NDIS Music Therapy
What NDIS music therapy involves, the current hourly price limits, and how sessions are claimed.
Music therapy uses music - playing, singing, listening, moving - as the working medium in structured sessions with a registered music therapist. Sessions target goals from your plan: communication, regulation, social interaction, motor skills. As with art therapy, no musical ability is expected; the therapist shapes the activity to you.
In the Support Catalogue, music therapy is an hourly item at the same price limit as counselling and art therapy, with an early-childhood counterpart. Registration with the profession's credentialling body is the credential to look for when comparing providers.
Does the NDIS fund music therapy?
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.
Music Therapy appears under Improved Daily Living (Capacity Building) in the current NDIS Support Catalogue. Whether music therapy 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 music therapy 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_615_0128_1_3 | Therapy - Music Therapist - Direct Service | per hour | $156.16 | $218.62 | $234.24 |
15_615_0118_1_3 | ECI Professional - Music Therapist - 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 music therapy 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 music therapy
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 music therapy 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 music therapy FAQs
What does music therapy cost under the NDIS?
The Support Catalogue prices music therapy hourly at the same limit as counselling and art therapy - the table above has the current national, remote, and very remote figures. Under managed arrangements the limit caps the rate; the agreed price lives in your service agreement.
Does the NDIS fund music therapy?
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.
Who can deliver NDIS music therapy?
A registered music therapist - the profession carries its own credentialling body, and registration there is what separates music therapy from music lessons or entertainment. When comparing providers, ask about registration, experience with your disability and age group, and how sessions will connect to the goals written in your plan.
Is music therapy the same as music lessons?
No. Lessons teach an instrument; music therapy is a structured intervention delivered by a credentialled therapist against goals in your plan, billed on the hourly catalogue item above. Keeping that distinction explicit in your service agreement protects both you and the provider at claim time.