Audits & verification
Verification vs certification: which NDIS audit you need
Two NDIS providers can both be getting registered and go through completely different audits. Which one you face - the lighter verification audit or the deeper certification audit - is decided by the supports you register for. This guide explains what each audit actually involves, the rule that sets your audit type, where allied health and early childhood sit, and the common supports in each pathway, with the full code tables if you need them.
The quick answer
Verification is the lighter pathway for lower-risk supports, assessed against the NDIS Practice Standards Verification Module - often a desktop review of your documents. Certification is the deeper pathway for higher-risk supports, assessed against the Core Module (plus any supplementary modules), with an onsite audit and interviews. Most allied health and equipment supports are verification; most personal care, community, accommodation and behaviour supports are certification.
How the audit process differs
The pathway changes more than a label. It changes who the auditor talks to, whether they visit you, how often you are audited, and how much it costs.
Verification audit
Lower-risk supports
- Assessed against the Practice Standards Verification Module.
- Usually a single-stage desktop review - the approved quality auditor checks your documents and evidence, often without visiting you.
- Typically no participant interviews.
- Focuses on the essentials: required policies, insurances, worker screening, and professional registrations (for example AHPRA for allied health).
- No mid-term audit - you simply renew before your registration expires.
- Quicker and lower-cost.
Certification audit
Higher-risk supports
- Assessed against the Core Module, plus any supplementary modules your supports trigger.
- Two stages: a Stage 1 review of your systems, then a Stage 2 onsite audit.
- The auditor interviews management, workers and a sample of participants, and samples your records.
- Looks for evidence your systems work in practice, not just on paper.
- Includes a mid-term audit (around 18 months in) and recertification before you renew.
- More involved, takes longer, and costs more.
The rule that decides your audit type
Your audit type is the highest of your groups.
If even one of the groups you pick is a certification group, your whole registration becomes a certification audit. So a provider doing therapy (group 0128, verification) plus community access (group 0125, certification) is assessed as certification across the board. It is worth knowing this before you choose your groups, because adding a single certification group moves you to the deeper, costlier audit.
Allied health, therapy and the early-childhood exception
Most allied health and therapy work sits on the verification pathway. Therapeutic supports (group 0128) - occupational therapy, physiotherapy, speech pathology, psychology, podiatry, dietetics and similar - is a verification group. So a typical allied health practice registering only for therapy faces the lighter verification audit, with the auditor leaning heavily on your practitioners’ AHPRA or professional-body registration.
There are important exceptions. Some supports for children and for behaviour are higher-risk and sit on the certification pathway, each adding a supplementary module on top of the Core Module:
- Early intervention supports for early childhood (0118) is a certification group and adds the Early Childhood Supports Module.
- Specialist positive behaviour support (0110) is a certification group and adds the Specialist Behaviour Support Module.
So an allied health provider doing standard therapy is on verification, but the moment they add early childhood early intervention or behaviour support, the whole registration becomes certification (the highest group wins) and they are assessed against the extra module too. If that is you, plan for the deeper audit from the start.
Common certification supports
These are the certification groups small and growing providers most often register for. Each one puts you on the two-stage certification audit.
- 0107
Assistance with daily personal activities
Helping someone with personal care - showering, toileting, dressing, grooming, eating, mobility.
- 0104
High intensity daily personal activities
Complex/high-needs personal care - e.g. ventilation, PEG feeding, complex wound or bowel care.
- 0125
Participation in community, social and civic activities
Supporting someone to take part in community, social and recreational activities (community access).
- 0136
Group and centre-based activities
Running or supporting day programs and group/centre-based activities.
- 0115
Assistance with daily life tasks in a group or shared living arrangement (SIL)
Supported Independent Living - 24/7 or rostered support in a shared home. Mandatory to be registered from 1 July 2026.
- 0117
Development of daily living and life skills
Building a person’s capacity and independence in daily living skills.
- 0106
Support coordination (coordinating life stages, transitions and supports)
Helping a participant understand and use their plan, and connect with supports.
Common verification supports
These are the most common verification groups. Allied health practices register under therapeutic supports (0128) - by far the main verification group for therapists.
- 0128
Therapeutic supports
Allied healthAllied health therapy - OT, physiotherapy, speech pathology, psychology, podiatry, dietetics, etc.
- 0127
Management of funding for supports (plan management)
Managing the funding in a participant’s plan - paying invoices, tracking the budget.
- 0120
Household tasks
Cleaning, laundry, gardening and other domestic help.
- 0108
Assistance with travel/transport arrangements
Transport to appointments, activities and the community.
Every registration group, by pathway
If your support is not in the common lists above, the full tables are here. They are taken directly from the NDIS Commission table, collapsed to keep the page readable - open the one you need.
See all 13 certification groups
Assistance with daily personal activities
Helping someone with personal care - showering, toileting, dressing, grooming, eating, mobility.
High intensity daily personal activities
Complex/high-needs personal care - e.g. ventilation, PEG feeding, complex wound or bowel care.
Participation in community, social and civic activities
Supporting someone to take part in community, social and recreational activities (community access).
Group and centre-based activities
Running or supporting day programs and group/centre-based activities.
Assistance with daily life tasks in a group or shared living arrangement (SIL)
Supported Independent Living - 24/7 or rostered support in a shared home. Mandatory to be registered from 1 July 2026.
Development of daily living and life skills
Building a person’s capacity and independence in daily living skills.
Support coordination (coordinating life stages, transitions and supports)
Helping a participant understand and use their plan, and connect with supports.
Specialised support coordination
Higher-intensity support coordination for participants in complex situations.
Assistance to access and maintain employment or higher education
Supporting a participant into and within work or further study.
Specialised supported employment
Supported employment services (e.g. Australian Disability Enterprises).
Specialist positive behaviour support
Assessing behaviours of concern and writing behaviour support plans. Practitioners must be NDIS-suitable.
Early intervention supports for early childhood
Early childhood early intervention for children with developmental delay or disability.
Specialist disability accommodation (SDA)
Providing specialist housing for people with extreme functional impairment or very high needs.
See all 23 verification groups
Therapeutic supports
Allied health therapy - OT, physiotherapy, speech pathology, psychology, podiatry, dietetics, etc.
Management of funding for supports (plan management)
Managing the funding in a participant’s plan - paying invoices, tracking the budget.
Household tasks
Cleaning, laundry, gardening and other domestic help.
Assistance with travel/transport arrangements
Transport to appointments, activities and the community.
Innovative community participation
New or trial approaches to building community and social participation skills.
Exercise physiology and personal training
Exercise physiology, personal training and physical wellbeing programs.
Community nursing care
Nursing care delivered in the community/home.
Accommodation / tenancy assistance
Helping a participant find and keep suitable housing/tenancy.
Assistive products for personal care and safety
Supplying personal-care and safety equipment.
Personal mobility equipment
Supplying wheelchairs, walkers and other mobility equipment.
Vehicle modifications
Modifying vehicles for accessibility.
Home modifications
Modifying a home for accessibility (ramps, rails, bathrooms).
Assistive equipment for recreation
Supplying equipment that supports recreation and leisure.
Vision equipment
Supplying vision-related assistive equipment.
Specialised hearing services
Specialised hearing assessment and services.
Interpreting and translation
Interpreting and translation services for participants.
Hearing equipment
Supplying hearing aids and related equipment.
Assistive products in household tasks
Supplying assistive products that help with household tasks.
Communication and information equipment
Supplying communication aids and information technology equipment.
Specialised driver training
Driver training tailored to people with disability.
Assistance animals
Providing/training assistance animals.
Hearing services
Hearing services under the relevant program.
Customised prosthetics
Designing and supplying customised prosthetics and orthotics.
Source: the NDIS Quality and Safeguards Commission’s “Registration Requirements by Supports and Services”. Consultancy blogs often disagree with each other on this - the pathways above follow the Commission’s own table, and the Commission confirms your pathway when you apply.
See your pathway and your documents
Pick your registration groups in the pack builder and we will show your audit pathway and the documents an auditor expects, pre-filled with your business name. Preview every page free; unlock the editable Word files for a one-off $50. The documents help you prepare - they do not register you.
See the $50 packCommon questions
How do I know if I need a verification or certification audit?
It comes down to the registration groups you apply for. If every group you pick is a verification group, you have a verification audit. If even one is a certification group, your whole registration becomes a certification audit. Check each support you deliver against the lists below, and the NDIS Commission confirms your pathway when you apply.
Is allied health verification or certification?
Therapeutic supports (group 0128) - the main allied health group, covering OT, physiotherapy, speech pathology, psychology, podiatry and dietetics - is a verification group. But early intervention supports for early childhood (0118) and specialist positive behaviour support (0110) are certification groups with their own supplementary modules. So it depends on exactly which supports you deliver.
Can I be on both pathways at once?
No. You have one overall audit type for your registration. If you mix verification and certification groups, the certification pathway applies to the whole registration, because the highest group sets your audit type.
Is a verification audit cheaper than a certification audit?
Generally yes. Verification is usually a lighter, single-stage desktop review, so it tends to cost less and take less time than a two-stage certification audit with an onsite visit, interviews and a mid-term audit. The Commission does not set audit fees, so get quotes from a few approved quality auditors for your situation.
This guide is general information to help you prepare for NDIS provider registration. It is not legal or compliance advice, and it is not affiliated with the NDIS Commission or the NDIA. Pathways and rules change - confirm your audit type with the NDIS Quality and Safeguards Commission when you apply.