What changed on 1 October

From 1 October 2026, social and community participation budgets started resetting as participant plans renew, phased over 12 months — with a smaller reset to improved daily living skills budgets alongside. Plans created, reassessed or renewed from October fall under the new determinations, and every affected participant is expected to be reset by September 2027.

What it means for your revenue

If your participants lean on community participation or daily living budgets, expect two things: questions at reassessment time, and tighter conversations about what each support line can carry. Providers heavily concentrated in these categories should model the impact now — a 10 to 20 percent reduction in affected allocations is the planning range being discussed across the sector.

Three moves before your next plan review cycle

First, segment your book. Map which participants and which service lines sit in reset categories, and what share of revenue they represent. You cannot manage what you haven't measured.

Second, talk early. Participants who hear about changes from their provider before their reassessment trust that provider more, not less. A short, plain-English note beats silence.

Third, diversify deliberately. Sole reliance on any single support category is now a structural risk. Supports outside the reset categories — daily living core supports, employment supports, accommodation — deserve a hard look in your service mix.

The consultative bit that matters

The 2027–28 Annual Pricing Review consultation closes 1 November 2026 via NDIS Engage. Price limits shape your margins for a full year. If resets squeeze one side of your business, pricing is the lever on the other side — use the window.

Budget figures reference NDIA and Department of Health publications, October 2026. For individual participants, check the plan and the latest official guidance.