Last updated: 23 October 2026
Welcome to the Reform Hub
There are a number of changes happening across the NDIS. Some have already started, while others will roll out gradually over the coming months and years.
If you directly employ and manage your own Support Workers, we’re here to support you as these changes unfold.
It’s business as usual for your Direct Employ arrangement
To help make sense of the information below, it’s important to understand that self-directed supports include arrangements where you directly employ and manage your own Support Workers.
Through our ongoing engagement and advocacy with the Department of Health, Disability and Ageing and the NDIS Quality and Safeguards Commission, we’re pleased to confirm that the Government intends for self-directed supports to be excluded from the expanded mandatory registration requirements commencing on 1 July 2027.
Do I, as a direct employer, need to become registered?
No. If you directly employ and manage your own Support Workers (a self-directed arrangement), there is currently no requirement for you to become registered.
Do my Support Workers need to become registered?
No. Support Workers in Direct Employ arrangements are not currently required to be registered, but they must still meet some important obligations.
Does Carer Solutions need to become registered?
Our Plan Management service is already registered. At the moment, our Direct Employ service isn’t required to be registered as an intermediary payroll and compliance service.
Reform timeline
From 1 July 2026
Mandatory provider registration
From 1 July 2026, expanded mandatory registration requirements took effect for certain NDIS providers identified by the Government as higher risk, including providers delivering Supported Independent Living (SIL) and NDIS digital platform services.
Existing unregistered providers who fall under these new requirements had until 1 October 2026 to apply for registration.
More registration changes are due from 1 July 2027. However, the Government intends for self-directed supports, including Direct Employ arrangements, to be excluded from these requirements.
From 1 October 2026
Social, Economic and Community Participation supports
From 1 October 2026, funding for some supports will change when plans are created or reassessed.
From 1 February 2027, these changes will also apply when plans are renewed.
Funding for Social, Economic and Community Participation will be reduced by 50%, while funding for Improved Daily Living Skills will be reduced by 10%.
Some supports are excluded from these reductions, and how these changes apply to you will depend on your individual needs and plan.
From 1 October 2027
Plan Management panel
From 1 October 2027, the NDIA will introduce a panel of approved Plan Managers.
If your current Plan Manager isn’t on the panel, you’ll have six months to switch to one that is.
If you use Carer Solutions for Plan Management, nothing changes for you right now, and we’ll keep you informed as these changes unfold.
From 1 January 2028
Thriving Kids
From 1 January 2028, children aged 8 and under with developmental delay and/or autism, and low to moderate support needs, are intended to receive support through Thriving Kids and other mainstream services.
Children who are already NDIS Participants won’t automatically leave the Scheme.
From 1 January 2028
Eligibility changes
From 1 January 2028, new eligibility rules will apply to people applying to access the NDIS.
Existing Participants will also be reassessed under the new rules, with reassessments taking place gradually over three years.
Resources for our Partners
If you directly employ and manage your own Support Workers through our Direct Employ service, you’re one of our Partners.
Here’s what you’ll find in your Partner Portal to help you stay informed and supported as the NDIS reforms roll out.
What to say
Ready-to-use wording to help you explain how you self-direct your supports through Direct Employ.
Planning tools
Plan ahead with our Service Quotation tool. See what your supports will cost and stay on top of your funding.
Book a chat
Our friendly Direct Employ specialists are always happy to talk through what the reforms mean for your arrangement.
Frequently asked questions
Have a question we haven’t covered? Ask it here.
No. If you directly employ and manage your own Support Workers, there is currently no requirement for you, as a Participant or Nominee, to become a registered NDIS provider or entity.
The Department of Health, Disability and Ageing has confirmed that the Government intends for self-directed supports, including arrangements where you directly employ and manage your own Support Workers, to be excluded from the expanded mandatory registration requirements starting on 1 July 2027.
This means it’s business as usual for your Direct Employ arrangement. You can continue to directly employ, manage and roster your own Support Workers, while Carer Solutions continues to look after payroll and compliance.
We’ll continue advocating for Direct Employ as the reforms progress. If the requirements ever change, we’ll let you know and help you understand what this means for you.
No. There is currently no requirement for Support Workers in Direct Employ arrangements to become registered.
Your Support Workers must continue to meet the relevant state or territory worker screening requirements and comply with the NDIS Code of Conduct. As part of your Direct Employ arrangement, we help you monitor and manage these requirements.
This means it’s business as usual. Your Support Workers can continue providing supports, as long as they keep meeting these existing requirements.
If the requirements change, we’ll let you know and help you understand what it means for you.
Direct Employ is a form of self-directed support, where a Participant or Nominee directly employs and manages their own Support Workers, including choosing, directing, planning and rostering their supports.
Carer Solutions helps you manage payroll and employment compliance, while you remain responsible for directly employing and managing your own Support Workers.
The NDIS Quality and Safeguards Commission has confirmed that if you receive SIL funding and directly employ and manage your own one-to-one Support Workers, your arrangement is not considered SIL under the new rules and you don’t need to start using a registered SIL provider.
However, there are some changes to how these supports can be claimed. You won’t be able to claim them as SIL under 0115 (Assistance with Daily Life Tasks) or 0138 (Assistance with Supported Independent Living).
If your plan allows you to claim other relevant support types, the NDIA has advised that you contact them to discuss any changes needed to your plan.
No. Carer Solutions’ Direct Employ service is not an NDIS digital platform provider.
You, as the Participant or Nominee, choose, directly employ and manage your own Support Workers. Carer Solutions does not employ, recruit, match or supply Support Workers. We provide payroll, compliance and administrative support to help you manage your Direct Employ arrangement.
We support registration where it’s appropriate. However, there is currently no registration category that reflects intermediary payroll and compliance services like Direct Employ.
We’re working with the Department of Health, Disability and Ageing to explore what an appropriate registration pathway could look like for intermediary models that support self-directed arrangements.
Since 2023, we’ve been working closely with the Department of Health, Disability and Ageing and the NDIS Quality and Safeguards Commission to make sure self-directed arrangements are understood and represented.
We’ve taken part in consultations, made formal submissions and sought clarity on how the reforms apply to Direct Employ. We’ll keep advocating for our Partners and share updates as more information becomes available.
Still have a question?
Send it through and we’ll follow up. You can also call our team on 1300 729 839.
We may also add answers to common questions to the Reform Hub, helping other Partners find the information they need. Any answers we share will be anonymous, with no identifying details.
Interested in using our Direct Employ service?
Support works best when it’s built on relationships you already have.
Direct Employ lets you turn trusted relationships into ongoing Support Worker arrangements, with over 15 years of payroll, compliance and employment expertise supporting you behind the scenes.