About Us

Our team of qualified and dedicated accountants are here to help you with the financial aspects of your National Disability Insurance Scheme (‘NDIS’) funding.

We are not associated with any service providers and hence we act independently for you and in your best interest when managing your NDIS plan and budget to make sure you get the most out of your funding.

On top of our expertise in the finance and accounting field, we also have extensive knowledge of the NDIS, having been through the full participant process with family members who are participants in the scheme.

By using Absolute Plan Manager, as your plan manager, we can save you time and hassle in dealing with the many invoices and payment requests as well as keeping clear records of your use of NDIS funds to be compliant with the NDIS audit requirements.

What is Plan Management?

An important part of the NDIS is the management of a participant’s funding.

Participants have four options to choose from. Once a choice is made, it will be reflected in your NDIS plan.

The four options are:

  1. Plan Managed
  2. Agency Managed
  3. Self Managed
  4. A combination of the above

Plan Managed

If you choose to have your funds managed by a NDIS registered Plan Manager, NDIS will include extra funding for you to engage a Plan Manager, so it is at no cost to you to choose this option.

You will see the funding against “Improved Life Choices” in your NDIS plan if the Plan Managed option is chosen.

Under this option, you can use both NDIS registered and non-registered service providers of your choice, hence, giving you more control over how to use your NDIS funding to achieve your goals.

A Plan Manager is like your own personal accountant that manages your NDIS funding and will help you with:

  • Budgeting of your NDIS funds to make sure it lasts for the duration of your plan
  • Claim funding on your behalf from the NDIA and make payment to your service providers
  • Keep you updated on provider invoices that has been paid and the amount of your NDIS funding that remains
  • Keep all record of the billing, payment and claiming activities related to your NDIS funds for at least 5 years so that you can meet NDIS auditing and record keeping requirements

Agency Managed

When choosing the Agency Managed option, you can only use NDIS registered providers. When a service has been provided, the provider will claim the payment directly from the NDIA online portal. It is up to you to keep track of your NDIS spending by logging on to the NDIA participant portal to check progress of payments and remaining funds. If there are any issues or queries about a payment, you will need to contact the NDIA or your providers to inquire.

Self Managed

If you choose the Self Managed option, you are responsible for all the billing, payments, budgeting and record keeping of your NDIS funds. Under this option, you can choose both registered and non-registered providers.

If you choose the Self Managed option, some things that you need to be mindful of are:

  • A separate bank account is required solely for the purpose of your NDIS related financial operations –this is so that your personal monies won’t get mixed up with your NDIS related funds
  • You will need to do all the service bookings and payment requests yourself on the NDIA participant portal
  • You will need to keep all invoices and receipts and maintain clear and accurate records for all the services and supports that was used for the last 5 years to meet NDIS auditing requirements
  • You need to resolve any billing or payment issues yourself
  • You need to meet employer obligations if you choose to employ staff directly
  • You need to show the NDIA at plan reviews how you had used your self managed funds towards reaching your NDIS goals

Combination of options

You can choose to combine different management options to suit your needs.

It’s YOUR choice

Remember that the NDIS is all about allowing participants to have their own choices and control over the use of their funding according to their needs and situation. Whilst one type of management option might suit one participant, it might not necessarily suit another participant.

Therefore, when choosing a management option, it is important to assess your situation or what you like or dislike doing in order to find the best fit.

Consider if you have limited time on your hands or if you do not enjoy the thought of having to keep records for a long period of time – then choosing the Plan Managed option might suit you best. Or you might love numbers and have an apt for keeping great records even for your own personal expenses, then the self managed option might be the choice for you.

Still not sure which option suits you best?

Contact us.