What the NDIS Review was
The Independent Review of the NDIS was announced at Parliament House on 18 October 2022 and started work that month. An independent panel, co chaired by Professor Bruce Bonyhady and Lisa Paul, was asked to look at how to improve participants' experience and outcomes, and how to make the scheme sustainable for the long term.
The panel consulted widely with people with disability, families, providers and governments. Its final report, Working together to deliver the NDIS, was released on 7 December 2023.
The big recommendations
The report made 26 recommendations with 139 detailed actions, designed to work as one package. The main themes were:
- A new system of foundational supports for people with disability outside the NDIS, alongside more inclusive mainstream services
- A navigator role, someone who works for you, to replace the current mix of local area coordinators, support coordinators and other connector roles
- Access based on the impact of your disability on daily life, not on diagnosis alone, with the NDIS paying for any assessments needed to apply
- Budgets set from a comprehensive support needs assessment by a trained assessor, then more flexibility in how you spend your budget
- Fairer, clearer options for housing and living supports
- Risk proportionate regulation, so every provider is visible to the regulators, with requirements matched to the risk of the support
- A new electronic payments system to make it easier to spot overcharging and fraud
The timeline it proposed
The panel recommended a staged, careful transition over five years, with participants given at least two years before being asked to meet new access requirements or complete a support needs assessment. It also said changes to access and budget setting should be introduced together, and only once foundational supports were in place.
What has happened since
Governments have acted on many of the ideas, though not always in the exact form the Review proposed:
- The Getting the NDIS Back on Track Act 2024 started on 3 October 2024, creating lists of NDIS supports, funding periods and the legal basis for new framework plans
- An NDIS Provider and Worker Registration Taskforce was set up in February 2024 and gave its advice on risk proportionate registration in August 2024
- The National Agreement on Foundational Supports started on 2 February 2026, and Thriving Kids began rolling out on 1 October 2026
- SIL providers and NDIS digital platforms had to be registered from 1 July 2026
- The Securing the NDIS for Future Generations reforms brought the October 2026 funding reset, tighter reassessment rules and the kickbacks ban
What is still coming
- 1 April 2027: new framework planning starts, with budgets set from a support needs assessment
- 1 July 2027: mandatory registration expands to higher risk supports and provider enrolment begins
- 1 January 2028: new access rules based on functional capacity, with current participants reassessed over 3 years
- 1 July 2028: a new support coordination and connection service replaces support coordination funded from plans
- 31 December 2030: everyone moved to new framework plans
What it means for you
If you are a participant, the Review explains why your plan, your assessments and the people who help you are all changing at once. Each change has its own start date, so check the specific reform rather than assuming everything changes together.
If you are a provider, the Review is the source of the registration, enrolment and payment changes. Reading its quality and safeguards chapter helps you understand where regulation is heading over the next few years.