How to Refer an NDIS Participant to a Physiotherapist

Referring an NDIS participant for physiotherapy takes four steps: check how their plan is funded, choose a provider, submit the referral, and confirm the service agreement. No GP referral is required at any point. Here’s exactly how each step works, and where support coordinators most often get tripped up.

Quick answer

You can refer an NDIS participant to a physiotherapist directly, without a GP referral. The only thing that changes the process is how the participant’s plan is managed: self-managed and plan-managed participants can be referred to any qualified physiotherapist, registered with the NDIS Quality and Safeguards Commission or not. Only agency-managed (NDIA-managed) participants are restricted to registered providers.

Step 1: Check how the participant’s plan is funded

Before choosing anyone, confirm two things: which support category physiotherapy sits under, and how the plan is managed.

Physiotherapy is typically funded through Capacity Building — Improved Daily Living, sometimes alongside Improved Health and Wellbeing depending on the participant’s goals.

How the plan is managed determines which providers are actually available to the participant:

Self-managed — the participant pays the provider and claims it back through the myplace portal. Any qualified physiotherapist can be used, registered or not.
Plan-managed — a plan manager pays the provider on the participant’s behalf. Same flexibility as self-managed: registration isn’t a requirement.
Agency-managed (NDIA-managed) — the NDIA pays providers directly, and only providers registered with the NDIS Quality and Safeguards Commission can be used.

Step 2: Choose a provider

Do you need a registered NDIS provider? Only if the participant is agency-managed. For self-managed and plan-managed participants, a support coordinator can refer to any appropriately qualified physiotherapist, including a provider that isn’t registered with the NDIS Quality and Safeguards Commission at all. Registration status has no bearing on the quality, insurance, or screening a provider holds — those are separate things worth checking regardless (AHPRA registration, professional indemnity insurance, and a current NDIS Worker Screening Check).

Beyond registration, it’s worth checking:

Do they actually come to the participant’s home, or only see clients in a clinic?
Is travel included in the standard NDIS rate, or billed separately?
Do they cover the participant’s specific suburb
How quickly can a new referral get an actual appointment time?

Step 3: Submit the referral

No GP referral, doctor’s letter, or medical certificate is needed to refer an NDIS participant for physiotherapy. A support coordinator, plan manager, family member, or the participant themselves can refer directly to a provider.

To refer a participant to Bayside Mobile Physio, you’ll need:

Participant name and date of birth
NDIS number and plan management type (self-managed, plan-managed, or agency-managed)
Address and suburb
A brief description of the condition or support need
Optional but helpful: specific goals, diagnoses, and any access considerations for home visits

You can submit this through our online referral form (the fastest option), by email, or by phone for urgent cases.

Step 4: Review the service agreement and confirm the plan

Once a referral is submitted, the provider should confirm the arrangement before the first visit: the support category it’s billed against, the rate (which must sit within the NDIS Pricing Arrangements and Price Limits), and how invoicing will work.

With Bayside Mobile Physio, that looks like:

24 hours: referral reviewed by our team
48–72 hours: initial appointment offered and booked
Plan-managed: we invoice the plan manager directly, no paperwork for the coordinator or participant to handle
Self-managed: the participant pays the invoice, then claims it back through the myplace portal

Frequently asked questions

Do I need a GP referral to refer an NDIS participant to a physiotherapist? No. NDIS participants don’t need a GP or doctor’s referral to access physiotherapy. A support coordinator, plan manager, or the participant can refer directly to a provider.

Do I need to use a registered NDIS provider? Only if the participant is agency-managed. Self-managed and plan-managed participants can be referred to any appropriately qualified physiotherapist, including one that isn’t registered with the NDIS Quality and Safeguards Commission.

Can I refer a participant who is agency-managed? Bayside Mobile Physio currently works with plan-managed and self-managed participants. If a participant is agency-managed, contact us and we’ll talk through their specific situation.

What information does a referral need to include? Participant name, date of birth, NDIS number, plan management type, address, and a brief description of the condition or support need. Diagnoses, specific goals, and access considerations are helpful but optional.

How quickly will a referral be actioned? Referrals are reviewed within 24 hours, with an initial appointment typically offered within 48–72 hours.

Refer a participant to Bayside Mobile Physio

Bayside Mobile Physio provides in-home physiotherapy across Greater Sydney for self-managed and plan-managed NDIS participants.

Submit a referral through our online form, email [email protected], or call 0468 079 075 for urgent cases.

This article is general information to help support coordinators, referrers and self-managed NDIS participants understand the NDIS physiotherapy referral process, and isn’t a substitute for advice from the NDIA or a participant’s plan manager about their specific plan.