A participant can request a change of their NDIS Plan at any time [National Disability Insurance Scheme Act 2013 (Cth) (‘NDIS Act’) ss 47A(2) and 48(1)-(2)]. The NDIA will determine whether the request should be considered a:

The NDIA can change a Plan on request of the participant or on their own initiative, in which case the NDIA must inform the participant of their decision to vary or reassess the Plan [ss 47A and 48].

A participant’s change in circumstances may occur, for example, when a participant's care or support needs significantly change, where their living arrangements change, or where they receive compensation that may impact on their funding entitlement.

Where a participant has a change in circumstances, they can complete a Change in Circumstances Form and lodge it with the NDIA. The NDIA has 21 days to make a decision to either vary or reassess the Plan, or refuse to vary or reassess the Plan, or to advise that further time will be required [ss 47A(4) and 48(3)]. The NDIA is not obliged to respond to a request and any inaction will be taken to be a decision not to change the Plan [ss 47A(5) and 48(4)].

A decision to change or refuse to change a Plan is a reviewable decision [s 99]. If a participant is unhappy with the provisions or terms of a new, varied or reassessed Plan, they can also request an internal review of the Plan [s 99]. A person unhappy with the decision made at internal review can seek further review of that decision by application to the Administrative Appeals Tribunal [s 103]. See Review of NDIA decisions.

A participant may provide the NDIA with a changed version of their statement of goals and aspirations at any time. If provided, their Plan is taken to have been varied to include that changed version [s 47].

Variation of Plan

A Plan may be varied to [s 47A]:

The NDIA can make a variation to a Plan different to that requested by the participant [s 47A(9)].

Any variation of a Plan must be prepared with the participant and comply with any conditions in the National Disability Insurance Scheme Rules [s 47A(1)]. A copy of the varied Plan must be provided to the participant within seven days of the variation taking effect [s 47A(11)].

Reassessment of Plan

The NDIA must complete a reassessment of a participant’s Plan and either vary or replace the Plan prior to the reassessment date [s 49]. This process must commence before the period provided in the NDIS Rules (if any).

A plan must also be reassessed in the circumstances (if any) specified in a Plan [s 49A].

The reassessment of a Plan must result in either a variation to the Plan [s 47A] or the preparation of a new Plan with the participant [s 48(7)].

For information on the Plan review process, see the NDIS – Changing Your Plan webpage.