To be eligible for the NDIS, you’ll need to meet our requirements for:

• age: you need to be younger than 65 on the day you apply

• residency: you need to live in Australia, and be an Australian citizen, permanent resident or Protected Special Category Visa holder

• residency or early intervention: you need to have a permanent disability that impacts your daily life. Or, evidence that early access to supports means you’ll need less supports later.

You can use the eligibility checklist on the NDIS website to see if you might be eligible. For more information, you can read Guideline – Applying to the NDIS on the NDIS website.

To decide if you’re eligible for the NDIS, they will need information and evidence about you, your disability, and how it impacts your daily life.

Evidence of your age and residency

The easiest way to show you meet these requirements is to give them consent to check your Centrelink record. They will only use this to check your age and residency.

Otherwise, you can give them copies of your official documents:

• To check your age, they can use your birth certificate, passport, driver’s license, or proof of age card.

• To check your residency, they can use your Australian birth certificate, Australian citizenship or naturalisation certificate, or a passport or travel document, including a valid visa.

Evidence of your disability and functional capacity

The NDIS need evidence about your disability and how it impacts your daily life. This can include assessments, reports and written statements.

The types of assessments and evidence they will need will depend on your disability. You can read about types of disability evidence on the NDIS website for common examples.

Your NDIS contact can help you understand what evidence you’ll need and support you to gather it.

Who can provide evidence of disability?

Evidence of your disability should come from your treating health professional. For example, this might be your GP, paediatrician, or neurologist. Usually, they need evidence from someone who is the most appropriately qualified person to provide evidence of your primary disability and has treated you for at least 6 months.

Your primary disability is the disability that has the most impact on your daily life.

The best person to provide evidence will depend on your primary disability. You can use our guide for types of disability evidence on the NDIS website for common examples.

Your early childhood partner can provide evidence for children younger than 6 with developmental delay.

The NDIS has more information on the NDIS website that can help your treating professionals provide good evidence.

Once you apply, the NDIS will decide if you are eligible or ask for more information within 21 days. They will contact you to let you know if you are eligible, how they made the decision, and any next steps.

If you are eligible, you’ll become an NDIS participant. They will set up a plan meeting with you to talk about your goals and support needs. Then, they will work with you to create your NDIS plan.

If you are not eligible to become an NDIS participant, they will explain why and your review rights.

They can keep supporting you even if you aren’t eligible for the NDIS. If you want, they can provide community connections or early connections. If your situation changes or you get new information, you can apply again in the future.

For more information about applying to the NDIS, visit ndis.gov.au.