Unregistered SIL Providers, mandatory registration
is fast approaching…
Are you ready?

From 1 July 2026, all providers delivering Supported Independent Living (SIL) supports must be registered with the NDIS Quality and Safeguards Commission. SIL is now a regulated support category due to the complexity and risks associated with delivering 24/7 shared living arrangements for people with significant support needs.

This reform reflects recommendations from the NDIS Review, the Disability Royal Commission and the NDIS Provider and Worker Registration Taskforce. SIL providers are now required to have robust governance arrangements, audited policies and procedures, and quality and safeguarding systems in place.

Alongside registration, SIL providers must comply with the new SIL Practice Standards and existing NDIS registration requirements. A transition period will apply, but the time to start preparing is now.

The new SIL Practice Standards under Module 5A apply to providers delivering SIL supports. They set out the additional quality and safeguarding requirements that recognise the unique nature of SIL, including shared living arrangements, participant choice and control, governance, supported decision-making, and the delivery of safe and high-quality supports.

SIL providers must demonstrate compliance with Module 5A as part of their NDIS registration and certification audit requirements.

Registration Group 0138 is the new NDIS registration category for providers delivering Supported Independent Living (SIL) supports. SIL was previously delivered under Registration Group 0115 and has now transitioned to its own dedicated registration group.

If you deliver SIL supports, you must be registered under Registration Group 0138 and meet the applicable NDIS Practice Standards, including the SIL-specific requirements.

It depends on where you're starting from. For providers with mature systems already in place, the process can take 6 months or less. For providers starting from scratch, it can take 9–12 months or longer. That includes preparing your policies and evidence, submitting your application, waiting for an auditor to be assigned, completing the audit, and waiting for the Commission to process your registration.

Each stage has its own timeline and delays at any point push everything back. The transition period gives providers time to work through the process, but it isn't unlimited, and the less lead time you have, the less room there is if something takes longer than expected.

Your auditor will assess you against the NDIS Practice Standards relevant to your registration groups. For SIL providers, that means having NDIS-compliant policies and procedures, documented evidence that your systems and processes are being implemented in practice, and the records and documentation required to demonstrate compliance.

SIL providers must also demonstrate compliance with the new SIL Practice Standards alongside the applicable NDIS Practice Standards. These requirements recognise the complexity of shared living arrangements and the significant support needs of SIL participants.

The most common reason providers run into trouble at audit isn't that they're doing bad work. It's that they can't demonstrate it on paper. That's exactly what our audit coaches help you build.

A certification audit is conducted by an approved NDIS auditing body. They'll assess your organisation's compliance with the relevant NDIS Practice Standards, including your governance arrangements, participant safeguards, workforce systems, policies and procedures, and evidence that these requirements are being implemented in practice.

For SIL providers, this includes compliance with the applicable NDIS Practice Standards and the new SIL Practice Standards (Module 5A). The audit will assess whether your organisation has the systems, processes and documentation required to deliver safe, high-quality SIL supports in line with NDIS requirements.

The NDIS Commission has confirmed that a transition period will apply to mandatory SIL registration requirements. During this period, existing SIL supports are intended to continue while providers work towards registration.

Once the transition period ends, providers that are not registered will not be able to deliver SIL supports. This could result in significant disruption for the participants you support, your workforce and your business. Starting the registration process early gives you the best possible chance of becoming registered before the transition period closes and continuing to deliver SIL supports without interruption.

That's exactly who we built this service for. Most of the providers who come to us are navigating registration for the first time. They know how to deliver great support, but the compliance and audit process is unfamiliar territory. Our audit coaches start from where you are. They don't assume prior knowledge, they don't hand you a folder and leave you to figure it out, and they stay with you through every stage, including audit day itself. You don't need to have done this before. You just need to start.

Provider+ guides you through every step of the registration process, from your initial strategy call through to audit preparation and beyond. We help you build your policies, prepare your evidence, understand what's required, and get audit-ready. The final registration decision sits with the NDIS Commission, who reviews your application and audit report before granting registration.

It's also worth knowing that registration isn't a one-off exercise. Providers must continuously meet quality standards and be held accountable if they don't. We help you build the kind of systems and foundations that hold up not just at your first audit, but at every audit that follows.