What’s Changing with the NDIS? Here’s What You Need to Know
The National Disability Insurance Agency (NDIA) has recently announced important changes to the way NDIS plans are created and managed. These changes, known across the sector as Section 33 (S33) changes came into effect on 19 May 2025, and they affect every participant and provider.
These updates are part of a wider move to a new system called PACE, which is all about making NDIS plans easier to understand, use, and manage. The goal? To give participants more clarity, more structure, and better control over their supports and funding. Let’s hope this is the reality!
So what exactly is changing?
🔍 New NDIS Plans Will Now Include:
1. A Total Funding Amount – This is the full amount allocated in your plan, just like before.
2. Funding Component Amounts – These are groups of related supports (like Core Supports, Capacity Building, and Capital Supports), each with its own allocated funding.
3. Funding Periods – These are the new part. Your plan will now have set timeframes where certain funds must be used.
🕒 What Are “Funding Periods”?
Funding periods are defined blocks of time (like 1, 3, 6 or 12 months) that apply to each funding component. During that period, you can only use the funds available for that block of time. If you don’t use the full amount, the remaining funds roll over into the next period of the same plan, but not into a future plan.
Here’s how that might look:
· Support Coordination, therapies, and other flexible Core Supports → default to 3-month periods.
· Home & Living supports (like SIL and ILO) → default to 1-month periods.
For example, if your plan starts on 20 May, and a funding component has a 1-month funding period, your first period would run from 20 May to 19 June, not from the start of the calendar month.
⚠️ Why This Matters
You’ll only be able to claim supports that fit within the funding available for the current funding period. Claims that exceed this won’t be paid, so it’s crucial to plan carefully. If you’re supporting someone, or managing your own plan, you’ll need to keep a closer eye on how funding is being used and when.
If you’re not happy with how your funding periods are structured or the total budget in your plan, you can request a plan variation or an internal review.
🤝 What This Means for Everyone
Whether you’re a participant, a family member, a support coordinator, or a service provider, these changes affect you. Here’s how:
· Participants and Families: You’ll need to be more aware of when your funding can be used, not just how much you have.
· Support Coordinators: You’ll be vital in helping participants understand and implement the new structure, track their spending more closely, and avoid over- or under-using funds.
· Providers: It’s more important than ever to communicate clearly with participants about when services are delivered and ensure billing fits within each funding period.
✅ Tips for Navigating the Changes
· Always check the funding periods in any new or updated NDIS plan (from 19 May 2025 onward).
· Plan ahead for budgeting and service delivery to make sure you’re using funds within the correct timeframe.
· Talk often — good communication between participants, families, coordinators, and providers is key to making this work smoothly.
📚 Helpful Resources
The NDIA has created new resources to help everyone get their head around the changes:
· For Participants: There’s a new video message from the NDIA CEO, plus information in Easy Read and Auslan formats.
· For Providers and Support Coordinators: New Operational Guidelines explain the changes in more detail: o Creating Your Plan – NDIS Operational Guideline o Your Plan – NDIS Operational Guideline
· NDIA Info Sessions: There are free info sessions running throughout May and June. You can register here to attend.
At Candia Care and Support, we’re staying across these changes so we can keep helping you navigate the NDIS with confidence. If you have questions or want help reviewing your plan, reach out, we’re here to make this simpler, together.
Let’s keep building a world without barriers, one plan at a time.
Jodie x