If you don’t meet the disability requirements, you may be eligible for the NDIS under the early intervention requirements. Early intervention is usually early access to support, to help reduce the functional impacts of your impairment.
Early intervention can be for both children and adults. You won’t need these supports for your lifetime, so your treating professional or your early childhood partner will tell us how early intervention support could benefit you or your child.
You will meet the early intervention requirements if you meet all of the following:
- You have an impairment that’s likely to be permanent.
- Early intervention supports will help you, for example if it means you’ll need less disability support in the future and your functional capacity will improve.
- The early intervention you need is most appropriately funded by us.
There are different requirements for children younger than 6 with developmental delay to meet the early intervention requirements.
If we have evidence a child younger than 7 has been diagnosed with a condition on List D, we’ll decide they meet the early intervention requirements.
You may also meet the early intervention requirements if you’re aged between 0 and 25 with a hearing impairment.
If you meet the early intervention requirements when you join the NDIS, your support needs are more likely to change. We’ll regularly check your eligibility when we reassess your plan, and at other times too.
If you benefit from early intervention supports, you might build your skills and increase your capacity so that you may no longer need NDIS supports.
If you no longer meet the early intervention requirements, we’ll check if you meet the disability requirements.
Learn more about leaving the NDIS.
Do you have an impairment that’s likely to be permanent?
To meet the early intervention requirements, there must be enough evidence that you have at least one of the impairments below and your impairment is likely to be permanent.
An impairment is a loss or significant change in at least one of:
- your body’s functions
- your body structure
- how you think and learn.
An impairment could be:
- intellectual – such as how you speak and listen, read and write, solve problems, and process and remember information
- cognitive – such as how you think, learn new things, use judgment to make decisions, and pay attention
- neurological – such as how your body functions
- sensory – such as how you see or hear
- physical – such as the ability to move parts of your body.
We also need evidence at least one of your impairments will be permanent, or likely to be permanent. In other words, you’ll likely have your impairment for your whole life.
When we decide if your impairment is likely to be permanent, we consider the same things as in the disability requirements.
You may also be eligible for the NDIS if you have a psychosocial disability. This means you have reduced capacity to do daily life activities and tasks due to your mental health. Your psychosocial disability might vary at different times in how much it impacts your daily life. Even if it fluctuates and you have some periods where there is a smaller impact on your daily life, you might have this impairment for your whole life.
If you give us evidence you have been diagnosed with a condition on List B, we’ll decide you have an impairment that’s likely to be permanent.