On this page:
Children younger than 6 with a developmental delay may be eligible for the NDIS under the early intervention requirements.
Developmental delay is a term used to describe a delay in a child’s development.
It means that a child finds it much harder to do everyday things that other children their age can do, for example, dress themselves, talk or walk.
A child with developmental delay needs lots of extra help to do everyday things compared to children of the same age.
First, we need to know the child:
- is younger than 6 on the day we decide whether they’re eligible
- lives in Australia
- is an Australian citizen or permanent resident.
Then, we need to know the child has a developmental delay.
Finally, we need to know the child’s supports are most appropriately funded or provided under the NDIS.
An early childhood partner can also provide supports to children who aren’t eligible for the NDIS.
Learn more about the early childhood approach.
Does the child have a developmental delay?
When we decide if a child has developmental delay, we use the definition in the law for the NDIS.
We need to know the delay:
- is due to mental or physical impairments
- substantially reduces the child’s functional capacity compared with other children the same age.
- means the child needs specialist services from more than one professional working as a team to support the child and for longer than 12 months.