Plain language, no jargon
Understanding your NDIS plan
The NDIS is genuinely complicated, and nobody should have to become an expert in it just to get support. Here is what actually matters, explained the way we would explain it at your kitchen table.
The three budgets in a plan
Almost every NDIS plan is divided into three budgets. Knowing which one funds what saves an enormous amount of confusion.
1. Core Supports
The most flexible budget, and where most everyday supports come from. It covers assistance with daily life (personal care, household tasks, meal preparation), social and community participation, consumables, and transport. In most plans, funding can be moved fairly freely between the Core categories.
2. Capacity Building
Funding aimed at building your skills and independence over time. This is where nursing assessments, care planning, therapy, support coordination and skill development usually sit. Unlike Core, this budget is generally locked to its specific category.
3. Capital Supports
Assistive technology, equipment and home modifications — wheelchairs, hoists, bathroom modifications. This funding is tied to specific approved items and cannot be redirected.
How your plan is managed
There are three ways your funding can be managed, and it directly affects which providers you can use.
| Management type | Who pays invoices | Can you use Kalgi Care? |
|---|---|---|
| NDIA-managed | The NDIA pays providers directly through the myplace portal | Yes — we are a registered provider, which NDIA-managed plans require |
| Plan-managed | A plan manager pays invoices from your budget on your behalf | Yes — we invoice your plan manager directly |
| Self-managed | You pay providers and claim back from the NDIA | Yes — we invoice you and provide everything you need to claim |
Why registration matters
Any provider can call themselves an NDIS provider. Only registered providers are audited against the NDIS Practice Standards by an approved quality auditor and regulated by the NDIS Quality and Safeguards Commission.
- NDIA-managed participants must use registered providers. There is no way around this.
- Some supports require registration regardless of plan management — including high intensity daily personal activities and specialist behaviour support.
- Registered providers must hold worker screening clearances for every worker, maintain incident and complaints systems, and meet documented clinical governance requirements.
Kalgi Care is registered under provider number 4-LYEVJIZ.
What supports can be funded
For the NDIS to fund a support, it generally must be:
- Related to your disability
- Related to a goal in your plan
- Reasonable and necessary, and represent value for money
- Not something more appropriately funded by another system, such as Medicare, the hospital system or public housing
That last point is where nursing supports most often get confusing. Broadly, nursing care that relates to your disability and your daily functioning is NDIS-funded, while acute or episodic medical treatment belongs to the health system. If you are unsure which side of the line your situation falls on, ask us — it is a question we answer often.
Getting a plan review
If your needs have changed, or your plan does not fund what you actually require, you can request a plan reassessment from the NDIA. Clinical evidence makes a substantial difference to these requests, and a nursing assessment and written report from a Registered Nurse is exactly the kind of evidence that carries weight.
We can provide that assessment and report, and we will be honest with you about whether we think a reassessment is likely to succeed.
Official NDIS contacts
NDIS general enquiries: 1800 800 110
NDIS Quality and Safeguards Commission: 1800 035 544
Website: ndis.gov.au
This page is general information only and is not a substitute for advice from the NDIA about your individual plan.