NDIS Reforms Explained: What Participants, Families and Support Coordinators Need to Know
The Australian Government has announced significant changes to the NDIS designed to improve consistency, strengthen safeguards and ensure the Scheme remains sustainable for future generations. The reforms will be introduced gradually between 2026 and 2030, with some changes affecting participant funding, planning processes, provider requirements and eligibility.
The reforms are extensive and will introduce significant change to the way eligibility is determined, what is funded and by how much. Here’s a summary of what you need to know.
Why is the NDIS changing?
The Australian Government says the NDIS is changing because the Scheme has grown much faster than originally expected and is becoming increasingly expensive to operate. The Government’s view is that reforms are needed to ensure the NDIS remains sustainable for future generations and continues to support people with permanent and significant disability. The reforms are intended to
- create greater consistency in funding and planning decisions,
- strengthen safeguards,
- improve provider quality and
- reduce fraud and misuse of Scheme funds.
The changes also respond to recommendations from the Independent Review of the NDIS, the Disability Royal Commission and other reviews that identified the need for clearer eligibility rules, more consistent planning processes and stronger oversight of services. According to the Government, the goal is not to remove essential supports from people with significant disability, but to ensure funding is directed to those with the highest support needs while improving access to community and mainstream supports outside the NDIS
How Will My NDIS Funding Change?
For most participants, essential disability supports are expected to remain in place. The Government has stated there will be no changes to funding for critical supports such as:
- Personal care and daily living support
- Disability-related health supports
- Home and vehicle modifications
- Mobility equipment and transport
- Continence supports
- Specialist Disability Accommodation (SDA)
- Continuous 24-hour care for eligible high-support-needs participants
However, some funding categories may change when plans are renewed or reassessed.
The Government has announced that Social, Civic and Community Participation funding will be reset, and Capacity Building Daily Activities funding will also be reduced. These changes are intended to align funding levels more closely with historical spending patterns and encourage greater use of community-based opportunities. You can read more about this further on, under ‘Support Determinations.’
What this means for me
If you use NDIS funding for community participation, skill development or day-to-day capacity building activities, your future budgets may look different when your plan is reviewed.
What Are New Framework Plans?
One of the biggest reforms is the introduction of New Framework Planning.
Under the current system, participants receive a plan with funding allocated across support categories. Under the new approach, participants will move to a planning model based on a Support Needs Assessment that considers:
- Functional capacity
- Life stage
- Individual circumstances
- Environmental factors
The Government says this is intended to create fairer and more consistent planning decisions across the Scheme.
What this means for me
You may experience a different planning process in the future, with funding decisions linked more closely to assessed support needs rather than the current planning approach.
What Are Support Determinations?
The reforms introduce a new power called a support determination. This allows the Government to make changes to funding for certain types of supports under existing NDIS plans, known as “old framework plans”, before participants transition to the new framework planning system.
The Government has announced that it intends to use a support determination to reduce funding for:
- Social, Civic and Community Participation supports by 50%.
- Capacity Building Daily Activities supports by 10%.
According to the Government, support determinations will not apply to critical disability supports such as personal care, disability-related health supports, home and vehicle modifications, assistive technology, transport, Specialist Disability Accommodation (SDA) or continuous 24-hour disability support for eligible participants.
What this means for me
If your plan includes funding for community participation or capacity-building activities, you may see changes to these budgets when your plan is renewed or reassessed. However, the Government has stated that funding for essential daily living and high-support-needs services will continue.
Participants who require continuous 24-hour support will have access to additional safeguards, including the ability to request a plan variation within 90 days if they believe a funding change does not appropriately reflect their disability-related support needs.
Will I Still Be Eligible for the NDIS?
The Government is changing how people access the NDIS.
Currently, eligibility is largely assessed using disability-specific criteria. Under the reforms, access to the Scheme will increasingly focus on a person’s functional capacity and how their disability impacts daily living.
Future applicants will be assessed using a standardised functional capacity assessment designed to provide greater consistency in access decisions. New Framework Plans are set to be introduced in April 2027, from which time Participants are expected to complete a support needs assessment, receive a report outlining their assessed needs and receive a plan budget based on those assessed support needs.
The Government has stated that people with permanent and significant disability will continue to be eligible for the NDIS.
What this means for me
If you are already an NDIS participant, your access will not change immediately. Existing participants are expected to be reassessed progressively over several years once the new eligibility arrangements commence.
What Is a Functional Capacity Assessment?
Functional Capacity Assessments are being introduced as part of the future NDIS access process.
Rather than focusing primarily on diagnosis, assessments will consider how a person’s disability affects everyday activities and independence. The Government has established a Technical Advisory Group to help design the assessment framework and eligibility thresholds and has purchased the I-CAN assessment tool, which is being adapted to help assess support needs and inform future plan budgets.
What this means for me
Many participants and families may need to provide evidence about how disability impacts day-to-day functioning rather than relying solely on diagnostic information.
What Is Changing for Children?
The Government has proposed a new approach for young children with developmental delay and autism who have lower support needs.
Some children may receive support through a new program called Thriving Kids, rather than entering the NDIS. Children with permanent and significant disability or substantially reduced functional capacity are expected to continue accessing the NDIS.
The design of Thriving Kids is still being developed with states and territories.
What this means for me
Families currently receiving NDIS support should not expect immediate changes, but future pathways for younger children may look different.
What Is Changing for Support Coordination?
The Government plans to replace the current Support Coordination model with a new Support Coordination and Connection service.
Instead of purchasing Support Coordination through an NDIS plan, participants will be able to choose from providers funded directly by the NDIA.
What this means for me
Participants should continue working with their existing Support Coordinator. Any future transition arrangements are expected to be communicated well before changes take effect.
What Is Changing for Plan Management?
The Government will establish a panel of approved Plan Managers.
Participants using plan management services will need to choose from providers approved by the NDIA. If a participant’s current provider is not approved, transition arrangements will apply.
What this means for me
Most people will not need to take action immediately, but plan-managed participants may eventually need to select an approved provider.
Will I Need to Use Registered Providers?
The reforms will gradually expand provider registration requirements.
Participants receiving higher-risk supports such as personal care and some daily living supports may need to use registered providers for those services. Lower-risk supports may still be purchased from unregistered providers.
What this means for me
Civic is a registered NDIS Provider. If you currently use unregistered providers, it may be worth understanding whether the supports you receive will be affected by future registration requirements.
NDIS Reform Timeline
| Date | Change |
|---|---|
| 1 October 2026 | Community Participation and Capacity Building funding changes begin for new plans and reassessments. |
| 1 February 2027 | New reasonable and necessary funding rules commence. |
| 1 April 2027 | Transition to New Framework Planning begins. |
| 1 July 2027 | Higher-risk supports must increasingly be delivered by registered providers. Rollout continues to 2030. |
| 1 October 2027 | Plan Management reforms commence. |
| 1 January 2028 | New NDIS eligibility arrangements commence for new applicants. |
| 1 January 2028-31 December 2030 | Existing participants progressively reassessed against new eligibility arrangements and transitioned to new systems. |
| 1 July 2028 | New Support Coordination and Connection service commences. |
