Last updated: 5 November 2026
If you’re wondering how to change NDIS provider, the short answer is this: line up a new provider first, give your current provider the notice your service agreement asks for, then tell your plan manager or support coordinator and update the my NDIS portal. You don’t need the NDIA’s permission to switch. It’s your plan and your choice. Below we cover where to look, what to check and how to switch without a gap.
Key takeaways
- Find and meet your new provider before you end things with your current one, so support doesn’t stop.
- Check the NDIS Commission’s provider register and its compliance and enforcement search before you sign anything.
- NDIA-managed funding can only be spent with registered providers. Self-managed and plan-managed funding can usually use either.
- Supported Independent Living (SIL) providers now need to be registered with the NDIS Commission, or have applied before 1 October 2026.
- Your service agreement sets the notice period. Give notice in writing and keep a copy.
- If you live in SIL, your tenancy is a separate agreement. Changing your SIL provider shouldn’t cost you your home.
Contents
- Where can you find an NDIS provider?
- How do you check a provider is safe and registered?
- Registered vs unregistered providers: which can you use?
- Questions to ask before you sign
- How to change NDIS provider, step by step
- Switching SIL providers without losing your home
- Your rights, complaints and exit fees
- Switching to Skillwise in Western Sydney
- Frequently asked questions
Where can you find an NDIS provider?
The best places to find an NDIS provider are the NDIA’s Provider Finder, your local area coordinator (LAC) or support coordinator, and people you trust.
The NDIA’s Provider Finder lets you search by suburb or postcode and shows each provider’s website, phone, email and suburb (NDIS: How to find and choose a provider). It’s a starting list, not a recommendation.
This table shows who can help you find a provider and what each one is good for.
| Where to look | What it’s good for |
|---|---|
| NDIA Provider Finder | A list of registered providers near your postcode |
| NDIS Commission provider register | Confirming a provider’s registration status |
| Local area coordinator (LAC) | Ideas for local providers and help using your plan |
| Support coordinator | Shortlisting, making contact and setting up agreements |
| Friends and family | Honest feedback on how a provider operates |
The NDIA says your NDIS contact, support coordinator or recovery coach can help you research providers that fit your goals (NDIS). Our guide on support coordination vs plan management explains who does what.
How do you check a provider is safe and registered?
Check two free NDIS Commission tools: the provider register and the compliance and enforcement actions search.
The NDIS Commission provider register shows providers that are currently registered, and those whose registration has been suspended or revoked. For banning orders, use the compliance and enforcement actions search, which lists banning orders, compliance notices, suspensions, revocations and enforceable undertakings against both organisations and individual workers.
A lot of families skip this step. Search the company name, its trading name and the director’s name, and try a couple of spellings.
Registered vs unregistered providers: which can you use?
It depends on how your plan is managed. If your funding is NDIA-managed, you must use registered providers. If you’re self-managed or plan-managed, you can usually use either registered or unregistered providers (NDIS).
There are exceptions. Specialist behaviour support, plan management and specialist disability accommodation (SDA) must come from registered providers whatever your plan type. SIL is now in that group too: since 1 October 2026, only providers that are registered with the NDIS Commission, or applied before that date, can deliver it (NDIS Commission: Mandatory registration for SIL).
This table shows which providers each plan management type can use in late 2026.
| Support | NDIA-managed | Plan-managed | Self-managed |
|---|---|---|---|
| Most everyday supports | Registered only | Registered or unregistered | Registered or unregistered |
| Supported Independent Living | Registered only | Registered only (from 1 October 2026) | Registered only (from 1 October 2026) |
| Specialist behaviour support | Registered only | Registered only | Registered only |
| SDA | Registered only | Registered only | Registered only |
More change is coming. The Government has said mandatory registration will widen to other higher-risk supports, such as personal care and daily living supports, from 1 July 2027, and plan managers will need to be on an NDIA panel from 1 October 2027 (Department of Health, Disability and Ageing: Provider FAQs). These dates may still change as legislation passes. If you’re new to the reforms, our post on the new NDIS planning framework is a good primer.
Questions to ask before you sign
Ask every new provider the same set of questions so you can compare them fairly. The NDIA suggests meeting providers before you start, and says you can negotiate the supports, costs, payment method and how the agreement can change (NDIS).
These are the questions we’d ask for our own family.
| Ask this | Why it matters |
|---|---|
| Are you registered, and for which supports? | Tells you if NDIA-managed funds can be used |
| Who will my regular workers be? | Consistency is what most people care about |
| What happens if my worker is sick? | Shows how they cover gaps |
| What are your prices per hour? | Check against the NDIS price limits |
| What notice do I need to give to leave? | You may want to switch again one day |
| How do I make a complaint? | A good provider answers this easily |
Read the agreement before you sign it. Our guide to the NDIS service agreement walks through each clause, including notice periods and cancellations.
How to change NDIS provider, step by step
To change NDIS provider, sign with the new provider first, then give written notice to the old one, settle any invoices, and tell your plan manager and support coordinator. The NDIA’s own process follows the same order (NDIS: How to change providers).
Use this checklist to track each step as you switch NDIS providers.
| Step | What to do | Done? |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Talk first | Raise concerns with your current provider. Sometimes it can be fixed. | ☐ |
| 2. Check your agreement | Find the notice period and any cancellation terms. | ☐ |
| 3. Find a new provider | Shortlist, check the register, meet them. | ☐ |
| 4. Sign the new agreement | Agree a start date that overlaps or follows on directly. | ☐ |
| 5. Give written notice | Email or letter to the old provider, keep a copy. | ☐ |
| 6. Settle invoices | Check nothing is outstanding. | ☐ |
| 7. Tell your team | Plan manager, support coordinator, LAC. | ☐ |
| 8. Update the portal | End the old my provider relationship or service booking, add the new one. | ☐ |
| 9. Hand over information | Share plans and routines with the new provider, with your consent. | ☐ |
How do you avoid a gap in support?
Don’t give notice until your new provider confirms a start date. The NDIA says to find your new provider before you leave your current one so supports aren’t interrupted (NDIS).
What about service bookings and the my NDIS portal?
If your funding is NDIA-managed, your provider must be linked to your plan before they can claim: a service booking in myplace on older plans, or a my provider relationship in the my NDIS portal on newer ones. Ask your old provider whether they’ll end it or whether you should, then accept the new provider’s request. You can also change or remove providers by calling the NDIA on 1800 800 110 (NDIS).
Telling your plan manager
If you’re plan-managed, email your plan manager with the old provider’s end date and the new provider’s details. The Government also plans to cut the window for claiming plan supports to 90 days from 1 December 2026 (Department of Health, Disability and Ageing), so ask for final invoices promptly.
Getting your records handed over
Ask your old provider for copies of support plans, risk assessments, mealtime plans and medication information. Under privacy law you generally have a right to ask an organisation for the personal information it holds about you (OAIC).
A tip from our team: put your notice in an email, even if you’ve said it on the phone. A dated email settles when notice started.
Switching SIL providers without losing your home
Yes, you can change your SIL provider and stay in your home. The NDIS Commission says tenancy and SIL support should be covered by separate agreements, and your tenancy shouldn’t depend on getting services from a particular provider (NDIS Commission: Tenancy, housing and support arrangements).
This is the part most families find confusing. Your housing provider (often an SDA provider) and your SIL provider can be two different organisations. Even when one company does both, there should be two agreements. If anyone suggests you’ll have to move out because you’re changing support providers, ask them to put that in writing and contact an advocate or the NDIS Commission.
SIL changes take more planning than other switches, because housemates and rosters are affected. Our posts on what SIL is and how it works and SIL vs SDA vs ILO explain how the housing and support pieces fit together.
Your rights, complaints and exit fees
You have the right to choose who provides your supports, and to complain if something goes wrong. Providers who stop services are told by the NDIS Commission that participants “must be able to decide who provides their supports” (NDIS Commission).
Making a complaint
Start with the provider if you feel safe doing that. If it isn’t resolved, or you’d rather not raise it with them, contact the NDIS Quality and Safeguards Commission on 1800 035 544 or use its online form (NDIS Commission: Make a complaint).
Exit fees and cancellation charges
The NDIA’s guidance doesn’t describe a separate “exit fee”. What it does say is that you may be charged a cancellation fee if you end an agreement without giving the agreed notice, and that the NDIS Pricing Arrangements and Price Limits set when providers can claim those fees (NDIS). Query any charge that isn’t in your signed agreement before anyone pays. The service agreement guide covers what reasonable notice and cancellation terms look like.
Switching to Skillwise in Western Sydney
If you’re thinking about changing providers in Western Sydney, we’re happy to talk it through. Skillwise Disability Services is a registered NDIS provider (Registration ID 4-JRM2YF0) and we work with self-managed, plan-managed and NDIA-managed plans.
We support people with Supported Independent Living, community participation and support coordination and life transitions. You can see the suburbs we cover on our Western Sydney locations page.
Call us on 0474 151 264 or send us a message.
Frequently asked questions
Do I need NDIA approval to change providers?
No. You don’t need the NDIA’s permission to change providers. You do need to follow the notice period in your service agreement, and if your funding is NDIA-managed, your new provider must be registered and linked to your plan through the my NDIS portal or a service booking before they can claim.
How much notice do I have to give my NDIS provider?
It depends on your service agreement. There’s no single notice period for every provider, so check the “ending this agreement” or cancellation section of yours. Give notice in writing, keep a copy, and line up your new provider’s start date to begin as soon as the notice period ends.
Can I switch NDIS providers in the middle of my plan?
Yes. You can change providers at any time during your plan. Your funding stays in your plan. The only things to manage are your notice period, any final invoices from the old provider, and updating your plan manager or the my NDIS portal.
Can I use an unregistered provider?
Yes, if your plan is self-managed or plan-managed, for most supports. NDIA-managed funding must go to registered providers. Some supports always need a registered provider, including specialist behaviour support, SDA and, from 1 October 2026, Supported Independent Living. Check the register before you sign.
Will changing my SIL provider mean I have to move house?
It shouldn’t. The NDIS Commission expects tenancy and SIL support to be under separate agreements, and your tenancy shouldn’t depend on using a particular provider. If someone says you’ll have to move because you’re changing support, ask for it in writing and contact an advocate or the NDIS Commission.
Support near you in Western Sydney
Skillwise is based in Rooty Hill and supports NDIS participants across the region. Read about our NDIS support in Blacktown, NDIS support in Mount Druitt, NDIS support in Rooty Hill and NDIS support in St Marys, or see all the areas we cover.
