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Searching for an NDIS plan booklet can mean two different things: an official guide about planning, or the individual plan that sets out your own funding. This page helps you find the right document and understand what to check in your plan.
Choose what you need: For official downloads, start with NDIS booklets and factsheets. To understand your own funding document, use the worked plan example and new-plan checklist below.
Where to download official NDIS booklets
The official NDIS booklets and factsheets directory contains resources about getting started, creating and using your plan, and managing funding. Available formats include PDF, Word and Easy Read for many topics. Use the current directory rather than assuming an old numbered booklet found elsewhere still reflects current rules.
I want an official guide
Open the directory and choose the topic and format that suit you. A general booklet explains the process; it does not show your personal funding.
I want to see a sample plan
The NDIA provides a “New look plan example” in PDF and Word. Use it to recognise the sections, then check the wording and funding periods in your own plan.
Open the official example-plan downloads, or download the sample PDF.
Where to find your own NDIS plan
The NDIA makes your approved plan available in the participant portal and asks how you would like additional copies. Ask your my NDIS contact if you need help accessing it or want a copy in a format you can use. Do not send a plan containing personal information through a public website form.
Have your current plan and any recent decision letters together. A provider’s budget spreadsheet or a plan manager’s balance screen can help with spending, but it is not a replacement for the plan’s funding conditions.
What each section of your plan means
- Your situation and support network: check that your living arrangements and the unpaid support actually available to you are described accurately.
- Your goals: these communicate what matters to you. A concrete goal can help a provider design support, but funding still depends on assessed needs and the funding rules.
- Your funded supports: read the approved purpose and restrictions, not just the dollar figure.
- Management type: self-managed, plan-managed or NDIA-managed can differ between support categories.
- Total funding and components: identify the full-plan amount and the budgets it belongs to.
- Plan dates and funding periods: check when the plan runs and when funds become available.
- How to request changes: use the contact and decision information provided if something is missing or your needs change.
The official guide to an NDIS plan explains these sections. For what each budget purchases, see our budget categories guide.
A worked example: total funding is not today’s balance
Fictional teaching example: these amounts do not suggest what any participant should receive. Real plans may group funding differently.
Swipe the table sideways to read all columns.
| Example field | What it tells you | What it does not tell you |
|---|---|---|
| Total plan: $24,000 | The combined amount across all approved budgets for the plan. | That all $24,000 can be spent now or on any support. |
| Core: $16,000, plan-managed | Which budget and payment arrangement apply. | That every Core line is flexible; check restrictions. |
| Capacity Building: $6,000 | A separate budget for the approved capacity-building supports. | That it can automatically be transferred to Core. |
| Capital: $2,000, stated equipment | The amount is reserved for the support described. | That it is available for unrelated purchases. |
| Core funding this period: $4,000 | The portion made available for this period in this example. | That future periods can be brought forward without approval. |
| Core paid claims this period: $1,200 | $2,800 remains before considering unpaid invoices or other commitments. | That the displayed balance is entirely uncommitted. |
For this example, the question before booking is not “Is $24,000 enough?” It is “Is this an eligible purchase from the right budget, with enough available and uncommitted funding?” A plan manager can help reconcile invoices; the NDIA can explain the conditions in your plan.
Flexible versus stated supports
Flexible funding can give you choice across eligible supports within the relevant budget. Flexible Core funding can often be used across Core categories, subject to how the funding is managed and restrictions in your plan. It is not permission to move money between every budget or buy non-NDIS supports.
Stated funding must be used for the support described. Read the actual wording: some descriptions allow choice within a category, while others specify an item or arrangement. Ask before using it for a different purpose.
The official support-budget guide explains flexibility. If an arrangement is no longer suitable, discuss a plan change instead of assuming you can redirect the funding.
Funding periods and unspent money
A plan’s duration and its funding periods are different. Your plan might last longer than one year while making portions of funding available at shorter intervals. Check the actual dates and amounts rather than dividing the total into equal quarters yourself.
Unused funding can roll into the next funding period within the same plan. That does not establish a right to carry it into a new plan. The announced renewal changes from 1 February 2027 do not carry unspent funds into the renewed plan. Do not infer that every earlier plan change carries funds forward.
See how NDIS funding works and our funding-changes guide. Ask your NDIA contact how your particular plan ending or renewal affects its balance.
Checklist when your plan arrives
You can print this page and take this list to a plan-implementation conversation.
- Check your name, contact details, nominee information and living situation.
- Compare the approved supports with the decision letter and the needs you discussed.
- Check that goals and informal support information still reflect your circumstances.
- Check the management type for each relevant category. Do not assume one option applies to the whole plan.
- Record plan start/end dates, funding periods and any deadlines in the decision letter.
- Identify stated supports and any conditions before signing service agreements.
- Separate spent funds, unpaid invoices, booked services and genuinely available funding.
- Write down missing or unclear items and ask your my NDIS contact to explain them.
You can ask to change how your funding is managed without waiting for a new plan; the NDIA considers the request. Our plan-managed versus self-managed guide explains those options. If you disagree with a decision, follow the review information in your letter rather than assuming an ordinary enquiry protects a review deadline.
If a budget reduction appears in your plan
The announced reset affects non-exempt funding in two categories: social, economic and community participation, and Improved Daily Living. New and reassessed plans enter the reset from 1 October 2026; renewals enter from 1 February 2027. Check your notice for the date and amounts that apply to you.
A specific variation pathway exists for eligible people with high support needs where the reduction creates a safety or wellbeing risk. The combined funding threshold and 24-hour support requirement are not, by themselves, a promise of restored funding. Read the criteria and request deadline and confirm your options promptly with the NDIA. This is separate from correcting personal details or requesting other plan changes.
Frequently asked questions
Is an NDIS plan booklet the same as my plan?
No. Official booklets and factsheets explain the scheme. Your individual plan records your own approved supports, funding, management arrangements and dates. Check which document you need before downloading.
Where can I download NDIS planning guides?
Use the official NDIS booklets and factsheets directory. It provides current topic resources and accessible formats for many subjects. The NDIA’s “What is an NDIS plan” page also links to an example plan in PDF and Word.
Can I move money between Core categories?
Often, where the funding is flexible and management arrangements and plan conditions allow it. Stated supports and other restrictions still apply. Do not assume money can move between Core, Capacity Building and Capital.
Does the total plan amount show what I can spend today?
No. Funding periods, stated supports, different budgets and existing commitments affect what is available. Check the relevant category and period, including invoices that have not yet been paid.
What if my plan contains a mistake?
Contact your my NDIS contact with the detail you believe is wrong and ask how it can be corrected. If you disagree with a funding decision, check the review instructions and deadline in your decision letter. An informal enquiry is not necessarily a review request.
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Official guidance checked on 28 September 2026. Follow the linked official pages for updates and requirements that apply to your circumstances.