NDIS Price Changes July 2026: What They Mean for You
The new NDIS prices started on 1 July 2026. Some rates went up, some went down, and most stayed the same. This post explains what changed and what it means for your plan, your invoices, and your supports.
What actually changed on 1 July
Every year the NDIA reviews prices and releases new maximum rates. This year looks a bit different. Instead of the usual Pricing Arrangements and Price Limits document, the price list is now called the Pricing Schedule.
The name change matters less than the content. The main changes for participants are these.
• Support worker rates went up, in line with the minimum wage decision and the rise in super.
• Psychology went up from $232.99 to $252.99 per hour.
• Dietetics and exercise physiology came down.
• Most other therapies stayed the same, including counselling, occupational therapy, physiotherapy and speech pathology.
• Support coordination and plan management fees did not change.
The full detail sits on the NDIS pricing updates page. Below is the version that matters day to day.
Counselling stays at the same price
If you use your plan for counselling, the hourly rate has not changed. It stays at $156.16 per hour.
That means your therapy budget stretches exactly as far for counselling this year as it did last year. No new service agreement is needed just because the financial year ticked over.
One thing has changed around the edges. Provider travel for therapists is now billed as its own line item, at half the hourly rate. For counselling that is $78.08 per hour of travel. If your counsellor comes to you, ask how they handle travel so there are no surprises on your invoices.
If you are new to using your plan for counselling, my NDIS counselling page explains how it works for self-managed and plan-managed participants.
Your invoices will look different
This is the change most people will actually notice. Therapy services now have separate item numbers for different types of work. Direct sessions, telehealth, travel, reports, non-face-to-face work and cancellations each have their own code.
Your supports have not changed. The billing just got more detailed. If an invoice from a provider suddenly has unfamiliar item numbers on it, that is probably why.
It is still worth checking invoices. If a line does not make sense, ask the provider what it covers. A good provider will explain it in plain terms.
Providers cannot just raise their prices on you
The new schedule sets maximum prices, not automatic prices. If a provider wants to change what they charge you under an existing service agreement, they have to talk to you first. You have to agree before the change happens.
If a provider puts prices up without a conversation, that is worth questioning. You can raise it with them directly, or with your plan manager or support coordinator.
Will my plan funding go up too?
Mostly yes, where the prices you rely on went up. The NDIA has said plans will be indexed from 13 July 2026 to reflect the new prices.
There may be a short gap where a provider has updated their rates but your plan has not been adjusted yet. That gap closes once indexation runs. How much your plan changes depends on which supports are in it. A plan built mostly on support worker hours will move differently to one built on therapy.
I wrote more about the wider reforms in NDIS reforms 2026 and your supports if you want the bigger picture.
What this looks like from where I sit
I have worked in the NDIS since 2018, first as a support coordinator and now as a counsellor as well. I have been through eight of these July price updates. The pattern is always the same. The documents are dense, the sector talks about them for weeks, and participants are left guessing what it means for them.
Here is my plain reading of this one. If your supports are mainly counselling and coordination, almost nothing changes for you. Your rates are the same. Your invoices might look different because of the new item codes. That is it.
My prices at Strong Foundation Support are not changing. If you are a plan-managed participant, your plan manager will see the same rate they saw in June.
If you are not sure what applies to you
Pricing questions are exactly the kind of thing I help people with. If something on an invoice or in your plan does not add up, you can get in touch and I will give you a straight answer.
Written by Allan Bunyan, CPCA, counsellor at Strong Foundation Support, Cairns. Allan works with adults and young people 14 and over, in person in Cairns and via telehealth across Australia.
