From this month, the law that runs the NDIS officially allows a computer to process your claims. Not a planner reading a screen, a computer system acting on its own. The government says a person still checks anything that affects you. The question worth asking is the same one we asked about plan setting a few weeks ago: which human, checking what, and when.
What changed this week
Four things landed close together, and the self-management community has largely kept pace with them. They’re still easy to miss if you’ve got a whole life to manage alongside a plan.
First, the NDIS Amendment (Securing the NDIS for Future Generations) Act 2026, in force since 27 August 2026, gives the NDIA explicit power to use automated computer systems for administrative processes, including processing claims. The NDIA has to publish details of a given automated arrangement on its website at least seven days before it starts, and decisions that are complex, discretionary or need judgement are still required to be made by a person [1].
Second, the claiming window itself is getting much shorter. From 1 December 2026, the two years participants currently have to submit a claim drops to 90 days: any support delivered on or after that date needs to be claimed within 90 days of the session or it won’t be paid, unless exceptional circumstances apply [1].
Third, the NDIA has been testing its “new way of planning”, the more computer-assisted assessment process now expected to roll out from April 2027 after being pushed back to allow more testing time. More than 300 participants have been through it so far, with testing scaling up toward 10,000 before it rolls out properly, and taking part doesn’t change a participant’s current plan, funding or eligibility [1][5].
Fourth, the Minister for the NDIS picked up two new powers under the same Act: the power to set NDIS price limits directly by legislative instrument, and the power to reset funding for a whole category of supports across existing plans through a separate legal instrument called a support determination, without writing new legislation each time [1][4]. That second power is what’s behind the budget changes below, and it’s been used for the first time this year, not as a one-off announcement.
Put those four together and a pattern shows up. The system is automating more of its own paperwork, tightening the window participants have to get their paperwork right, and still working out how to tell people what’s actually happening to them.
Where this actually lands for you right now
Strip away the policy language and here’s what’s practical for participants, especially if you self-manage:
- Your claiming window is shrinking. If you’re still submitting claims months after a support was delivered, that habit now has a deadline attached. From 1 December 2026, 90 days is the cut-off [1].
- The checks are automated, but the consequence isn’t abstract. A claim flagged by an automated check can still mean a delay to your reimbursement while someone follows up, which matters if you’re relying on that money to pay a worker or a provider.
- Your plan review might involve more computer-assisted steps, eventually. If you’re reassessed or get a new plan after April 2027, parts of how your budget gets built may run through a more standardised, computer-supported process. That’s not live yet, but testing is already under way [5].
- Two budgets are being cut, but not everything in them. From 1 October 2026, funding for Social, Economic and Community Participation is being reset by 50% and Improved Daily Living Skills by 10%, phased in over 12 months as each plan is created, reassessed or renewed [2]. A specific set of support types inside those two categories is carved out to protect participant health, safety and work arrangements, including employment supports, high-intensity supports, intensive and complex behaviour supports, disability-related health supports, customised and wearable technology, and hearing services [3]. That’s a narrower list than “anything essential,” so it’s worth checking your own plan’s actual line items against it rather than assuming a whole category is automatically safe.
- Nothing about your right to ask questions has changed. You can still ask how a number was reached, still ask for a plan variation if your support needs are high, and still push back on a decision you think is wrong.
- There’s a safeguard if the NDIA can’t reach you, too. Since the Act commenced on 27 August 2026, before it can suspend your plan for non-contact, the NDIA must make at least five attempts to reach you using your preferred contact method, with the first and last attempt three to four months apart. If you’re still unreachable after that, your participant status isn’t revoked for another 90 days [1][6]. It exists for the opposite problem, the NDIA losing contact with you, but it’s a useful reminder that real contact, not just a notice going out, is supposed to be the standard both ways.
The automation is happening in the parts of the system you don’t usually see: claims processing, data checks, parts of plan building. The part you do see, a letter, a portal notification, a new budget figure, often arrives without much explanation of what changed underneath it.
What human in the loop is supposed to mean here
We’ve written before about the I-CAN v6 assessment tool and the question of who actually sets the number in a computer-assisted plan. The same question applies to automated claims processing, just quieter, because nobody notices their claim being checked the way they notice their budget being cut.
“Human in the loop” should mean a person can see how a decision was reached and can change it when it’s wrong, not just that a person technically signed off on it somewhere. A rubber stamp isn’t oversight. If a computer flags your claim or shapes part of your plan, you should still be able to find a person who can explain why, and who has the authority to fix it if it’s wrong.
That’s the standard we think participants should be holding the NDIA to as more of this rolls out, and it’s the standard we build to ourselves. A tool can organise your information and show you what’s going on. It shouldn’t be the thing quietly deciding what happens to your funding.
What you can do now
None of this requires panic, but a few habits will matter more over the next few months:
- Claim sooner, not later. Get into the habit of submitting claims within weeks of receiving a support, not months. The 90-day deadline starts to bite from 1 December 2026.
- Keep your own records. Hold onto invoices, receipts and a simple note of what was delivered and when. If a claim ever needs “exceptional circumstances” to be considered, your own paper trail is what makes that case.
- Read your reassessment and renewal notices properly. If your plan is reassessed or renewed from 1 October 2026 onward, the Social, Economic and Community Participation and Improved Daily Living Skills changes may already be built in. Check your plan’s actual support items against the exclusion list before assuming a cut applies, or doesn’t.
- Ask for the reasoning, not just the number. You’re entitled to understand how a decision affects your plan. If something doesn’t add up, you can ask for a plan variation or seek a review.
- Keep your contact details current. If the NDIA is trying to reach you, being reachable through your preferred method is what keeps a plan from being suspended over a problem that’s genuinely avoidable.
Where we stand
Automation isn’t the villain here. A computer checking claims faster, or helping structure a planning conversation, can genuinely cut down on the paperwork and waiting that participants have put up with for years. The problem only shows up when the automation moves faster than the explanation does, and people are left finding out what happened to their funding from a letter instead of a conversation.
That’s the gap we want to help close. Hai Helper won’t ever decide your budget or your eligibility for you, that’s not our job and it shouldn’t be any app’s job. What we can do is show you, in plain English, what’s actually in your plan, track your spending against it, and help you keep the kind of records that matter if a claim or a reassessment is ever questioned. Clarity and control should sit with you, alongside your coordinator and your clinician, not with a system working quietly in the background.
Request a demo of Hai Helper and see what’s actually happening with your funding.
Sources
- [1] Department of Health, Disability and Ageing, “Changes to the NDIS Amendment (Securing the NDIS for Future Generations) Bill 2026 – fact sheet”, 2026
- [2] Department of Health, Disability and Ageing, “Funding changes for NDIS supports”, 2026
- [3] Office of Impact Analysis, “Dashboard Impact Analysis — Implementation of Support Determinations in NDIS old framework plans: exclusions and safeguards for NDIS participants”, September 2026
- [4] NDIS, “New price limits set for NDIS supports”, 2026
- [5] NDIS, “Help test the new way of planning”, 2026
- [6] People with Disability Australia, “2026 NDIS changes: what the new laws mean and what happens next”, 2026
This article is general information, not personal financial, legal or NDIS advice. Hai Helper is an independent platform and is not affiliated with the NDIA. Always check your own plan documents and official NDIS communications for decisions that affect you.