Thinking about getting NDIS registered as an occupational therapist? Here’s what the process looks like.
Registration is currently optional for occupational therapists delivering therapeutic supports, and you can work with self-managed and plan-managed participants without it. However, registration opens the door to working with agency-managed participants, who can only use registered providers. It also signals to potential clients that your practice meets the NDIS Practice Standards.
For occupational therapists delivering therapy under 0128 Therapeutic Supports, you’ll complete a Verification audit as part of the registration process. This is a desktop review of your evidence and documentation, thankfully not an expensive, week-long site audit! However, OTs have a range of other registration groups available to them, and some of those additions change your audit pathway significantly.
NDIS Registration for Occupational Therapists
Registration Groups Available to OTs
It’s worth understanding what each registration group actually covers before you decide what to register for in your application.
0128 Therapeutic Supports: generally, this is the core group for OT practice. This covers assessment, therapy, and capacity building, including functional assessments, employment-related assessments, home modification assessments, AT assessments and prescription, and capacity building for daily living. The OT-specific line items within 0128 are what you’ll be billing for your professional time across virtually everything you do as an OT, including any home modification assessment work and AT reports. Selecting only this group places you on the Verification audit pathway.
0111 Home Modifications: this one is worth understanding clearly, because it often causes confusion. Looking at the actual support items under 0111, they are almost entirely trade and construction work: installation of ramps, structural bathroom modifications, hoists, stair lifts, elevator installations, flooring modifications, door automations, building works project management. This group is primarily for builders, tradespeople, and construction professionals doing the actual modification works.
OTs do play an important role in home modifications, particularly as qualified assessors for complex modifications, but how that assessment work is registered and billed is worth clarifying with your auditor before you apply. Most OTs delivering therapy and assessment work shouldn’t need 0111 registration, but if home modifications are a significant part of your practice, it’s worth getting clear on what’s required for your specific situation.
0135 Customised Prosthetics: covers assessment and prescription of customised prosthetic and orthotic devices. This stays within the Verification pathway, though auditors will expect evidence of experience relevant to the specific technology involved.
There are also higher-risk registration groups that OTs may wish to access. More info on these below, as they change your audit pathway entirely.
Verification vs Certification
There are two types of NDIS audits: Verification and Certification.
Certification is for higher-risk services (like personal care, behaviour support, or SIL). It involves site visits, record reviews, and interviews with management, workers, and participants. Costs vary between auditors, but expect to budget $8,000–$12,000 as a starting point, and more if you’re adding supplementary modules.
Verification is for lower-risk services (like therapy, home modifications, and assistive technology). It’s a desktop audit, meaning the auditor reviews your documents remotely. Verification audits typically cost between $900 and $1,500.
Prices for both types of audits will differ depending on the auditor, noting that cheaper doesn’t always mean better.
For OTs selecting only 0128 Therapeutic Supports (with or without 0111 Home Modifications and/or 0135 Customised Prosthetics), Verification is the required pathway.
When Your Audit Pathway Changes
Early Childhood Supports (0118)
If you want to deliver early childhood early intervention services for children under 9, you’ll need to add registration group 0118 Early Childhood Supports.
It’s worth being clear on what this registration group actually covers, because the distinction matters. Delivering therapy to a 5-year-old under 0128 Therapeutic Supports is straightforward, you’re providing OT services to a child. The 0118 registration group is specifically about the early childhood early intervention service model: working as a key worker with the child and their family across home, community, and early childhood education settings, and building family capacity rather than just working directly with the child.
Adding 0118 triggers a Certification audit against the Core Module plus the Early Childhood Supports supplementary module. Budget $8,000–$12,000 for this audit pathway.
Specialist Behaviour Support (0110)
If you want to work as a Behaviour Support Practitioner (i.e. conducting functional behaviour assessments and developing behaviour support plans), you’ll need to add registration group 0110 Specialist Behaviour Support. This applies to OTs working in this clinical role regardless of whether those plans involve restrictive practices.
Adding 0110 triggers a Certification audit against the Core Module plus the Specialist Behaviour Support supplementary module. Again, $8,000–$12,000 is a reasonable starting point.
Specialist Support Coordination (0132)
OTs are one of the professions recognised as qualified to deliver Specialist Support Coordination, which is a higher-intensity support coordination role for participants with complex needs and high-level risks. If you want to deliver this service, you’ll need to add registration group 0132 Specialist Support Coordination.
Adding 0132 triggers a Certification audit against the Core Module plus the Specialist Support Coordination supplementary module. The same cost range applies.
None of this means you shouldn’t pursue these registration groups! But it’s good to understand the audit scope and cost implications before you apply. If you’re considering multiple higher-risk groups, it may be more cost-effective to register for all of them at once rather than going through separate audits as you add groups later.
If you’re weighing up whether to add these groups, our guide on the NDIS Certification vs Verification Audit explains the financial and operational differences.
The 4 Requirements for Verification
To pass a Verification audit, you need to demonstrate you have appropriate safeguarding processes in place for the NDIS participants you work with. The auditor will assess four areas:
Human Resource Management: Evidence of your qualifications, NDIS Worker Screening Check, right-to-work documentation, and insurance. For OTs, this means your current AHPRA registration with the Occupational Therapy Board of Australia, evidence of clinical supervision and professional development as required by Occupational Therapy Australia, and, if you’re registering for Customised Prosthetics, evidence of experience relevant to the specific technology you’re assessing or providing.
Incident Management: A clear process for what happens if something goes wrong. For OTs, this should reflect the actual incidents that can occur in your service context. For example, an adverse outcome from an AT prescription or home modification recommendation, a participant injury during a functional assessment, a disclosure of abuse or neglect, or a safeguarding concern. It shouldn’t read like it was written for a personal care provider.
Complaints Management: A simple, accessible process for clients to raise concerns and how you resolve them. Your AHPRA complaints obligations don’t replace this requirement, and you need a separate complaints process that meets the NDIS Practice Standards specifically, distinct from professional registration pathways.
Risk Management: How you identify and manage risks in your organisation and in your day-to-day work. For OTs, this should reflect the actual risk profile of your services: AT prescription and trial risks, liability from home modification recommendations, manual handling during functional capacity evaluations, community access and falls risk in assessment environments, etc. A risk register populated with generic personal care risks won’t reflect your practice or satisfy an auditor who understands OT.
Required Documents and Checks
Before you apply, gather the following evidence:
- AHPRA Registration: Current registration with the Occupational Therapy Board of Australia.
- Clinical Supervision and Professional Development: Evidence of supervision and CPD as required by Occupational Therapy Australia.
- Insurance: Professional indemnity insurance is essential. Public liability insurance is also required unless you’re delivering services entirely virtually and never see participants in person, make sure to discuss this with your auditor beforehand if you think it applies to you.
- NDIS Worker Screening Check: Required for all OTs delivering NDIS services, regardless of AHPRA registration.
- NDIS Worker Orientation Module: Certificate of completion for you and any staff.
- Infection Control and PPE Training: Yes, even in an office-based or clinic-based practice. You need evidence that you’ve considered infection control in your service environment.
- Operational Documents: Policies and procedures covering the four areas above. If you’re registering for Home Modifications, auditors will also want to see that your documentation reflects relevant experience with AS 1428 and disability access standards.
Common Mistakes OTs Make
Using generic templates
This is the most consistent issue we see across allied health audits. Most NDIS policy template packs are written to be as generic as possible. If your incident management policy covers manual handling transfers and vehicle transport but says nothing about adverse outcomes from AT prescription or home modification assessments, it doesn’t reflect your practice, and auditors will notice.
Assuming AHPRA handles complaints
Your AHPRA registration comes with its own complaints pathway, but this doesn’t satisfy the NDIS requirements. You need a separate, accessible complaints process that meets the NDIS Practice Standards, where participants can raise concerns directly with you and you can document how you receive, manage, and resolve them.
Generic risk registers
A risk register full of personal care risks isn’t appropriate for an OT practice, and it signals to auditors that the documentation wasn’t actually thought through. Your real risks look different: AT prescription and trial outcomes, liability from home modification recommendations, functional capacity evaluation in community settings, working in participants’ homes. Your risk register should reflect what you actually do.
Service agreements that miss NDIS requirements
If you’re coming from Medicare or private practice billing, your standard consent forms might not cover everything needed for an NDIS service agreement. You’ll need to address NDIS-specific elements: how pricing works under the NDIS Pricing Arrangements and Price Limits, your cancellation policy, how you handle different plan management types (Agency Managed, plan-managed, self-managed), and what happens when a participant’s plan is reviewed or funding changes.
The Registration Process
Step 1: Start Your Application Log in to the NDIS Commission Portal and start a New Application. Enter your business details and select your registration groups. If you’re starting with therapeutic supports only, that’s 0128 (and 0111 and/or 0135 if applicable). You’ll complete a self-assessment against the relevant NDIS Practice Standards.
Step 2: Receive Your Initial Scope of Audit Once you submit your application, the system generates an Initial Scope of Audit. This confirms whether you require a Verification or Certification audit. If you’ve selected only Verification-pathway groups, this document will confirm you’re on the Verification pathway.
Step 3: Engage an Approved Quality Auditor You must engage an independent Approved Quality Auditor (AQA) from the list published by the NDIS Commission. Send them your Initial Scope of Audit and request a quote for your audit.
Verification audits typically cost between $900 and $1,500 depending on the auditor.
Step 4: Submit Your Documents Your auditor will request your policies, insurance, AHPRA registration, screening checks, and other evidence. They’ll review everything against the NDIS Practice Standards and identify any gaps. If a major non-conformity is found, you’ll have up to 3 months to provide additional evidence before the auditor can finalise their report.
Step 5: The Decision Once the auditor completes their report, they submit their recommendation to the NDIS Commission. The Commission assesses your application and audit result, then makes the final decision on your registration.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do I need additional qualifications beyond my AHPRA registration?
For 0128 Therapeutic Supports, no, your current AHPRA registration as an occupational therapist, combined with evidence of clinical supervision and professional development, is what auditors need to see. For 0111 Home Modifications, you’ll need to demonstrate relevant experience with AS 1428 and disability access standards. For 0135 Customised Prosthetics, you’ll need evidence of experience relevant to the specific technology involved.
Can I charge more if I’m registered?
No. The NDIS Pricing Arrangements and Price Limits set maximum prices for OT services. Registration doesn’t change what you can charge, but it does expand your potential client base to include agency-managed participants, and it signals to referrers that your practice meets the NDIS Practice Standards.
What if I want to add more registration groups later?
You can apply to vary your registration after your initial registration. However, adding groups like 0110 Behaviour Support, 0118 Early Childhood Supports, or 0132 Specialist Support Coordination will trigger a more intensive Certification audit. If you’re considering these in the near future, it may be more cost-effective to register for them upfront rather than going through multiple audits.
Do I need to register for every registration group I work under?
You only need to register for the groups that match the services you actually intend to deliver to NDIS participants. It’s worth thinking through your intended service mix before you apply, because adding groups you don’t need creates unnecessary audit scope and cost, while missing groups you do need will prevent you from delivering those services to registered participants.
How long does it take?
The Verification audit itself is usually completed within a few days once you submit your documents. If the auditor identifies gaps, you may need to provide further evidence. Once your audit report is finalised, NDIS Commission processing can take several weeks or months depending on their backlog.
