How to make your NDIS funding go further

Key takeaways:

• Online and clinic sessions cost the same under NDIS pricing, but in-home visits come with a travel surcharge.
• Leaning on online sessions can stretch a $15,000 budget by an extra 15-20 sessions a year.
• Check your budget mid-year, not just at review time, to help it stretch further.

From working with both providers and participants, we know that NDIS budgets rarely go as far as anyone would like. With the added pressure of NDIS budget cuts, finding ways to stretch your funding is more important than ever. 

The good news is that how you access therapy, whether online, in a clinic, or in-home, can change how long your funding lasts.

How your therapy delivery choice affects your NDIS budget

Let's look at an example of Sarah. Sarah's a hypothetical participant we've made up to help demonstrate this.

She has $15,000 for occupational therapy as part of her Improved Daily Living part of her plan, which will be released in instalments or funding periods.

Let's say Sarah needs a 1-hour weekly session and chooses a mobile provider.

Under the current NDIS Pricing Schedule 2026-27, occupational therapy is priced at $193.99 per hour, with in-home visits adding a $97 per hour charge, assuming the provider can add 30 minutes of travel. The travel charge increases to $135.80 for remote clients and $145.50 for very remote clients.

To find out how much travel your therapist or provider can charge refer to our resource called:How much travel can my NDIS therapist charge me 

If you would like to work these numbers out for yourself and are unsure how to calculate how many sessions your budget will allow, jump into our free Budget calculator tool. All you need to do is select or populate the following in the calculator:

• The part of your plan you need assistance with (in this case its Capacity Building - Improved Daily Living)
• Support Line item in the search bar - in this case select "Occupational Therapy"
• The frequency (daily/weekly/fortnightly/monthly)
• Select the plan period - one year, two years expressed in month etc
• The calculator will estimate the cost and whether you are within budget

So back to Sarah - if she can book in-clinic sessions and has the capacity to travel to the clinic, that can help her stretch her funding further, as she will be using her funding at a lower rate ($193.99 vs $290.99).

The downside is that high demand means clinics have long waitlists, and access and mobility contraints,  can make travelling to a clinic difficult. This can also risk leaving funding unspent.

That is why online therapy can be a great solution for Sarah.

In-home visits are valuable when they're most needed, but travel charges can quickly eat into a therapy budget. Using online therapy for regular, ongoing sessions and saving in-home visits for when they are really needed can help Sarah's $15,000 stretch to an extra 15-20 sessions a year compared with using mobile therapy for every session.

That's the difference between fortnightly support and something closer to weekly support.

Why this actually matters

More therapy sessions can make a significant impact to you or your child's progress. They can translate into real, practical benefits.

More frequent access can mean steadier progress, since skills and strategies are reinforced regularly instead of losing momentum between sessions.

It can also mean more time to build familiarity and consistency with your therapist, someone who understands your history, goals, and what works for you, rather than having to re-explain yourself every time.

And having enough funding for regular sessions can mean fewer gaps in support, since you're less likely to run out of funding partway through the year.

Getting more out of your own budget

1. Use our handy NDIS Budget calculator to work out how many hours of therapy your budget allows
2. Ask MyCareSpace to connect you with a provider offering telehealth. It's now got its own claimable item under the 2026-27 pricing schedule.
3. Save in-home visits for when they actually earn their keep, such as an initial assessment.
4. Check in with your plan manager or support coordinator each funding period, so you are not over or underspending and not just at review time, so there are no unwanted surprises.
5. Always check your provider's rate against the lastest NDIS pricing - you can find our easy access NDIS published pricing. This can help you avoid paying more than the NDIS rate. 
6. Assume there is always room for negotiation with your provider: you should always ask your provider about their rates.