Plan Indexation: What Providers Need to Know

In our conversations with providers and participants, it’s clear there’s some confusion about NDIS plan indexation. Some providers have been told it doesn’t exist and many simply are unaware of it and they wonder if it’s something they need to take care of.

Let’s clear it up.

Each year in July, the National Disability Insurance Agency (NDIA) updates its NDIS Pricing Arrangements and Price Limits (PAPL) which sets the pricing limits for Supports and Services under the NDIS. After these changes, participants’ NDIS plan budgets may be automatically adjusted through what’s called plan indexation. 

What is Plan Indexation? 

Plan indexation is the annual adjustment of a NDIS plan budget to reflect changes in the cost of services. It’s based on factors such as inflation, wage increases for support workers, and updated PAPL set by the NDIA. 

Plan indexation helps ensure that participants have enough funding to continue accessing their Supports and Services without financial gaps caused by rising costs. 

If a participant has an existing, active NDIS plan, the NDIA will automatically update the remaining budget to reflect the new prices, usually within a few weeks of the new PAPL being released. Participants and Providers do not need to take any action for this to happen. 

What You Can Do 

While indexation happens automatically to a participants plan, there is rarely communication directly to providers or participants, so here are a few helpful steps you can take as a provider: 

• Stay informed by checking the official NDIS website.

• Check-in with the Participant or their nominee to confirm your services are not going to impact the ability to deliver ongoing support and whether any service bookings need to be updated.

• If this results in an increase of your rate discuss your new rate and get agreement from the Participant or their nominee.

To summarise

Plan indexation is a standard and NDIS automatic process that helps keep participant funding in line with real-world costs. For providers, this helps maintain billing consistency and ensures services remain deliverable within a participant’s available budget. 

Although the process doesn’t require any application or formal update on your end, it’s still beneficial to stay informed. Knowing these updates allows you to support your participants with confidence, and continue delivering high-quality, reliable services. 

For more detailed information, you can refer to Pricing updates | NDIS