NDIS Plan Change Glossary
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Making sense of the NDIS can be a juggling act, and it’s hard to keep all your balls in the air when as soon as you get used to the jargon… it up and changes on you.
Reviews, reassessments, variations… when talking about NDIS plan changes, those updates in language can make the process even more confusing.
So to help, we’ve put together a glossary of the major terms relating to plan changes. Read through and refresh yourself when you’ve got a plan change coming up, so that you’re on the same page of the dictionary as the NDIS.
Got anything to add to the glossary? Login or signup to Kinora and let us know!
Reassessment Date
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• “Review date”
• “Plan end date”
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This is the date that your NDIS plan period comes to an end, and the plan needs to be assessed to make sure it is still covering your needs. Whether your plan is 12 months or 3 years long, the reassessment date will be listed in your plan, and this is when you will be due for a reassessment meeting.
If for any reason your plan reaches it’s reassessment date and a plan reassessment has not yet been completed, it will be extended by 12 months so that you can continue accessing your supports while waiting.
Check-in
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Check-in calls began during the COVID pandemic to make sure people could still access support, but have now been cemented as part of the plan change process, as such they have always been referred to as “participant check-ins”
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Roughly 6 weeks before your plan reassessment date, the NDIS will call you to check-in and see how you are going with your plan. They will assess whether any big changes need to be made to your plan, and book in your reassessment meeting.
This is the time to let them know if your plan is not covering all of your needs, and they will let you know if there is anything specific they would like you to provide at the reassessment meeting, such as progress reports from your therapists.
Plan Reassessment
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• “Plan review”
• “Full plan review”
• “Scheduled or unscheduled review”
• “S48 review”
• “Change of circumstance review”
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A plan reassessment refers to your plan being assessed and changes being made to it, resulting in a new plan with updated start and reassessment dates. It is called a “reassessment” regardless of whether it is happening because your regular reassessment date is here, or because you need major changes to your plan part way through your plan period.
You are able to request a plan reassessment at any point, or the NDIS can initiate one at any point. If you request a plan reassessment outside of your regular reassessment date the NDIS should respond within 21 days, and will either agree to a reassessment, agree to a variation (see below), decline your request or ask for more information.
Reassessment Meeting
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“Planning meeting”
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In this meeting with your NDIS Planner or Local Area Coordinator, you will look at what changes need to be made in your plan. You will be asked a series of questions about how things have been going in your current plan, and look at your spending and goals, to make sure your new plan will cover all your needs.
This meeting can take place in person, over the phone, or via video call, so make sure you let them know what will work best for you. You are also allowed to have a support person there with you, just let the NDIS know their details beforehand.
You should receive your new NDIS plan within 7 days of the changes being approved. You can use our worksheet to prepare for the meeting, download it for free here.
Plan Variation
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• “Light touch plan review”
• “Minor plan change”
• “Plan extension/rollover/continuation”
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If you need small changes made to your plan or to update your details within it, the NDIS will complete a plan variation, rather than a full reassessment. Small changes could include fixing a minor error, an update to the provider of a stated support, a small increase in funding, changes to your goals, a change to the plan management type, or an update to the reassessment date if the plan is to be extended.
Unlike with a reassessment where you receive a whole new plan, a variation keeps the same plan in place (including the same start and reassessment dates), just with the updates included. For some varied plans the start date may change, but this is only whilst the NDIS are upgrading their computer systems.
You can request a variation to your plan at any point, and the NDIS should respond within 21 days. They will either agree or decline your request, or ask for further information and time to consider it.
Change of situation
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“Change of circumstance”
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When something changes in your life that affects the supports you need to access, you should let the NDIS know. This could be changes such as finishing school, moving to a different area, or a change to your impairments. You should also let the NDIS know about any change of personal details, such as contact information.
Depending on the changes, it could result in a full plan reassessment, or a plan variation to update details. You can access the “Change of details or change of situation form” here, but you can also let the NDIS know about situation changes via phone, email or post.
Internal Review of a Decision
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• “Review of a reviewable decision (RORD)”
• “S100 review”
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If the NDIS has made a decision about you or your plan that you are not happy with, you can request that they review it. This means that someone else, other than the person who originally made the decision, will take a look at all the available information and evidence to see if they agree that the correct decision was made according to the legislation. This could be a decision made on what to include (or not include) in your plan, a decision to not reassess or vary your plan when you have requested it, or decisions about how your funding is managed or described.
You are only able to request an internal review of decision within 3 months of receiving that decision in writing, and you can include any additional evidence or information you have obtained in that time with your request as well to strengthen your request.
The NDIS has 60 days to respond and will either as for more information, confirm that they agree with the original decision, or agree that an incorrect decision was made. If they agree that an incorrect decision was made, this could then lead to a plan reassessment or variation.
You can access the “Request for a review of a decision form” here, but you can also request the review via phone, email or post.
External Review of a Decision
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• “Tribunal appeal”
• “AAT review”
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If you have gone through an internal review of a decision, and you still don’t agree with the outcome, you can request that the decision is reviewed again by someone outside of the NDIS, at the Administrative Appeals Tribunal (AAT). The AAT sits under the Attorney-General and conducts independent reviews of decisions made under Commonwealth laws by taking a fresh look at the relevant facts, laws, and policies. They have the power to confirm, vary, or set aside NDIS decisions.
You have 28 days from receiving the NDIS internal review decision to lodge your external review application with the AAT, but if you pass this deadline they can sometimes approve an extension if they feel it’s warranted.
How long the external review process takes depends on a few factors, including the complexity of the decision, whether or not they have all the information required, and whether or not they feel it needs a hearing to complete their review.
You can lodge your external review application online here, or send an application form or letter via email, post or fax.
Being clear on NDIS terminology can help to make sure that you’re requesting the right changes to your plan, and feel confident and prepared for any conversations you need to have about your plan.
Are there any other words, acronyms, or jargon terms that you’re not sure of? Jump onto the Kinora community and let’s talk the talk together.
