NDIS Counselling
What NDIS counselling involves, the current hourly price limits, and how sessions are claimed.
Counselling gives you a structured space to talk through what disability touches: adjustment to change, relationships, family dynamics, grief, stress, and the decisions in front of you. A counsellor listens, asks the useful questions, and works with you on ways forward at your own pace.
In the Support Catalogue, counselling is an hourly therapy item at its own price limit, lower than the standard allied-health rate, with an early-childhood item alongside. That makes it one of the more affordable ways to put regular one-on-one support into a plan.
Does the NDIS fund counselling?
The NDIS funds supports it decides are reasonable and necessary for your goals. The same item can be approved for one participant and not another, so no list or website can tell you what your plan will include.
Counselling appears under Improved Daily Living (Capacity Building) in the current NDIS Support Catalogue. Whether counselling supports can be claimed depends on your individual plan, your goals, and how your funding is managed. Your plan manager or support coordinator can confirm what applies to you.
If you intend to claim, check with your plan manager or support coordinator before purchasing.
NDIS counselling rates: current price limits
Each price limit below is the most a provider can charge for that item under managed arrangements. The agreed price in your service agreement can sit anywhere up to it.
| Item code | Support item | Unit | National limit | Remote (MMM 6) | Very remote (MMM 7) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
15_043_0128_1_3 | Therapy - Counsellor - Direct Service | per hour | $156.16 | $218.62 | $234.24 |
15_606_0118_1_3 | ECI Professional - Counsellor - Direct Service | per hour | $156.16 | $218.62 | $234.24 |
Source: NDIS Support Catalogue, effective . Price limits are GST-exclusive per the Pricing Arrangements.
How counselling is claimed
Supports are billed against the item codes above, at or below the price limit, under a service agreement that records the agreed price, how provider travel is charged, and the cancellation terms. Invoices quote the item code, the date, the quantity, and the rate - which is what plan managers check before paying.
How your plan is managed - self-managed, plan-managed, or agency-managed - changes who you can buy from and how invoices are paid. Your plan documents state which applies to you. Agency-managed participants generally need to purchase through registered NDIS providers. Self-managed and plan-managed participants can buy from any suitable supplier.
| Claiming rule | What the Pricing Arrangements say |
|---|---|
| Provider travel time | Up to 30 minutes each way per worker in MMM 1-3 areas; up to 60 minutes in MMM 4-5; no time limit in Remote (MMM 6) and Very Remote (MMM 7) areas. |
| Travel price limit | Travel time is claimable at up to 50% of the item's hourly price limit, plus non-labour costs (e.g. per-kilometre vehicle costs) per the PAPL worked examples. |
| Short-notice cancellation | Notice window: 7 days for disability support worker supports; 2 clear business days for other supports. A late cancellation or no-show can be billed at up to 100% of the agreed fee if the provider could not find other billable work (and pays the worker); providers may waive the fee. Terms must be documented in the service agreement. |
| Remote loadings | National price limits carry a 40% loading in Remote (MMM 6) areas and a 50% loading in Very Remote (MMM 7) areas, as the loaded columns in the rates table show. |
Source: NDIS Pricing Arrangements and Price Limits (claiming rules narrative, published ), via ndis.gov.au pricing arrangements. Read .
Provider registration
The item codes above carry registration group 0128 in their item numbers - the group a provider registers for with the NDIS Quality and Safeguards Commission to deliver this service. The Commission's public register records who holds it.
Invoices and agreements for counselling
Two documents carry the admin: the service agreement sets the price, travel billing, and cancellation terms before supports start, and the invoice quotes the item code and rate so the claim goes through first time.
Find counselling providers
The provider directory is where our provider coverage lives, organised by service and state. Whoever you shortlist, verify their registration status on the NDIS Commission's public register before signing an agreement.
NDIS counselling FAQs
What is the price limit for counselling under the NDIS?
Counselling has its own hourly item in the Support Catalogue, priced below the standard therapy rate - the table above carries the current national, remote, and very remote limits. Under managed arrangements the limit is a ceiling; your service agreement sets the actual session price.
Does the NDIS fund counselling?
The NDIS funds supports it decides are reasonable and necessary for your goals. The same item can be approved for one participant and not another, so no list or website can tell you what your plan will include. If you intend to claim, check with your plan manager or support coordinator before purchasing.
What is the difference between counselling and psychology under the NDIS?
They are separate Support Catalogue items with different hourly limits - psychology bills at a higher rate, counselling at a lower one. In practice the professions differ in training and focus: psychologists carry formal assessment work, while counsellors centre on structured talking support. Both appear in the rates table on their pages.
Can counselling be cancelled without charge?
Short-notice cancellation rules apply: with enough notice there is nothing to pay, while a late cancellation or no-show can be billed against your plan when the provider meets the published conditions. The notice window sits in the claiming table above, and your service agreement must document the terms.