Can we claim a short notice cancellation if the participant cancels the day before?
Usually yes. Under the most recent NDIA claiming rules, which are still the 2025-26 rules, a cancellation is short notice if the participant gives less than 7 days' notice for a disability support worker support, or less than 2 clear business days' notice for other supports, so a day-before cancellation qualifies for both. You can claim up to 100% of the agreed fee from the plan, but only if the support item allows cancellation claims, your service agreement covers it, and you could not find other billable work for the worker.
NDIA, NDIS Pricing Arrangements and Price Limits 2025-26, Short Notice Cancellations
NDIA, NDIS Pricing Schedule 2026-27
NDIA, NDIS Support Catalogue 2026-27
National Disability Insurance Scheme Amendment (Securing the NDIS for Future Generations) Act 2026 (Cth), section 2 and Schedule 2, Part 5
NDIA, Securing the NDIS for future generations (90 day claiming)
Where the rule sits in 2026-27
The NDIS Pricing Schedule 2026-27 replaced the Pricing Arrangements and Price Limits from 1 July 2026, but it contains prices rather than claiming rules. As at mid October 2026, the NDIA says updated pricing and claiming guidance will be published shortly, and no 2026-27 cancellation rule has been released. Until then, the most recent full statement of the short notice cancellation rule is in the NDIS Pricing Arrangements and Price Limits 2025-26, which the NDIA still lists on its pricing page. The Support Catalogue 2026-27 also includes guidance on short notice cancellations and shows which items allow a cancellation claim.
The notice periods
Under the 2025-26 rules, the notice period depends on the type of support. For supports delivered by disability support workers, such as help with daily living and community participation, a cancellation is short notice if the participant gives less than 7 days' notice. For other supports, such as therapy, it is short notice if they give less than 2 clear business days' notice. A no-show also counts, as does the participant not being at the agreed place within a reasonable time when the worker has travelled there. A cancellation the day before falls inside both periods.
Conditions before you claim
All of the conditions must be met. The support item must allow cancellation claims. You must not have been able to find other billable work for the worker and, unless you are a sole trader or a partnership, you must still be paying the worker for the cancelled time. Your cancellation terms should be written into the service agreement. Claim using the same support item you would have used for the support and choose the cancellation option, and check whether the current Schedule lists a separate cancellation item for your support, as some therapy items now do.
How much and how often
You can claim up to 100% of the agreed fee for the support, and the agreed fee cannot exceed the price limit in the current Pricing Schedule. There is no hard limit on the number of short notice cancellations you can claim for a participant. Providers do have a duty of care to look into an unusual pattern of cancellations, and the NDIA monitors cancellation claims and may contact providers about them. You can waive the fee or offer more generous notice terms. In a group support, if you cannot fill the place, you may charge the person who cancelled at the agreed rate.
Before you invoice
Record when and how the participant cancelled, confirm that the item and the service agreement both allow the claim, and keep a note of which version of the rules you relied on. From 1 December 2026, NDIS claims must be made within 90 days of the support date. If the NDIA publishes 2026-27 claiming guidance with different notice periods, update your service agreements and tell participants before you apply the new terms.
Ask Mandy this, and thousands more.
Get instant, cited answers on the NDIS, aged care, health and more, in plain English.
Try Ask Mandy