The short version. From 1 July 2027, the government starts making registration compulsory for providers of higher-risk supports. It has named personal care, daily living supports and supports in closed settings as examples. The rollout is meant to finish by December 2030. The exact list of supports hasn't been published yet, so nobody can tell you for certain whether you're covered. You can still get ready now.
What's already changed
Until recently, most NDIS providers could choose whether to register. Unregistered providers could work with self-managed and plan-managed participants, while only registered providers could be paid for supports to NDIA-managed participants.
That started to change in 2026:
- 1 July 2026: registration became compulsory for supported independent living (SIL) and for NDIS digital platforms. Unregistered SIL providers had to apply by 1 October 2026 or stop providing SIL.
- 20 August 2026: the National Disability Insurance Scheme Amendment (Securing the NDIS for Future Generations) Act 2026 received Royal Assent. It's part of a wider set of changes to the scheme.
Some supports needed registration even before these changes, including specialist disability accommodation, plan management, specialist behaviour support and supports involving regulated restrictive practices.
What starts from 1 July 2027
From 1 July 2027, compulsory registration starts rolling out to supports the government considers higher risk. The Department of Health, Disability and Ageing has said it will publish a list of those supports, and has given personal care, daily living supports and supports provided in closed settings as examples.
Three things are worth knowing about that date:
- It's when the rollout begins, not a single deadline. Everyone in scope is meant to be registered by December 2030. The government hasn't said how it will stage the rollout in between.
- The list isn't out yet. As at the date at the top of this page, we haven't found a published final list on the Department's, the NDIA's or the NDIS Commission's websites.
- Recent consultation focused on personal care. Consultation in October 2026 asked about compulsory registration for providers of "assistance with daily personal activities" and "high intensity daily personal activities". Those are the registration groups where most personal care sits today.
Compulsory registration for support coordination was also proposed, but the NDIS Commission has paused it. Paused isn't the same as dropped.
Registration and enrolment are different things
Two processes start around the same time, and it's easy to mix them up:
| Registration | Enrolment | |
|---|---|---|
| Who runs it | NDIS Quality and Safeguards Commission | NDIA |
| Who it's for | Providers of supports on the final list, and supports that already need registration | Most providers, so they can be paid directly |
| What's involved | An application, a self-assessment against the NDIS Practice Standards, and an audit by an approved quality auditor | Basic identity details and a validated bank account, with no audit |
| Timing | Rollout from 1 July 2027, everyone in scope by December 2030 | From 1 July 2027, everyone in scope by December 2027 |
What registration involves
If your supports end up on the list, registering will mean:
- Applying through the NDIS Commission and choosing the registration groups that match what you deliver.
- Assessing yourself against the NDIS Practice Standards. They set out what a safe, well-run service looks like, covering things like rights, governance, risk, incidents, complaints and how supports are delivered.
- Having an audit by an approved quality auditor. Today there are two types. A verification audit, for lower-risk supports, is mostly a check of your documents and evidence. A certification audit, for higher-risk supports, has two stages: a desktop review, then an onsite audit. Which type the newly covered supports will need hasn't been confirmed.
- Making sure your workers are screened. Registered providers must make sure workers in certain roles hold an NDIS Worker Screening clearance.
- Keeping it up. Registration comes with ongoing conditions, including managing incidents and complaints, and further audits over time.
What it costs
The NDIS Commission doesn't charge a fee to register. You pay your auditor directly, and auditors set their own prices. Consultants publish estimates from about $900 to $1,800 for a verification audit and $3,000 to $15,000 or more for a certification audit, depending on the size of your organisation and what you deliver. Treat those as rough figures and ask two or three approved auditors for quotes.
The bigger cost for most small providers is time: writing down how you work, setting up records and gathering evidence.
What we don't know yet
- The final list of supports, and whether it will be written as registration groups, support items or something else.
- The order of the rollout between July 2027 and December 2030.
- Which audit type and which Practice Standards modules will apply to each newly covered support.
- What transition rules will apply to providers already delivering those supports. The Department has said providers will have time to work out whether the change applies to them and to register before it starts.
- How the changes apply to independent workers who find clients through a platform like Mable or Hireup. The platforms themselves have needed registration since July 2026.
What you can do now
None of this needs to wait for the final list, and all of it is good practice whether or not you end up having to register. The NDIS Code of Conduct already applies to unregistered providers.
- Read the NDIS Practice Standards. They're free on the NDIS Commission website. Note which parts already describe how you work.
- Write down how you actually work. How you take on a new participant, plan their supports, handle money, manage medication, record notes and finish up. That becomes the start of your policies and procedures.
- Set up an incident register and a complaints process, and tell participants how to use it.
- Do a written risk assessment for each participant.
- Sort out NDIS Worker Screening for everyone who works with participants. Applications can take weeks.
- Keep training records, starting with the NDIS Commission's free worker orientation module.
- Get audit quotes so you know the real cost before you budget.
Not sure where you stand? Take the free check. It takes about three minutes and shows which of these basics you already have.
Sources
We've used government sources where we could reach them, and named secondary sources where we couldn't. Some details above, including the consultation focus and the enrolment timing, came from summaries of government material rather than the material itself. Check the official sites before relying on anything here.
- Department of Health, Disability and Ageing, About the changes to the NDIS
- Department of Health, Disability and Ageing, Provider FAQs (PDF, July 2026)
- NDIA, Crackdown on sales of NDIS businesses as mandatory registration set to expand from 1 July
- NDIS Quality and Safeguards Commission, Mandatory registration transition pathway
- NDIS Quality and Safeguards Commission, home page, for the NDIS Practice Standards, worker screening and the worker orientation module
- Office of Impact Analysis, Mandatory Registration of all NDIS Providers
- MinterEllison, NDIS legislative reforms: mandatory registration and new access rules (law firm commentary)
- Astris Law, NDIS mandatory registration 2027 to 2030 roadmap (law firm commentary)
This guide is general information, not legal advice. Firm Footing isn't part of, or endorsed by, the NDIA, the NDIS Quality and Safeguards Commission or the Australian Government. See our terms and disclaimer.