SIL registration becomes mandatory in 2026. Here is what it means.
From 1 July 2026, registration becomes mandatory for Supported Independent Living and platform providers. That means a full certification audit. This is the plain English guide: the dates, what registration asks of you, the new SIL Practice Standards, and how to be ready in time.
Current as of June 2026. Final detail follows the Provider Registration Rules as they are made.
Registration moves from optional to required.
Until now, many SIL providers could operate unregistered. The NDIS reforms close that door, starting with the providers the Commission considers highest risk.
Who it covers
Providers delivering Supported Independent Living, and platform providers that connect participants with workers.
What it requires
The certification pathway: a two stage audit against the NDIS Practice Standards, plus a new SIL specific module.
Why now
It follows the NDIS Review, the Disability Royal Commission, and the Provider and Worker Registration Taskforce.
Two deadlines, not one.
The Minister confirms mandatory registration for SIL and platform providers.
Registration becomes mandatory. You must have started your application. Delivering SIL unregistered may breach the Act.
The point to have applied. If you have not, you must stop delivering SIL.
Stage 1 desktop review, then a Stage 2 site visit, before your certificate is issued.
The certification pathway, in full.
Certification is the most thorough NDIS audit. Start early. Auditor capacity is tight, and at least two approved auditors have left the market.
A certification audit
Stage 1 reviews your documents and readiness. Stage 2 is an on site visit with records review, interviews and observation, against the Practice Standards.
The new SIL module
A new SIL Practice Standards module applies alongside the Core module, focused on rights and quality in shared living. See below.
Suitability checks
The provider and its key personnel are assessed as suitable to deliver NDIS supports.
Worker screening
Every worker in a risk assessed role holds a current NDIS Worker Screening Check, tracked to expiry.
Reporting systems
Working incident management and reportable incident processes, and restrictive practice reporting where it applies.
Evidence of practice
Not just policies. Progress notes, consents, plans and records that show the policies are actually followed.
Four standards, focused on the person at home.
They shift the test from process to measurable outcomes for the people you support.
Supported decision making
People are supported to understand and make decisions about their daily life, routines, relationships and home.
Safeguarding
People feel safe at home. Risks, including between people who live together, are managed, and workers are trained in de escalation, trauma informed practice and positive behaviour support.
Practice governance
Quality is consistent across every worker and every shift, with skilled, well supervised staff.
Agreements
Housing and support are documented, fair and consistent. A change in support does not put someone’s home at risk.
The cost of missing the date.
Industry guidance points to penalties of up to two years imprisonment or 120 penalty units. Just as real: if you have not applied by the cut off, you must stop delivering SIL, which puts both your participants and your revenue at risk.
Your SIL readiness checklist.
Identify which of your services are SIL, and whether you also operate as a platform provider.
Begin your registration application before 1 July 2026, and well before the 1 October cut off.
Book early. Certification audits and auditor availability are in short supply.
Check yourself against the Core and new SIL modules, and close the gaps you find.
Gather what you need for the provider and key personnel suitability assessment.
Ensure every worker in a risk assessed role holds a current check, and track expiries.
Have working note quality, incident management and restrictive practice reporting in place.
Keep a live view of where you stand against certification, so nothing surfaces at the last minute.
Turn the evidence you create every day into a registration you can pass.
- ✓A readiness cockpit that maps your live records to the certification standards, and shows the gaps before the auditor does.
- ✓Every progress note scored against the Practice Standards, so your evidence is strong, not just present.
- ✓Restrictive practice, reportable incident and worker screening tracking that the audit looks for.
- ✓A one tap evidence pack, assembled and mapped to the outcomes your assessor reviews.
Where do you stand today?
Book a 15 minute call and we will walk your services against the certification standards, and show you exactly what is left to do before 1 July 2026.
Be audit ready before 1 July 2026.
The providers who start now will sail through. Let us show you how NDIScribe gets you there.
Book a 15 minute demoThis guide is general information, not legal advice. The detailed requirements follow the Provider Registration Rules and the final SIL Practice Standards as they are made. Always check the current position with the NDIS Quality and Safeguards Commission.