What the guidelines are
The NDIS Act and NDIS rules are the law. They are written in legal language and leave a lot to judgement. The NDIA's guidelines explain, in plain English, how its staff and partners apply that law when they make decisions about you.
The NDIA used to publish long documents called Operational Guidelines. These were rewritten into a set called Our Guidelines, with clearer language and more explanation of how decisions are made. Many people still use the old name, so you will see both.
Where to find them now
Our Guidelines used to have their own website, ourguidelines.ndis.gov.au. That site was retired on 4 September 2025. All the guidelines and the Would we fund it documents moved to the main NDIS website, under Our guidelines, which the NDIA now treats as the single source of truth.
Old links to the separate site may still turn up in reports, letters and search results. If a link does not work, search the NDIS website for the guideline's title.
What they cover
The guidelines follow your journey through the scheme, plus guides to specific types of support. Common topics include:
- Applying to the NDIS, including the disability and early intervention requirements
- Creating your plan, and how the NDIA decides what is reasonable and necessary
- Changing your plan, through a variation or reassessment
- Managing your funding: self managed, plan managed or agency managed
- Nominees, child representatives and supported decision making
- Supports such as assistive technology, home modifications, home and living, transport and employment
- Would we fund it guides for specific items, such as assistance animals, explaining what the NDIA generally will and will not fund
Guidelines are not the law
A guideline cannot override the Act or the NDIS rules. If a guideline and the law disagree, the law applies, and a reviewer or the Administrative Review Tribunal must follow the law.
Guidelines also lag behind changes. The 2026 reforms, such as support determinations, tighter unscheduled reassessment rules and new framework planning from 1 April 2027, mean some guidelines are being updated. Check the date on the page, and compare it with the change you care about.
How to use them in a request or review
Quoting the NDIA's own guideline back to it is one of the most effective things you can do, because it shows your request fits the way the agency says it decides. Some tips:
- Name the guideline and the section heading, and quote the exact sentence that supports your case
- Ask your therapist to link their recommendations to the same guideline wording
- If a decision seems to go against a guideline, say so plainly in your review request
- Keep a copy or screenshot with the date, as pages can change
- Remember the Would we fund it guides describe what is usually funded. Your own evidence can still show why something is reasonable and necessary for you
For providers
Read the guideline for any support you deliver, along with the NDIS Pricing Arrangements. Reports that use the guideline's language, such as how a support meets each reasonable and necessary criterion, are easier for planners to act on and help your clients get the right funding.