NDIS service agreements: what to include and when you need one

What is an NDIS service agreement?

A service agreement is an agreement between you and your provider. It describes what you have both agreed about your NDIS supports. It's separate from your NDIS plan, and it isn't the same as a service booking or a tenancy agreement.

The NDIA says service agreements are there to protect you. They give you and your provider a shared understanding of your rights and responsibilities, and they say what happens if something goes wrong.

Neither the NDIA nor the NDIS Quality and Safeguards Commission is a party to your agreement. They don't keep copies and can't enforce what's in it, so keep your own copy.

What should a service agreement include?

The NDIA lists what a good service agreement covers. Use it as a checklist:

• You and your provider: names, contact details, any representative such as a guardian, and your goals and NDIS plan.
• Your supports and costs: for each support, the category, the item name or number, a description, the quantity or hours, the unit price, the total cost and any GST. It should also say how, where and how often you'll get each support, and list extra charges such as travel.
• Dates and reviews: when the agreement starts and ends, and when it will be reviewed.
• How you'll work together: your provider's responsibilities, your rights and your responsibilities, such as paying invoices on time and telling the provider if your needs or plan change.
• Cultural safety: information in a way that works for you, an interpreter if you need one, and the choice to involve family, carers or community.
• Cancellations: any cancellation fees, how much notice you need to give, and what happens if the provider cancels, pauses or replaces a support. Our guide to the NDIS cancellation policy explains the rules.
• Changing or ending it: that the agreement can change if your needs change, and how to end it, including the notice you need to give.
• Complaints: what to do if you're unhappy, how to raise a concern, and who to contact if it isn't fixed.

You can ask for the agreement in a format you like and in words you understand, and ask the provider to arrange an interpreter. The NDIA and the NDIS Commission made a service agreement template you can use, but you don't have to. The template is a guide, not legal advice.

Service agreements and GST

Supports from a GST-registered provider to an NDIS participant may be GST-free. The ATO says this applies only when all four of these are true:

1. you have an NDIS plan in effect;
2. the support is a reasonable and necessary support in the statement of supports in your plan;
3. there is a written agreement between the provider and you (or another person, such as your plan manager, the NDIA, a guardian or a relative);
4. the support is covered by the GST-free NDIS Determination (the A New Tax System (Goods and Services Tax) (GST-free Supply—National Disability Insurance Scheme Supports) Determination 2021).

For GST, the written agreement must identify you as the participant and say that the support is one of the reasonable and necessary supports in your plan. It can be a single document or a mix of documents, such as letters, emails and invoices.

If your plan sets an amount of support, any support beyond that amount isn't a GST-free NDIS supply. This is general information from the ATO, not tax advice.

How to change or end a service agreement

• Small changes: can be added as a variation, an extra document attached to the original agreement.
• Big changes: the NDIA recommends a new agreement for new or significantly changed supports, a new provider, or a new NDIS plan. You may also need a new one if the old agreement has passed its end date.
• Ending it: your agreement says how many days' notice you need to give. If you don't give the agreed notice, a fee may apply under the NDIS pricing rules. Ask the provider if they have a form or process for ending the agreement, and make sure no payments are outstanding.
• Tell people: let your support coordinator or plan manager know, and check who will end the service booking or provider relationship in the participant portal.

Common questions

Is a service agreement required for the NDIS?

Only for SDA. The NDIA says you must have a service agreement with your SDA provider. It's encouraged for SIL and recommended when you start with any new provider.

Is a service agreement the same as a service booking?

No. A service agreement is what you and your provider agree about your supports. A service booking or provider relationship in the participant portal is separate, and so is your NDIS plan.

Does the NDIA keep a copy of my service agreement?

No. The NDIA and the NDIS Commission aren't part of service agreements, don't keep records of them and can't enforce them. Keep your own copy.

Can my SIL provider also be my landlord?

It can happen, but the NDIS Commission's SIL Practice Standards say the service agreement and the tenancy agreement must be separate, and your tenancy can't depend on using that provider for SIL.

Do I need a service agreement for supports to be GST-free?

The ATO requires a written agreement for an NDIS supply to be GST-free. It can be one document or several, such as letters and invoices, as long as it identifies you and says the support is a reasonable and necessary support in your plan.

Can a provider charge me for phone calls, emails or reports?

Check your service agreement before you sign. The NDIA says it should list each support with its item number, quantity or hours, unit price and total, plus any extra charges, such as travel. If a charge isn't explained, ask before you agree. We go through our prices, including any travel, before support starts and write them into your agreement.

Can I ask for an itemised invoice?

Yes. You can ask any provider to explain what you've been charged. Your service agreement should already list the item numbers, hours and prices for each support, so you can compare the two. Our invoices show the date, start and finish times, support item and price for each support. Ask your plan manager about any line you don't recognise.

Can my provider put prices up partway through my agreement?

For NDIA-managed and plan-managed participants, a provider can't charge more than the maximum prices in the NDIS pricing schedule.

Bigger changes should be agreed in a variation or a new agreement, and the NDIA says you should have time to read it, get help, and say no or ask for changes. We charge within the maximum prices, with no hidden fees.