In this month's edition

• Message from the Commissioner and Associate Commissioner
   
• Significant penalty imposed on NDIS provider for serious safety and reporting failures
   
• Update to the Complaints pages of our website
   
• Regulatory Priorities 2024-25 Report
   
• New Code of Conduct video – fair pricing
   
• Have your say on improving service agreements
   
• Why cyber security matters for safety
   

Message from the Commissioner and Associate Commissioner

Welcome to the first edition of Provider Newsletter for 2026. We hope you all had a safe, relaxing and happy holiday season.  

We’ve made a strong start to the year with an update to the NDIS Complaints Rules to help us respond to issues more effectively. The update embeds a risk-based approach to how the NDIS Commission prioritises complaints, so we can address the most serious matters more urgently while ensuring each and every complaint contributes to our intelligence about providers, workers, and systemic risks across the Scheme. Visit the Complaints section of our website for new videos and Easy Read resources with clear information on our complaint process.

Earlier this week, we both had the privilege of addressing the 2026 Victorian Advocacy League for Individuals with Disability (VALID) Having a Say Conference in Geelong. VALID is one of the 6 members of Inclusion Australia – the national peak body for intellectual disability. It was a great opportunity to meet with people with an intellectual disability and their supporters and advocates, many of whom took the opportunity to ask us some excellent questions. Here’s a photo of the both of us at the conference:

On 19 January, the Federal Court of Australia imposed a $1.1 million penalty against Oak Tasmania for failures to keep NDIS participants safe and failing to report hundreds of serious incidents within required timeframes. The judgment provides direction not only for the NDIS Commission but importantly for providers delivering NDIS supports and services. NDIS providers have a fundamental obligation to deliver safe and competent supports. Registered providers must also report serious incidents to the NDIS Commission, so risks can be identified and addressed. When providers fail to meet these obligations, the NDIS Commission will take strong enforcement action to hold them to account. More details in the story below.

Remember you can forward this newsletter to anyone you know who would benefit from it, and encourage them to sign up online. We’ll continue to share important updates on upcoming reforms – such as mandatory registration for supported independent living (SIL) and platform providers – in future editions. Staying subscribed is the best way to ensure you’re ready for these changes.

Louise Glanville and Natalie Wade
NDIS Quality and Safeguards Commissioner and Associate Commissioner   

Significant penalty imposed on NDIS provider for serious safety and reporting failures

The NDIS Commission has welcomed the Federal Court of Australia’s decision to impose a $1.1 million penalty against Oak Tasmania for failures to keep NDIS participants safe and failing to report hundreds of serious incidents within required timeframes. The NDIS Commission initiated the court proceedings.

The penalty is the largest ever imposed on a Tasmanian NDIS provider. The court proceedings concerned multiple incidents where NDIS participants did not receive competent supports and services while in Oak Tasmania’s care, putting their health and safety at risk.

Oak Tasmania admitted to 6 contraventions of the NDIS Practice Standards and Code of Conduct, as well as 474 contraventions of the Reportable Incidents Rules.

The Federal Court found that Oak’s extensive reporting failures deprived the NDIS Commission of timely information and compromised “the ability of the Commissioner to keep participants safe”.

In delivering the Court’s judgment, Justice McEvoy said that Oak’s conduct caused or risked causing harm “of the utmost seriousness” to people with disability and that families and carers “likely experienced stress and anxiety in entrusting Oak as the provider of a necessary service”.

The judgment also noted that delays in reporting meant some individuals “may have been deprived of prompt, adequate and necessary treatment or responses”.

This judgment provides direction not only for the Commission but importantly for providers delivering NDIS supports and services. 

Key takeaway

The Federal Court of Australia handed down a $1.1 million penalty against Oak Australia for serious safety and reporting failures.

Update to the Complaints pages of our website

The NDIS Commission has updated the information on the Complaints section of our website to improve guidance for people wishing to raise concerns about the quality and safety of NDIS-funded supports and services. The most significant changes are on these pages:
 

• Report an issue or make a complaint about a provider or worker

• After you report an issue or make a complaint

The new content includes short videos and Easy Read resources to provide more clarity around what we can help with, and directs users to the correct channel if their concern is out of our scope or jurisdiction. The updates follow the NDIS Commissioner’s making of amended Complaints Rules that embed our risk-based approach to regulation.

Participants and others can still contact the NDIS Commission with concerns or enquiries at any time. All information received helps us build a clearer picture of provider performance and potential risks across the market.

Key takeaway 

We’ve updated the Complaints section of our website to make it easier to understand our complaints process.

Regulatory Priorities 2024-25 Report

We're excited to share that the Regulatory Priorities Report for 2024-25 has now been published on our website.

The report outlines the collective effort made across the NDIS Commission in financial year 2024–25 in response to our 5 regulatory priorities, and highlights how we have used the full suite of our regulatory tools and levers.

Publication of this report delivers on a recommendation by the Australian National Audit Office that the NDIS Commission regularly report on our compliance priorities and action plans, including publicly. The public release of this report demonstrates our commitment to addressing areas of heightened risk and how we are maturing as a regulator.

We encourage anyone working in the disability sector to take the time to read the report. While we acknowledge there is still work to do, we are heading in the right direction.

Key takeaway

The NDIS Commission has released its Regulatory Priorities Report for 2024-25.

New Code of Conduct video – fair pricing

The NDIS Commission has released a new short video that's part of an educational series that will help providers better understand the NDIS Code of Conduct.

It covers fair pricing – one of 8 elements under the Code.

Providers are prohibited from charging or representing higher prices for the supply of goods for NDIS participants. The practice of charging an NDIS participant more than they would a non-participant for the same or substantially same goods without reasonable justification is known as price differentiation or unfair pricing.

Providers should take all reasonable steps to ensure NDIS participants are not taken advantage of when buying goods in the market and that their rights are respected. This includes ensuring unfair pricing that discriminates against participants is not in place across your product range. You should respond promptly and proactively to unfair pricing concerns.

The video shows what this element means for providers through a real-world scenario that illustrates how the Code works in practice and emphasises it is essential for you to meet your obligations under the Code of Conduct.

Visit the Code of Conduct videos web page to watch the series.

Key takeaway

Please take a moment to watch a new short video on the Code of Conduct element – fair pricing.

Have your say on improving service agreements

Service agreements shouldn’t feel confusing or overwhelming. Together with the National Disability Insurance Agency (NDIA), we’re asking the NDIS community what would make service agreements clearer, fairer and more useful for everyone. If you’re a participant, family member, carer or provider, we want to hear from you.

We want to hear your ideas so we can help support the development of clear, easy to understand, and trusted service agreements.

This project aims to:

• explore the guidance and materials which could support clearer and easier to understand service agreements
   
• support fair, safe, and respectful relationships between participants, nominees, and providers.

Your feedback will help us understand what an improved service agreement might look like.

The consultation closes on 27 February 2026. Later in the year, we’ll share a ‘What we heard’ update and explain how your feedback shaped our work.

Visit the Improving service agreements page of the NDIS website to take part.

Key takeaway

The NDIA is working with the NDIS Commission to gather feedback from participants, family members, carers and providers around service agreements.

Managing cyber risks in service delivery

Cyber security isn’t just an IT issue; it’s a safeguard for the people you support. A data breach could put a participant’s privacy and safety at risk.

As an NDIS provider, you hold sensitive personal information about the participants you support. Protecting this information is central to your obligations. The NDIS Code of Conduct requires all providers and workers to respect privacy and to deliver services safely and competently.

The Australian Cyber Security Centre’s latest report shows cybercrime and cyber security incidents are increasing across Australia, with criminals targeting sectors that hold sensitive personal information.

To help NDIS providers strengthen their defences, the Australian Government’s free Cyber Wardens course has been designed specifically for small organisations. The course offers simple, practical steps to reduce the risk of scams and hacks.

The 10-minute foundation course supports your compliance with the Practice Standards by helping you and your staff identify the 7 most common cyber red flags and adopt safer online habits.

Visit the CyberWardens website to enrol for free or to join a webinar.

Key takeaway

Take 10 minutes to complete the Australian Government’s free Cyber Wardens course and learn simple, practical steps to reduce the risk of scams and hacks.

Resources for providers 

Our website has a range of resources to support you deliver safe and quality services and comply with your registration:

• Provider registration
• Worker resources  
• NDIS Code of Conduct 
• Worker screening  
• NDIS Practice Standards 
• Reportable incidents 
• Incident management 
• Workforce Capability Framework 

Resources for behaviour support practitioners 

• Understanding behaviour support and restrictive practices - for providers
• Rules for behaviour support and restrictive practices

Stay in touch with the NDIS Commission on social media:

General enquiries

1800 035 544 (free call from landlines)

Our Contact Centre is open weekdays excluding public holidays.

You'll find our operating hours and other means of contacting us on the Contact us page of the NDIS Commission website.

To provide feedback, contact the NDIS Commission by emailing 
feedbackandcomplaints@ndiscommission.gov.au.
 

Thanks for reading!

You can find past issues of the NDIS Commission provider newsletter on our website.  

The NDIA also publishes various newsletters, including a provider newsletter.