NDIS plan management panel 2027: what plan managers need to do.
From 1 October 2027, NDIS participants who use a plan manager will need one from an NDIA panel. To join, you apply through an approach to market the NDIA plans to publish on AusTender from April 2027. Plan managers left off the panel must stop once the transition ends, from April 2028.
Dates from the NDIA’s plan management page, read on 3 November 2026. [NDIA plan management page]
When it happens.
Five steps from the NDIA’s own timeline. Only 1 October 2027 is an exact date; the rest are months the NDIA says “from”.
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2026
Request for information
The NDIA asks plan managers for feedback on how the panel should work, through an RFI on NDIS Engage. [NDIA plan management page]
Where things stood on 3 November 2026
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From April 2027
Approach to market opens
The NDIA publishes the tender on AusTender, with the requirements to be selected. You apply through it. [NDIA plan management page]
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From June 2027
Applications close
The approach to market closes. The NDIA assesses applications and tells each plan manager the result. [NDIA plan management page]
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From 1 October 2027
The panel starts
Participants who use a plan manager need one from the panel. A 6-month transition begins. [NDIA plan management page]
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From April 2028
Transition ends
Plan managers not on the panel can no longer deliver plan management services. [NDIA plan management page]
What it means for your business.
- Staying in plan management means bidding. There is no automatic place: plan managers who want to join must apply through the approach to market. [NDIA plan management page]
- The window looks short. The timeline has it opening from April 2027 and closing from June 2027, so the work you do before April counts. [NDIA plan management page]
- Not selected means stopping. After the transition ends, plan managers not on the panel can no longer deliver plan management services. [NDIA plan management page]
- Payment integrity is in the NDIA’s reasons. Expect fraud controls and paying only for delivered services to matter in any bid. [NDIA plan management page]
The market today
- Over the 2 years to June 2026 the number of plan managers stayed between 1,443 and 1,501. [NDIS Quarterly Report Q4 2025–26]
- Over the same 2 years the number of participants supported by plan managers grew from 418,314 to 539,528. [NDIS Quarterly Report Q4 2025–26]
- In the June 2026 quarter, $166 million of the $8.6 billion paid to plan managers was for plan management services. [NDIS Quarterly Report Q4 2025–26]
The NDIA has not said how many plan managers the panel will include.
What panel bids usually ask for.
General guidance, not the NDIA’s criteria. The NDIA has not published its requirements yet. It says the approach to market will include them. [NDIA plan management page] These are areas government panel tenders commonly cover, so you can start gathering now.
- Who you are
- Legal name, ABN, who owns and runs the business, and the key people who would deliver the work.
- How you pay invoices
- Each step from receiving an invoice to paying it, how long it takes, and how you handle busy periods.
- How you stop wrong payments
- The checks that make sure an invoice matches a support that was delivered and fits the participant’s plan.
- How you support participants
- How you explain budgets and statements, handle complaints, and work with people who need extra help to communicate.
- Privacy and data security
- Where participant data is kept, who can see it, and what you do if something goes wrong.
- Governance and risk
- Your policies, conflicts of interest, insurance, business continuity and how you find and fix problems.
- Your people
- Staff numbers, screening, training, and how you would grow if more participants came to you.
- Price and reporting
- A price in the format the tender asks for, and the data you can report back.
- Proof
- Examples, results and referees from your current work, with no participant’s name in them.
- Declarations
- Signed statements that you meet the tender’s conditions, made by someone with authority to sign.
Free readiness checklist.
17 things to have in place, in the order you will need them. Tick them off here or print the page. Nothing you tick is saved or sent.
General guidance. When the approach to market is published, its requirements come first.
Get the kit when the tender is published.
Join the list and we will write to you when the NDIA’s approach to market is out.
- One email when the approach to market appears on AusTender.
- Then one when the bid workbook is ready: the published requirements turned into a plan, a compliance table and answer planners.
- The workbook is a paid kit. We will set the price when the tender is out, and you are under no obligation to buy.
- No newsletter. We will not share your email.
Questions.
Will this guide or the kit get us on the panel?
No one can promise that. The NDIA assesses the applications and decides who is on the panel. The guide and the kit help you prepare your own bid. [NDIA plan management page]
Has the NDIA published what it will look for?
Not yet, as at 3 November 2026. The NDIA says the approach to market will include the requirements plan managers must meet. Until then, the bid areas on this page are general guidance only. [NDIA plan management page]
What happens if we are not on the panel?
You must stop delivering plan management once the transition ends. The NDIA’s timeline says the transition ends from April 2028, and plan managers not on the panel can no longer deliver plan management services after that. [NDIA plan management page]
Is this from the NDIA?
No. We are a private business. We are not part of, or connected to, the NDIA, the NDIS Quality and Safeguards Commission or the Australian Government.
What will the kit cost?
We will set the price when the tender is published. The guide and the checklist on this page stay free. Joining the list does not commit you to anything.
Do you write the bid for us?
No. The kit helps your own team plan and write the bid. Your answers, figures and declarations are yours.