Compliance CareSimplify compliance. Amplify success.

NDIS Commission apply-by date · 1 October 2026

Delivering SIL unregistered? You have until 1 October to apply.

The deadline is to lodge, not to be approved. Apply in time and you keep operating while the application is assessed; don’t apply, and the Commission’s position is that you stop delivering SIL.

Find your situationBook a free 30-minute call

Or call +61 468 361 144 (Mon–Fri, 9am–5pm AEST)

Led by an ISO/IEC 17065-credentialed lead auditor

The rule, in plain English

Three dates, and only one of them is yours to manage.

1 July 2026 — the rule commenced
SIL became a registrable support. A new registration group, 0138 — Assistance with supported independent living, was created, along with a supplementary module of the NDIS Practice Standards specific to SIL.
1 October 2026 — the apply-by date (this one)
If you are already delivering SIL without registration, this is the date your valid application has to be in. It is the only one of the three you control, and the work that makes an application worth lodging sits entirely before it. Lodge in time and you keep operating throughout — the Commission’s pathway for unregistered SIL providers says plainly that providers can continue to deliver SIL during the application for registration if they apply by 1 October 2026.
Later — audit and decision
Certification audit (Stage 1 desk, then Stage 2 on-site) by a JAS-ANZ-accredited Approved Quality Auditor, then the Commission’s registration decision. Neither runs to your calendar.

What the Commission says happens if you don’t apply

“If you are currently delivering supported independent living (SIL) and chose not to apply for registration, you will need to stop providing supported independent living supports. Providing supported independent living without registration is a serious offence. If you deliver supported independent living on or after 1 July 2026 without being registered, you may breach the NDIS Act. The maximum penalty is 2 years’ imprisonment, a fine of 120 penalty units, or both.”

NDIS Quality and Safeguards Commission, Mandatory registration and transition pathways for supported independent living. That is the Commission’s wording and we have not sharpened it: the penalty described is a maximum, set by the NDIS Act 2013, and it is what a court may impose — not a fee the Commission issues. A Commonwealth penalty unit is $364 for offences committed on or after 1 July 2026 (Crimes Act 1914, s 4AA), which puts 120 units at $43,680. Note the exposure is personal as well as corporate — which is why sole traders are named explicitly in the Commission’s guidance.

Find your situation

Five situations. The right next step is different in each.

The Commission publishes a separate transition pathway for each provider situation, so a single “what to do” list would be wrong for most readers. Find yours, read what the pathway actually says, then work the steps.

Situation 1

I have applied, and I am waiting.

You are delivering SIL now, you were unregistered, and your application is lodged.

What the rule says

You keep operating. The Commission's pathway for an unregistered provider currently delivering SIL states that providers can continue to deliver supported independent living during the application for registration if they apply by 1 October 2026. The pathway then runs: scope of audit → certification audit with an Approved Quality Auditor → application review → registration decision. It also says plainly that if the application is not approved, the provider cannot deliver supported independent living.

Source: Commission transition pathway SIL-4

What to do next

  1. Read your scope of audit the day it arrives. It tells you which registration groups and which modules the audit will cover, and it is the only reliable list of what you are being assessed against.
  2. Engage an Approved Quality Auditor from the Commission's published list, on your own judgement. Auditor availability, not your paperwork, is usually the long pole from here.
  3. Assume the audit includes the SIL supplementary module — supported decision-making, safeguarding, practice governance, and agreements about tenancy, housing and support arrangements. Certification audits conducted after 1 July 2026 include it.
  4. Do not treat the waiting period as downtime. The evidence you present at Stage 1 is the evidence you are building right now.
  5. Answer the Commission's questions during application review promptly — the pathway has a review step, and slow responses stretch a timeline you do not control.

Situation 2

I have not applied, and I can still make 1 October.

You are delivering SIL now, unregistered, and the date has not passed.

What the rule says

This is the pathway the deadline was written for. Lodge a valid application for registration group 0138 — Assistance with supported independent living, plus any other relevant registration groups, before 1 October 2026, and you continue delivering while it is assessed. The word doing the work is valid: an incomplete lodgement is not the same as an application.

Source: Commission transition pathway SIL-4

What to do next

  1. Confirm your registration groups before you start the form. Scope errors surface mid-audit, and re-scoping mid-audit is slow and expensive.
  2. Lodge through the Commission's application process. Lodging is a much smaller job than being audit-ready — the audit comes afterwards, which is the whole point of an apply-by date.
  3. Then build the evidence pack properly: policies, procedures, registers and operational records mapped to the Quality Indicators, with the state overlays that apply to you.
  4. Engage an Approved Quality Auditor once your pack is at second-pass readiness, not before.
  5. If you are a sole trader, this pathway is yours too. The Commission says that if you deliver, manage and coordinate a participant's supports meeting the SIL definition, you are a supported independent living provider.

Situation 3

I cannot be ready in time.

The most common reason a provider does not lodge — and usually a misreading of what the date asks.

What the rule says

1 October is an apply-by date, not a be-approved-by date and not a be-audit-ready-by date. Being unready is rarely a reason not to lodge, because the certification audit and the registration decision both sit after lodgement. What the Commission is direct about is the other branch: if you are currently delivering SIL and choose not to apply for registration, you will need to stop providing supported independent living supports.

Source: Commission — what happens if I have not applied by 1 October 2026

What to do next

  1. Separate the two questions. "Can I lodge a valid application?" is answerable in weeks. "Am I ready to pass a certification audit?" is a longer question, and you are allowed to still be answering it after you lodge.
  2. Do not lodge something you know to be invalid to buy time. An application that is not valid does not start the pathway, and the continuity it appears to buy is not real.
  3. If you will genuinely not apply, plan the exit now rather than in October. The Commission sets out notification and participant transition steps under Stopping the services you provide.
  4. Talk to the participants and their support coordinators early. A transition planned in August is a service change; the same transition in October is a crisis for people in their own homes.
  5. If part of your service is SIL and part is not, work out precisely which participants are affected before you decide anything. The answer is often narrower than it first looks.

Situation 4

I am not sure registration even applies to me.

Plenty of providers delivering in-home supports genuinely cannot tell.

What the rule says

The Commission defines supported independent living by what the support does — not by what you call it, and not by how the participant's plan is managed. Its published definition and the two carve-outs are summarised below. The Commission notes that its published definition is a summary based on amendments to the Provider Registration Rules, and that the Rules are what you should refer to for the full definition.

Source: Commission — what is supported independent living?

What to do next

  1. Test your service against all four limbs of the definition, participant by participant. It is common for one participant to be in scope and another not.
  2. Check the carve-outs honestly. A few hours of support a week is not SIL; nor is a service where the participant chooses, directs, plans and rosters their own workers.
  3. If you land close to the line, resolve it before 1 October rather than after. Being wrong in either direction is expensive — one way is an unnecessary audit, the other is delivering an unregistered support.
  4. Read the Provider Registration Rules, or take twenty minutes with someone who has. Where this page and the Rules differ, the Rules govern.

Situation 5

I am already a registered NDIS provider.

Your pathway depends on whether you already hold registration group 0115.

What the rule says

A registered provider delivering SIL before 1 July 2026 under 0115 — Assistance with daily life tasks in a group or shared living arrangement — has their registration varied to include the new 0138 group and is audited against the SIL Practice Standards at their next audit, mid-term or renewal. A registered provider without 0115 that wants to start delivering SIL applies for a variation of registration, and may need an out-of-cycle certification audit to add the group.

Source: Commission transition pathways SIL-1 and SIL-2

What to do next

  1. Check your current certificate. Whether 0115 is on it decides which of the two pathways you are on.
  2. If your registration was varied to add 0138, the variation is the easy part — the SIL Practice Standards are the part that will be audited.
  3. If you are adding SIL to an existing registration, apply for a variation and expect to discuss an out-of-cycle certification audit with your Approved Quality Auditor.
  4. Either way, the SIL supplementary module is now in scope for your next audit. Start evidencing it against real operations, not a policy refresh.

Want the version specific to you?

The registration roadmap asks seven questions and returns your audit type, the Practice Standards modules that apply to your supports, and whether the time left to 1 October is realistic for your starting point. The result appears on screen — there is no form in front of it.

Open the registration roadmap

Every pathway on the Commission’s page is published as a diagram and a PDF — worth reading in full rather than in summary. Start at the mandatory-registration SIL page and choose the option matching your registration status. Where this page and the Commission’s guidance differ, the Commission governs.

Before anything else

Are you actually a SIL provider?

Plenty of providers delivering in-home supports aren’t sure. The Commission defines SIL by what the support does, not by what you call it or how the participant’s plan is managed. Summarised from the Commission’s published definition:

It is SIL when all of these hold

  • The person you support needs support at all times of the day, or for most of the day.
  • Your support helps them live in their home as autonomously as possible and access the community.
  • You assist with — or supervise — daily life tasks.
  • You manage and deliver the supports, making sure the participant receives home and living support in line with their package.

It is not SIL when

  • The person receives only a few hours of support a day or week.
  • The person chooses and manages their own support workers — directing, planning and rostering them.

This is a summary. The Commission notes its own published definition is a summary based on amendments to the Provider Registration Rules, and that the Rules carry the full definition — so the Rules govern where this page and they differ. If you are close to the line, that is worth twenty minutes on a call rather than a guess — being wrong in either direction is expensive.

What you’re actually preparing

Lodging takes an afternoon. Being ready to takes longer.

The application form is not the hard part. What sits behind it is — because a certification audit follows, and the evidence you lodge against is the evidence an auditor will open.

And the Commission’s pathway ends on a hard note: if the application is not approved, the provider cannot deliver supported independent living. Lodging by 1 October buys you continuity, not an outcome. Which is the entire argument for lodging something that will stand up.

Scope your registration

Registration group 0138, plus whatever else you deliver. Getting scope wrong at application means re-scoping mid-audit — slow and expensive.

Build the evidence pack

Roughly 40–50 documents for a typical SIL service: policies, procedures, registers and operational records mapped to the Quality Indicators, with state overlays. Populated, not downloaded.

Meet the SIL supplementary module

Certification audits now assess supported decision-making, safeguarding, practice governance, and agreements about tenancy, housing and support — on top of the core module.

The trap worth naming. A pack of generic templates will get an application lodged and will not survive Stage 1. Quality Auditors read for signs the documents are alive — sign-off dates, version history, named owners, review cycles. A template library with no operational fingerprint reads as exactly that, usually within the first hour.

The SIL Registration Checklist 2026 enumerates that document set with the state overlays, free and ungated. You do not need us to use it.

How we help

Fixed price. Scoped on the call. Quoted before any work starts.

Registration Sprint

You’re unregistered and need to lodge by 1 October.

From $2,900 + GST

fixed price, scoped on your call

  • Registration application support
  • Core policies & procedures
  • Evidence pack built to your service mix
  • A clear, fixed timeline to lodgement

Audit-Readiness Sprint

You’ve lodged, or you’re registered and certification is coming.

From $4,500 + GST

fixed price, scoped on your call

  • Gap assessment vs the Practice Standards
  • Evidence organised for the auditor
  • Policy & process remediation
  • Mock-audit walkthrough
Book a free 30-minute call

No obligation. You’ll leave knowing whether you’re in scope, what your pathway is, and what it costs. Full pricing is published.

ISO/IEC 17065-credentialed lead auditor

Deep, hands-on competence in the conformity-assessment standard certification bodies are themselves accredited against — so your evidence is built to what an audit actually tests. Audits are conducted by independent Approved Quality Auditors you choose yourself, and only your organisation’s actual practice determines the outcome. We do not refer specific auditors and accept no auditor referral fees. Impartiality Statement.

Questions

Before you book.

What exactly has to happen by 1 October 2026?
You have to have applied. The Commission's date is an apply-by date, not a be-approved-by date — the audit and the registration decision come afterwards. What you cannot do is still be sitting on an unlodged application on 2 October.
Can I keep delivering SIL while my application is assessed?
Yes — that is the point of the deadline. The Commission's transition pathway for an unregistered provider already delivering SIL states: "Providers can continue to deliver supported independent living (SIL) during the application for registration if they apply by 1 October 2026." You keep operating through the audit and the application review. Note the pathway also says the application must be a valid one, and that pathways differ by registration status — check the one matching your situation.
Is there a grace period after 1 October 2026?
The Commission has not published one. Its guidance describes a single apply-by date and states what happens to a provider who has not applied by it. Plan against the published date, not against an extension that does not exist.
So what happens if my application is refused?
The same pathway is blunt about it: if the application for registration is not approved, the provider cannot deliver supported independent living. Lodging by 1 October buys you continuity, not a result. That is the whole argument for lodging something that will actually stand up — a weak application doesn't just risk a slow audit, it risks the service.
What happens if I don't apply?
The Commission's wording is direct: if you are currently delivering SIL and choose not to apply, you will need to stop providing supported independent living supports. Delivering SIL without registration may breach the NDIS Act, with a maximum penalty of 2 years' imprisonment, a fine of 120 penalty units, or both.
I'm a sole trader. Does this apply to me?
Yes, if what you deliver meets the SIL definition. The Commission addresses sole traders explicitly: if you are delivering, managing and coordinating a participant's supports that meet the definition, you are a supported independent living provider, and you follow the transition pathway matching your registration status.
I want to start delivering SIL — can I apply and begin now?
No. The Commission's pathway for a provider not currently delivering SIL is different: providers cannot deliver supported independent living supports until the Commission has made a decision on the application for registration. The 1 October continuity arrangement exists for providers already delivering, not for new entrants.
What kind of audit is involved?
Certification, not verification. Registered SIL providers need certification audits, must comply with the core module of the NDIS Practice Standards, and must comply with the new supplementary module for SIL Practice Standards. Certification runs as a Stage 1 desk audit followed by a Stage 2 on-site audit, each conducted by a JAS-ANZ-accredited Approved Quality Auditor you select yourself.
I've never registered before. Is there enough time?
To lodge, yes — lodging is achievable inside the remaining window for most providers. The evidence pack behind it is the real work: roughly 40–50 documents for a typical SIL service, and it isn't a template download. The providers who struggle are the ones who treat 1 October as the finish line rather than the starting gun.
Do you guarantee we'll be registered?
No, and be wary of anyone who does. The audit is conducted independently by an auditor you choose from the JAS-ANZ list, and the registration decision is the Commission's. We make sure what you lodge and what you present at audit is genuinely ready. We don't refer specific auditors and don't accept auditor referral fees — see our Impartiality Statement.

Keep reading

Everything here is free and ungated.

Not ready for a call?

Take the audit-readiness checklist instead — every item an auditor can ask for, in a printable list. We'll email it once you confirm.

The date doesn’t move. Your readiness can.

Twenty minutes tells you whether you’re in scope, which transition pathway is yours, and what lodging by 1 October realistically takes for a service your size.

Book a free 30-minute call

Peace of mind, by design.

General information, not regulatory or legal advice. Dates, definitions and obligations should be confirmed against current NDIS Commission guidance — the Commission’s mandatory-registration page is the source of truth, and its transition pathways differ by provider situation. Stopping the services you provide sets out the exit obligations. Reviewed against Commission material published to 4 August 2026.