is where Board Members are also considered a person employed or otherwise engaged by a registered NDIS provider.
NDIS workers on temporary visas
NDIS providers may be able to employ workers who aren't Australian citizens and have temporary visas. Workers with temporary visas need to:
- have a visa with terms and conditions that allow them to work within the NDIS
- meet the same requirements as all other NDIS workers, such as worker screening.
To understand a worker’s eligibility to work within the NDIS:
- The provider or worker needs to:
- confirm the type of visa they hold
- ensure the visa is valid and permits them to work in Australia
- understand the terms and conditions of that visa by looking it up in Visa Entitlement Verification Online (VEVO).
- The provider then needs to make sure the terms of employment are consistent with the visa terms and conditions.
Visa Entitlement Verification Online (VEVO)
VEVO is operated by the Department of Home Affairs and allows visa holders and employers to check visa conditions. Organisations need to register for an account to use it.
VEVO can be used to provide proof of a worker's visa conditions.
For more information see:
- Temporary work visas (Department of Home Affairs)
- Visa holders and migrants (Fair Work Ombudsman)