A plan reassessment decides what your funding looks like for the next year or more. It usually takes under an hour, and most participants walk in without having prepared — which is how plans end up the same as last time, or smaller.
This guide covers what happens at a reassessment, what to bring, how to ask for more funding, and what to do if the outcome is wrong.
What is an NDIS plan review?
A plan reassessment — still widely called a plan review — is the meeting where your current plan is looked at and your next one is decided. It covers what has changed, whether your goals are still right, and what supports are reasonable and necessary going forward.
It is not an audit. Nobody is trying to catch you out. But it is a decision-making meeting, and the quality of the decision depends almost entirely on the information you bring to it.
When does a plan reassessment happen?
Towards the end of your current plan. The NDIA contacts you beforehand to arrange it, though how far in advance varies. You can also request an early reassessment if your circumstances have changed materially.
If your plan is close to ending and nobody has been in touch, call the NDIA rather than waiting. Plans can be extended automatically, which is not harmful in itself but delays any change you were hoping for.
How do you prepare for a plan reassessment?
Work out in advance what you want the next plan to contain, and bring evidence for each part of it. The single most useful thing you can do is arrive with specific supports, their costs, and the goal each one serves.
A practical checklist:
- Review your goals. Are they still right? Our guide to NDIS goals has examples to adapt.
- Look at what you spent. Which categories ran out, and which went unused? Both matter, for opposite reasons.
- Collect reports. Therapy reports, provider progress notes, letters from your GP or support coordinator.
- List what did not work. A support that was funded but unusable is important information.
- Name what you want next, with prices. Specific programs, specific costs.
- Write down what a bad day looks like. Planners can only account for what they are told about.
What should you bring to the meeting?
Your current plan, any reports from providers or therapists, a written list of what you want and what it costs, and somebody you trust to be there with you.
That last one makes a real difference. A plan meeting covers a lot of ground quickly, and having a second person to take notes and prompt you about things you meant to raise is worth more than any document.
How do you ask for more funding?
Connect each request to a goal, and give a reason the support is reasonable and necessary. A request without that connection is easy to decline; a request with it has to be argued with.
What makes a request land:
- It pursues a goal in the plan. This is the legal test, so lead with it.
- It is specific. A named program, a number of sessions, a price.
- It is supported by evidence. A therapist’s recommendation carries considerable weight.
- It explains what happens without it. Decline, isolation, carer strain or hospital admissions are all relevant.
- It is proportionate. Requests that are plainly reasonable get approved far more often than ambitious ones.
Why did my plan funding get cut?
The most common reason is unspent funding. If a category went largely unused, the NDIA can reasonably read that as evidence it was not needed — and reduce it accordingly, regardless of why it went unspent.
The frustrating part is that funding often goes unspent for reasons that have nothing to do with need: no provider available, no support coordinator to set it up, or nobody explaining what the category was for. None of that is visible in the spending data.
If this applies to you, say so explicitly at the meeting. “We could not find a provider” is a completely different story from “we did not need it”, and only one of them is in the numbers.
What if you disagree with the outcome?
You can ask for an internal review of the decision. There is a time limit — currently three months from being notified — so the first step is to act promptly rather than to build a perfect case.
Beyond an internal review, there is a further right of external review. A support coordinator, advocate or your plan manager can help with both, and free advocacy services exist in every state.
Check the current process and timeframes at ndis.gov.au, as the details change.
What to do straight after the meeting
Write down what was discussed and what you were told, while it is fresh. When the new plan arrives, check it against those notes before you do anything else.
Specifically, check that each category you asked for is there, that the amounts are enough for what you discussed, and that the goals are worded the way you wanted. Mistakes do happen, and they are much easier to raise in the first weeks than months later.