NDIS legislation changes passed Parliament on 19 August 2026, and the first measures are already in force. The National Disability Insurance Scheme Amendment (Securing the NDIS for Future Generations) Act 2026 received Royal Assent the next day, according to the Department of Health, Disability and Ageing.
What the new Act is aiming at
The Bill was introduced on 14 May 2026. A Senate committee report tabled on 14 August recommended it be passed, and Parliament did that five days later.
The department says the Act amends the National Disability Insurance Scheme Act 2013 and focuses on three things: clarifying eligibility and the supports the NDIS funds, addressing fraud within the scheme, and updating governance and administrative arrangements. The NDIS legislation changes are being phased in, with some parts already running and others not due until 2028.
The rules that started on 27 August
The department’s timeline says some of the NDIS legislation changes began seven days after Royal Assent, on 27 August 2026. They are:
- tighter criteria for unscheduled plan reassessments
- new claims record retention requirements
- stronger compliance, enforcement and information gathering powers
- stronger penalties for fraud and other serious wrongdoing
- the Minister becoming the NDIS pricing decision-maker
NDIS legislation changes: the dates to put in the diary
The department’s timeline lists these start dates for the later NDIS legislation changes:
- 1 October 2026: a new plan variation pathway opens for participants with high support needs, and Thriving Kids begins rolling out
- 27 November 2026: a ban on providers offering kickbacks and inducements begins
- 1 February 2027: changes to plan rollovers begin, along with tighter reasonable and necessary criteria
- 27 February 2027: new rules about debt recovery begin
- 1 April 2027: the transition to new framework planning begins
- 1 July 2027: registration for providers of higher risk supports rolls out, a new enrolment system for NDIS providers starts, and new whistleblower protections begin
- 1 October 2027: a new panel of plan management providers begins
- 1 January 2028: access changes begin for new applicants over 9 and for applicants aged 0 to 8, and existing participants start to be reassessed against the new criteria
- 1 July 2028: a new support coordination and connection function begins
Where the 2024 overhaul fits in
The 2026 Act builds on an earlier amendment, “Getting the NDIS back on track”, which became law from 3 October 2024, according to the National Disability Insurance Agency. Those NDIS legislation changes covered access criteria, limits on how many access requests a person can have at one time, funding periods, claim time limits and who can self-manage funding.
From 1 January 2025, people who apply for the NDIS receive a notice of impairment categories explaining how their impairments were used in the eligibility decision. The agency’s summary page also says that provisions letting it ask a participant for information or an assessment before withdrawing their status are in law but were not yet implemented.
A new way of planning from April 2027
The agency says the new planning approach starts rolling out from April 2027. Plans will include a flexible budget and a small number of stated supports, which participants must use only for those supports.
Budgets will be based on a support needs assessment. The agency describes it as a guided conversation with a trained assessor that looks at different areas of everyday life. The department’s timeline says consultation on the new framework planning rules began on 19 August 2026, and the agency says those rules are still being developed.
These NDIS legislation changes will reach different participants at different times, so check the department’s timeline for the dates that apply to you.
Related: NDIS reforms began 1 October: budget reductions and plan suspensions
General information only, not legal advice. Check the official source before acting.
Sources: Department of Health, Disability and Ageing; Securing the NDIS for future generations timeline; National Disability Insurance Agency.
