A current, source-linked guide to setting up as a sole trader in the NDIS. Built from the official rules, updated for the 1 July 2026 registration changes, and structured so you can work through it step by step.
Becoming a sole trader takes more than an ABN and insurance. Here is the full picture.
Setting up as an independent NDIS support worker means meeting obligations under several different bodies: the NDIS Quality and Safeguards Commission, the Australian Business Register, the ATO, ASIC, your state Worker Screening Unit, and the insurers you choose. None of them publish a single combined checklist for sole traders. This guide pulls those obligations together in one place, with every step linked to its official source so you can verify and apply your specific situation.
We are not lawyers, accountants, or registered training providers. Where the rules are technical or your situation is complex, talk to a registered tax agent, an insurance broker, or the NDIS Commission directly. Use this guide as your starting map, not your final word.
From 1 July 2026, Supported Independent Living (SIL) providers and NDIS digital platform providers must be registered with the NDIS Quality and Safeguards Commission. That includes the major worker platforms that many sole traders use to find shifts. Delivering SIL after that date without registration is a serious offence under the NDIS Act.
For most independent support workers, this does not mean you personally need to be registered, as long as you work with self-managed or plan-managed participants and do not deliver SIL. But the platforms you use will be picking up new compliance obligations, which is likely to flow through to what they ask of you, including clearances, documentation standards, and audit readiness.
The unregistered pathway is narrowing, not closing. The rest of this guide assumes you are setting up as an unregistered sole trader. If you are planning to deliver SIL, or you want to access NDIA-managed participants, you will need to go further than this guide and start the registration pathway directly with the Commission.
Read more on the NDIS Commission mandatory registration page, or our explainer on what this means for workers on platforms preparing for July 2026.
Before you set up a business, get clear on the services you intend to deliver and whether they fall within mandatory registration. The services available under the NDIS are detailed in the current NDIS Pricing Arrangements and Price Limits document, which is updated annually and is the source of truth for what you can charge for and how.
Most independent support workers deliver community access, daily personal activities, skill development, household assistance, transport, and assistance with social and recreational participation. These can be delivered as an unregistered provider to self-managed and plan-managed participants. Specialist Disability Accommodation, Specialist Behaviour Support, Plan Management, regulated restrictive practices, and from July 2026 Supported Independent Living, all require registration.
Most sole-trader support workers operate under their own name with an ABN. You do not need a company or a trust to start. Talk to a registered tax agent before locking in a structure, especially if you expect to grow beyond yourself or take on subcontractors.
The NDIS Worker Screening Check is the central clearance for anyone working with NDIS participants. It is administered by state and territory Worker Screening Units, uses a national database, and is valid for five years once granted. It is not the same as a National Police Check. Most engagements will not accept a Police Check in place of the Worker Screening Check.
Depending on your state and the participants you work with, you may also need a Working with Children Check (or its state equivalent, such as a Blue Card in Queensland or a Working with Vulnerable People Check in some jurisdictions). If you work with anyone under 18, treat this as mandatory.
Working as a sole trader means you carry the risk personally for the supports you deliver. Two insurance types are non-negotiable for NDIS work. A third is worth considering.
Most NDIS insurance is sold through specialist brokers who understand the sector. Shop around. The cheapest cover is usually not the right cover, and the most expensive is not necessarily the most comprehensive.
Even as an unregistered sole trader, you are expected to keep records that show your supports were appropriate, person-centred and connected to the participant's goals. Documentation is what you have if anything is ever questioned, by a participant, a plan manager, or an auditor of a platform you work through.
Setting all of this up by hand on day one is overwhelming, which is why most sole traders run their business out of a notebook for the first month and then realise they have no real records when they need them. The alternative is a single system that holds your participants, shifts, notes, incidents and invoices in one place. Clio Care is built for this, free for 30 days.
Once you are set up, the next problem is filling your week. Most sole traders use a mix of platforms, direct referrals from support coordinators, and word of mouth. Each pathway has different paperwork and different rates.
A short version of the full guide. Print it, tick as you go, and you will know when you are ready to take your first paying shift.
It depends on the services you deliver and who funds them. If you deliver only supports that are not subject to mandatory registration, and your participants are self-managed or plan-managed, you can continue to operate as an unregistered sole trader. From 1 July 2026 mandatory registration applies to Supported Independent Living (SIL) providers and digital platform providers, and the unregistered pathway is narrowing. Check the NDIS Commission's mandatory registration page for the current scope, and remember unregistered providers still must comply with the NDIS Code of Conduct and complete an NDIS Worker Screening Check.
They are different documents. The NDIS Worker Screening Check is a dedicated clearance for people who work with NDIS participants, administered by state and territory Worker Screening Units, and valid for five years once granted. A National Police Check is a more general criminal history check. For NDIS work the Worker Screening Check is the document required, and most engagements will not accept a Police Check as a substitute.
Only if your annual turnover is at or above the current GST registration threshold, which is $75,000. Most NDIS supports are GST-free under the GST Act when they are reasonable and necessary supports funded under a participant's plan, so even GST-registered workers will not charge GST on most NDIS services. Confirm your situation with a registered tax agent or the ATO.
At a minimum, Professional Indemnity Insurance and Public Liability Insurance. Professional Indemnity covers claims of negligence or errors in your professional services. Public Liability covers third-party injury or property damage from your work. Income Protection Insurance is optional but worth considering if support work is your primary income, because as a sole trader you do not get paid leave.
Yes, but the platforms themselves must be registered with the NDIS Commission from 1 July 2026. That means the platforms are picking up new compliance obligations, and you may see changes to the checks, documentation and standards expected of workers on those platforms. Watch each platform's worker communications for what is changing on their side.
Service agreements with each participant, signed before supports start. Progress notes for every session, kept securely. Incident records and reportable incident submissions where relevant. Tax records, invoices and payment records for at least five years. Records of consent for any sharing of participant information. If you are unregistered, you are still expected to meet the spirit of the NDIS Practice Standards, and your records are what proves you do.
Travel between participants and travel to a participant can be charged under specific rules in the NDIS Pricing Arrangements and Price Limits, which vary by participant location and the type of support. The rules are detailed and change with each annual update, so always work from the current published document rather than older versions.
Yes. We have free NDIS progress notes and consent form templates, no email required. Progress notes template and consent forms.
Setting up is the work no one talks about, and the work that makes the difference between a sole trader who lasts and one who gives up after three months. Use this guide. Verify against the official sources. Talk to a tax agent. And when you are ready to run your participants, shifts, notes and invoices from one place built for sole traders, Clio Care is here.
No credit card. No commitment.