NDIS provider registration
A practical guide to registering as an NDIS provider under the requirements of the NDIS Quality and Safeguards Commission (NDIS Commission).
Registration with the NDIS Commission is required in all states and territories.Do I need to register?
Whether you need to register depends on the supports you deliver and how your participants' plans are managed.
You must be registered if you deliver supports to NDIS participants whose plans are managed by the NDIA. Registration is also mandatory if you:
- deliver specialist disability accommodation
- use regulated restrictive practices
- provide specialist behaviour support services
- provide plan management
- deliver Supported Independent Living (SIL)
- operate an NDIS digital platform
- deliver NDIS supports as a residential aged care provider
For many other supports, providers can choose not to register. If they do, they can only work with participants who are plan-managed or self-managed.
Mandatory registration for Supported Independent Living (SIL) and NDIS digital platform providers has already started. Since 1 July 2026, these providers must be registered no matter how a participant's plan is managed. Providers that are not yet registered have until 1 October 2026 to apply. The details are below.
SIL registration is now mandatoryApply by 1 October 2026
Since 1 July 2026, Supported Independent Living (SIL) has been a mandatory registration support, and it must be registered no matter how a participant's plan is managed. What this means depends on your situation. A new provider cannot start delivering SIL from 1 July 2026 unless it is registered. A provider that was already delivering SIL before 1 July 2026 can continue under transitional arrangements, as long as it submits a valid registration application by 1 October 2026. Providers that apply by the deadline can keep delivering SIL while the Commission assesses their application. SIL is treated as a high-risk support, so it requires a certification audit against the Core Module and the new SIL-specific Practice Standards.
| Applies to | All providers delivering Supported Independent Living |
|---|---|
| Mandatory registration in effect since | 1 July 2026 |
| Deadline to apply (existing unregistered providers) | 1 October 2026 |
| Registration group | Group 0138, the new dedicated group for Assistance with Supported Independent Living. SIL supports were previously claimed under group 0115 |
| Audit type | Certification |
| Standards assessed | Core Module plus the new SIL-specific Practice Standards, and any supplementary modules that apply |
| Claiming while your application is assessed | Providers who have applied can keep claiming under group 0138 while the Commission decides |
| If you miss the deadline | You must stop delivering SIL. You can claim only for supports delivered up to 30 September 2026, and plan managers should reject invoices after that |
| Penalty for delivering SIL unregistered | Up to 2 years' imprisonment, a fine of 120 penalty units, or both (the maximum penalty under the NDIS Act) |
| Your situation | What it means | Your action |
|---|---|---|
| Already registered for SIL (group 0115) | You transition automatically to the new group 0138 | Put the updated SIL Practice Standards in place from 1 July 2026 |
| Registered provider, want to add SIL | SIL must be added to your registration as group 0138 | Apply to vary your registration to add 0138. An Approved Quality Auditor will determine whether an out-of-cycle certification audit is required |
| Currently delivering SIL unregistered | You can keep delivering while the Commission assesses your application, as long as you apply in time | Lodge your application by 1 October 2026. Miss it and you must stop delivering SIL |
| New provider wanting to deliver SIL | You cannot start until you are registered and audited | Complete registration and an audit before delivering any SIL |
If you are delivering SIL and are not yet registered, the 1 October 2026 application deadline is close, so lodge your application as soon as you can. Auditor availability is tight in the run-up to the deadline, because every unregistered SIL provider is drawing from the same limited pool of approved auditors. Applying now gives you the best chance of securing an auditor in time.
Read our full SIL Mandatory Registration guide for the checklist, standards and next steps.
Digital platform providers
The same rule applies to NDIS digital platform providers. A digital platform is more specific than any website or app where people set up profiles. It acts as an intermediary whose main purpose is connecting participants with NDIS supports, and it processes payments for those supports using participants' NDIS funding. From 1 July 2026, platform providers that meet this description must be registered with the NDIS Commission, with the same 1 October 2026 deadline for existing providers to apply. A new registration group, 0137 (Providing an NDIS digital platform service), applies to these providers.
What are the requirements?
To register as an NDIS provider, you need to meet the relevant parts of the NDIS Practice Standards for the supports and services you deliver, or intend to deliver. The NDIS Commission also considers your organisation's suitability to deliver NDIS supports when making a decision on your application, and the NDIS Code of Conduct sets out how workers and providers should behave when supporting people who access their services.
Registration requirements are proportionate. A smaller provider with fewer workers and participants is not expected to present the same evidence as a national provider with a large workforce and many participants.
How much does it cost?
Submitting an application is free. You are responsible for the cost of the audit against the applicable NDIS Practice Standards.
5 steps to register
Here is what to expect at each stage of applying to register as an NDIS provider.
Application
The first step is completing the application form. New providers apply through the NDIS Commission website using the Apply for Registration form.
Have the following details ready:
- Your organisation's contact details
- Key personnel
- Corporate structure
- Service profile
- Service coverage areas
- The registration groups you want to apply for
- The supports and services your organisation delivers
These details help determine which parts of the NDIS Practice Standards apply to your organisation. Once this part of the form is finalised, you complete a self-assessment against the relevant parts of the Practice Standards and upload any documents you are submitting as evidence.
You can save the application, including your self-assessment responses, at any point. In the current Applications Portal you have 60 days to complete it before it is deleted. From 12 October 2026, applications move to the new NDIS Commission Portal, where draft applications are kept for 30 days. After you submit, you receive an email confirmation along with a document called the initial scope of audit. Auditors use this document in Step 2.
Wondering which registration groups to select? Our support professions, support categories and registration groups look-up tool can help. Sign up for Centro FREE to use it.
Our products include an NDIS Registration Application guide that helps you answer the self-assessment questions.
The NDIS Practice Standards
The NDIS Practice Standards set out the standard of service delivery you must meet to become and stay registered. Some parts apply to all registered providers. Other parts only apply to providers delivering more complex supports.
Each part of the Practice Standards contains high-level, participant-focused outcomes. Under each outcome are quality indicators that auditors use to assess your compliance. The parts that apply depend on your registration groups and the legal type of your organisation, which also determines whether you need a verification or a certification audit.
Verification
Providers registering for lower-risk registration groups complete the verification module. They need evidence of relevant qualifications, along with incident, complaint and risk management policies.
Certification
Providers registering for higher-risk groups complete the core module of the Practice Standards, plus one or more supplementary modules for the specific supports they deliver.
Centro ASSIST policies, processes and documents are grouped by the relevant modules of the NDIS Practice Standards, so it is easy to see which documents apply to your organisation. Find the right product for your organisation.
Audit
It is your responsibility to engage an independent, approved quality auditor. You can choose an auditor from the list of approved quality auditors, or use our auditor referral program. Either way, the auditor uses your initial scope of audit to prepare a quote, and you can discuss your circumstances with auditors to find the best value.
The initial scope of audit summarises the registration requirements that apply to your organisation. It also states whether you need a verification or certification audit, and what you need to demonstrate to meet the relevant Practice Standards. Auditors check that the scope is accurate and begin the audit. As part of assessing compliance, they consider how you put your policies and procedures into practice when delivering supports. This involves providing evidence, along with input from participants and other people who experience your services.
Centro ASSIST runs an auditor referral program for our customers. You send us your initial scope of audit, we refer it to auditors in our program, and those auditors respond to you directly with a quote.
Assessment
The auditor submits the outcome of the audit to the NDIS Commission through an online portal. The NDIS Commission then assesses your application. It considers the audit outcome and completes a suitability assessment of your organisation and its key personnel, using the information from your application. Suitability assessments are made case by case.
Auditors have up to 28 days to submit their report, and the NDIS Commission may take further time to make a decision. This stage calls for some patience.
Outcome
If your application is successful, you receive a Certificate of Registration. It lists the classes of supports and services you are registered to provide, your period of registration, and any conditions on your registration. You must comply with all conditions, including the NDIS Practice Standards and the NDIS Code of Conduct.
If your application is unsuccessful, the NDIS Commission will explain why. You can request a review within three months of the decision. If the outcome remains unsuccessful, you can seek a further review from the Administrative Review Tribunal (ART), which replaced the Administrative Appeals Tribunal in October 2024.
Some applications take longer to process than others. Timeframes depend on the size and scale of your organisation, and the range and complexity of the supports you deliver.
Ongoing compliance
Once you are registered, there are ongoing requirements to keep in mind:
- Comply with the NDIS Practice Standards and your conditions of registration
- Comply with the NDIS Code of Conduct
- Run an in-house complaints management and resolution system, and support participants to make a complaint
- Run an in-house incident management system, and notify the NDIS Commission of reportable incidents
- Make sure key personnel and workers in risk-assessed roles hold a current NDIS Worker Screening Clearance
- Meet behaviour support requirements, if they apply
The NDIS Commission monitors registered providers for compliance and can suspend, vary or revoke registration.
Our standard policies and processes are reviewed and updated regularly to keep up with changes in regulation, so your documentation stays current.
What's changing next
SIL and platform providers are the first step in a wider shift. The NDIS is moving toward a graduated, risk-proportionate registration model, and mandatory registration is expected to reach more support types over time. We update this page as changes are confirmed.
Support coordination was also identified for mandatory registration, but reform in that area is currently paused.
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