Who they apply to
Since 1 July 2026, providers of supported independent living must be registered with the NDIS Quality and Safeguards Commission under registration group 0138, assistance with supported independent living. Registered SIL providers need certification audits and must comply with the core module of the NDIS Practice Standards, the new SIL module, and all other conditions of registration.
Unregistered providers already delivering SIL had to apply for registration before 1 October 2026 to keep delivering while their application is assessed. It is not SIL if a person only gets a few hours of support a day or week, or chooses and manages their own workers.
The four standards
- Supported decision making: each participant is supported to understand and make genuine decisions about the supports delivered in their home and their access to the community, with accessible information and decision making support
- Safeguarding: each participant lives in a safe, respectful and supportive home, with safeguards that reduce harm at home and in the community
- Practice governance: workers have the training, knowledge and skills, and guidance on evidence informed practice, to deliver safe, high quality support tailored to each person
- Agreements about tenancy, housing and support arrangements: where a provider is also the landlord, participants understand how their tenancy and service agreements interact, and can exercise their tenancy rights
What providers need to show
Each standard has quality indicators that auditors check. Examples include:
- Policies on supported decision making, and worker training with refreshers
- Policies that balance dignity of risk with safety, with participants involved in safeguarding discussions
- Workers trained in de escalation, trauma informed practice and positive behaviour support, able to respond to bullying, conflict and harm between residents
- Training and assessed competence in person centred practice, active support and supported decision making
- Consultation with residents before a new tenant moves in, and matching people with housemates they feel safe living with
- Separate service and tenancy agreements when one provider delivers both, with conflict of interest policies and ways to raise concerns without fear of retribution
- Emergency arrangements that are coordinated, rehearsed and tailored to each person in shared living
Why they were introduced
SIL was identified as a higher risk support because people often rely on one provider for their daily care, and sometimes their home as well. The SIL standards focus on the voice, rights and freedoms of participants in their own homes, rather than only on organisational systems.
Resources from the NDIS Commission
The Commission has published the SIL Practice Standards and Quality Indicators, an Evidence Guide for Providers and Workers with practical examples, a glossary, and Reflective Questions for Participants in plain English and Easy Read. Its 2026 regulatory reform webinar series also covers the standards.
Using the participant reflective questions with residents is a practical way to check how your service feels from the inside before an auditor asks.
What participants and families can ask
- Is the provider registered for group 0138, or did it apply before 1 October 2026?
- How am I supported to make my own decisions about my home and daily life?
- Was I asked before a new housemate moved in?
- If you are also my landlord, can I see my separate tenancy agreement?
- How do I raise a concern, and who outside the provider can help me?