The updated NDIS Pricing Arrangements and Price Limits (PAPL) 2025-26 has been published, following the release of the 2024-25 Annual Pricing Review recommendations.

The PAPL has also undergone a name change. You may remember it as the NDIS Price Guide. The new pricing updates come into effect on 1 July 2025. I know…that’s not much notice for providers!

There have been a few changes to wrap your head around.

Firstly, The NDIA has changed the early childhood age limit from 7 to 9 years old. The early childhood approach now covers children up to 9 years old. Providers will find this change in the PAPL.

Next, new text has also been added to explain provider responsibilities and conflicts of interest. This explains a provider’s duty to declare and manage any conflict of interest.

Then, we have the pricing updates. To help you digest these changes, let’s break these down further for you:

1. Minimum Wage Increase: Fair Work Commission announced a 3.5% minimum wage increase effective 1 July 2025, passed directly to price caps for Disability Support Worker (DSW) Cost Model Supports, including Core supports, Psychosocial Recovery Coaching, and Level 1 Support Coordination.

2. Superannuation Increase: A 0.5% minimum superannuation increase will also be applied to DSW-related price caps.

3. Psychology: State-based price differences have been eliminated, so there is a new national rate set at $232.99 per hour, good news for QLD, NSW, VIC, with a $10 per hour increase… but not so good news for those in WA, SA, NT, TAS who are copping an $11.23 per hour reduction.

4. Non-DSW Supports: The Annual Pricing Review recommends price limit increases for nursing and other non-DSW supports (excluding Capital, Plan Management, Therapy, or Support Coordination) based on an 80/20 weighting of Wage Price Index (WPI) and Consumer Price Index (CPI) over the 12 months to March 2025.

5. Support Coordinators and Plan Managers: Another year, another year of no price cap increase, and effectively a reduction due to a 2.4% inflation. Support coordination shows no widespread unmet demand and the upcoming structural reforms such as mandatory registration, and the Navigator role are expected to impact pricing. We look forward to seeing how this pans out.

Plan Managers also face no price cap increase, they have removed of remote loadings, and setup fees, and now have a single national rate for administration. This is not a great outcome for Support Coordinators and Plan managers who are struggling to keep up with costs.

6. Therapy Pricing: There have been multiple price cap reductions: Physiotherapy was cut by $10/hour and Dietitians and Podiatrist fees were cut by $5/hour.

Jurisdictional loadings have been removed, leading to a total $40.63/hour cut for physiotherapists in WA, SA, NT, TAS. The previous flat rate of $193.99/hour was deemed unnecessary and the NDIA said that they will be reviewing therapy pricing over the next 18 months to look at potential differentiated pricing models.

Differentiated pricing is different ways of pricing supports based on the benefits and costs to participants and providers. It moves beyond the assumption that hourly pricing is always best, and instead introduces a more structured way to assess when different pricing approaches may be beneficial.

Price caps for therapy are now presented in 10-minute increments to allow flexible session lengths and better align claimed time with services. Provider travel claims are also now capped at 50% of the relevant hourly rate.

Alright, there you have it… the lowdown on the NDIS pricing updates! We hope this breakdown makes things a tad clearer. With the clock ticking to roll these changes out across your organisation, we’re wishing you all the best to surf this wave smoothly.

So, what does the future look like for you as a provider?

The annual pricing review recommends a three-year NDIA work plan to implement reforms from the Independent Pricing Committee’s Final Report.

Due to the very short notice to providers of this year’s Annual Pricing Review, it has been recommended that in the future the NDIA will be adjusting the Annual Pricing review timeline to improve implementation and provide earlier advice to the sector.

So, from 2025-26, future Annual Pricing Reviews will be delivered earlier in the year, with recommendations finalised and published well in advance of the financial year.

This change will take effect from the 2026-27 Annual Pricing Review.

That’s a lot to take in for now, but if you would like more information, please visit the Pricing arrangements page of the NDIS website to download the updated 2025-26 PAPL and support catalogues, and check out the NDIA website’s Annual Pricing Review FAQs page.

Amanda Robinson BA, MMHealthPrac,

As Head of Learning and Development and a seasoned NDIS expert, Amanda drives capability and sustainability in the disability and health sectors. With over 15 years of experience, post-graduate qualifications in Mental Health Leadership and Management, and currently pursuing an MBA, she brings deep expertise and personal insight as someone with lived experience of disability. A devoted carer, Amanda champions Human Rights, working to dismantle stigma and barriers for individuals with disability and mental health challenges. She is passionate about building robust stakeholder relationships, leveraging her advocacy, communication, strategic thinking, and analysis skills.