An FCA can provide information the NDIA uses when considering a person's activities and support needs. The value of the report depends on whether it answers the relevant question and explains its findings.
It cannot promise access to the NDIS, a particular budget or acceptance of every recommendation.
First identify the decision
An access application may need evidence about the effect of an impairment alongside diagnosis, treatment and permanence information. A request concerning an existing plan may need evidence of changed activities, assistance or circumstances.
The assessment should be commissioned for that purpose. A long general report may still leave the important question unanswered if the scope was not clear at the beginning.
The NDIA can consider other relevant information and seek further evidence. An FCA is one contribution, not the entire decision-making process.
Make the information traceable
The report should identify the methods, dates and people involved. It needs to distinguish direct assessment from information supplied by the participant, a supporter or an earlier treating report.
Questionnaire results may contribute, but their meaning depends on the measure and how it was used. A person's account is also evidence; it should be described accurately rather than dismissed as an impression.
Where information conflicts or is incomplete, the report should explain the issue and how it affects the conclusion.
Show how a recommendation follows
Consider a hypothetical recommendation for help with laundry. A useful explanation would identify the difficult steps, current assistance, how often the task needs to happen and why the proposed help is suitable.
If equipment or a different arrangement could address the need, that may also be relevant. The report should not simply attach a weekly hour total to a broad description of disability.
For NDIS purposes, recommendations also need to be considered against the applicable funding requirements. A clinically useful service is not automatically an NDIS-funded service.
Keep conclusions independent and reviewable
The assessor should not work backwards from a requested funding amount. They should explain the findings supported by the assessment.
That does not mean an error is permanent once the report is issued. Incorrect information or relevant new evidence may require reconsideration. Clinical independence and an appropriate correction process belong together.
Private FCAs and new NDIA assessments
Official advice checked on 22 September 2026 describes a staged move to new framework planning for adult participants from April 2027. The proposed NDIA support-needs assessment is a different process from a private Seeds FCA.
Do not assume that a privately purchased report replaces an agency assessment or that every participant is already using the new framework. Check the requirements for the person's current decision before commissioning additional evidence.
Further information
- NDIA: What is reasonable and necessary?
- Department of Health, Disability and Ageing: New framework planning