NDIS Short Term Accommodation and Respite Care: Types, Funding and How to Access It

Respite is one of the most valuable NDIS supports available to families and carers, and one of the most misunderstood. You may have heard it called short term accommodation (STA), Short Term Respite (STR) or in-home respite. This guide covers what NDIS respite includes, the October 2025 change of name from short term accommodation to Short Term Respite, how in-home respite differs, who qualifies, and how much is generally funded.

What Is NDIS Respite Care?

NDIS respite care gives a participant time apart from their usual care arrangements. The primary purpose is to allow family members, partners, or other informal carers to take a break. Without that break, carers can become exhausted and unable to sustain the support they provide. Respite helps everyone. The participant gets a change of environment and continued support, while the carer gets rest.

Respite under the NDIS is not a holiday for the participant. It is a disability support funded because the participant’s disability means they need ongoing care, and their carers need time to rest. The NDIS funds the participant’s support during the respite period. A separate government program, the Carer Gateway, directly supports the carer.

Short Term Accommodation and Short Term Respite: The Name Change

In October 2025, the NDIA released updated Operational Guidelines formally renaming Short Term Accommodation (STA) to Short Term Respite (STR). The renaming was designed to better reflect what the support does. It gives primary informal carers a break while the participant’s supports continue. You can read the NDIA's announcement, Short term accommodation is now called short term respite.

At the same time, the NDIA released updated guidelines that focus the support on giving informal carers a break and set out more clearly what it can and can’t cover. Both names are still widely used, so if your plan or a provider says STA, they mean the same support. Check the NDIA’s current guideline for the full rules.

Two Types of NDIS Respite: In-Home and Short Term Respite

This is the distinction most guides miss. In-home respite and Short Term Respite are funded differently, use different line items, and have different price structures. Knowing which type you need, and which one is in your plan, matters for how you use your funding.

In-Home Respite

In-home respite involves a support worker coming to the participant’s own home. The carer leaves, and the support worker is present to provide personal care, supervision, and assistance. This type of respite is funded under Core Supports , Assistance with Daily Life, using the standard hourly disability support worker rates.

In-home respite does not require specific STR funding in your plan. It can generally be accessed through your Core Supports flexible budget. If you have Core funding for daily life assistance, you may already be able to arrange in-home respite using those funds.

Short Term Respite (STR / Formerly STA)

Short Term Respite involves the participant staying somewhere other than their usual home: a respite facility, hotel, motel, cabin, hostel, short-stay rental, or a homestay arrangement. The participant continues receiving their disability supports while away.

STR has its own line items and is priced as a daily rate rather than an hourly rate. The daily rate covers the standard accommodation and the support received during the stay. This is different from in-home respite, which uses standard hourly support worker rates. The NDIA's pricing arrangements set out the current line items.

Support ratios for STR vary: 1:1 (one support worker per participant), 1:2, 1:3, or 1:4. The ratio depends on the participant’s support needs. Individual 1:1 support requires documented evidence that shared arrangements are not suitable given the disability.

Who Is Eligible for Short Term Respite?

Not every NDIS participant automatically qualifies for STR funding. The NDIA considers several factors when deciding whether to include STR:

• The participant lives with their primary informal supports, or receives daily drop-in support from them
• The participant receives more than 6 hours per day of disability-related support from those informal carers, on a long-term basis
• The respite is needed to help sustain the carer’s ability to continue providing support

STR is generally not funded where a participant already receives substantial paid support such as Supported Independent Living (SIL) or an Individualised Living Option (ILO). If ongoing paid supports are already meeting the participant’s daily needs, there is less basis for STR whose primary purpose is to relieve informal carers.

Children Under 18

For participants under 18 years of age, Short Term Respite is only funded in exceptional circumstances. This is a significant point that most guides do not mention. For families of children with disability, in-home respite funded through Core Supports is generally the more accessible pathway. Speak with your support coordinator about the most appropriate respite option if you are seeking respite for a child.

How Much NDIS Respite Funding Is Available?

The NDIS generally funds up to 28 days of Short Term Respite per calendar year. The maximum consecutive stay is 14 days at a time. Within those limits, the allocation is flexible. You can use it as a 14-day block, as one weekend per month across the year, or in any combination that fits your plan and your situation.

In exceptional circumstances, more than 28 days per year may be funded. This requires evidence that the participant’s support needs or the carer’s situation genuinely requires it. If the need for extended time away suggests a longer-term arrangement is more appropriate, the NDIA may consider Medium Term Accommodation, Supported Independent Living, or Individualised Living Options instead.

STR is included in plans as flexible Core budget funding. It can generally be used alongside other Core Supports. Participants should check with their plan manager how the STR allocation interacts with their broader Core budget.

What NDIS Short Term Respite Can and Cannot Cover

STR Can Cover

• Standard accommodation at a hotel, motel, cabin, hostel, respite facility, or short-stay rental
• Disability-related support during the stay (personal care, overnight supervision, medication assistance)
• Meals in a centre or group setting
• A homestay arrangement (staying in a private home with a support worker) where accommodation is not an eligible NDIS cost but the support is

STR Cannot Cover

• Holiday packages, cruises, or general travel costs
• Airfares or travel insurance
• Accommodation or travel expenses for family members, carers, or support workers on holiday
• Theme park entry, cinema, concerts, sporting events, or ticketed leisure activities
• Meals on holiday (general food costs outside a group/centre setting)
• Leisure activities not related to the participant’s disability support needs

The NDIS is clear that STR is not a funded holiday. A support worker accompanying a participant on a genuine respite stay is different from a holiday companion.

Carer Gateway: The Separate System That Supports Carers Directly

Many families searching for respite options don’t know about Carer Gateway, or assume it is the same as NDIS respite. It is not. Carer Gateway is a completely separate Australian Government program specifically for unpaid carers. It funds the carer, not the participant.

Carer Gateway is free. There is no means test, no lengthy assessment process, and no NDIS plan required. Any unpaid carer, including parents, partners, and family members, can access it.

Carer Gateway provides:

• Planned respite: a service provider steps in to care for the person with disability while the carer takes a break
• Emergency respite: available 24/7 if the carer becomes sick or is unable to provide care suddenly
• Carer needs assessment and support planning
• Phone and in-person counselling
• Peer support groups and coaching
• Tailored support packages (which can include respite, equipment, cooking and cleaning support, and transport)

To access Carer Gateway, call 1800 422 737, Monday to Friday, 8am to 5pm. For emergency respite, call the same number at any time, including after hours and on weekends. A local Carer Gateway service provider will talk through the options.

Many families use both systems. The NDIS funds the participant’s stay or support worker. Carer Gateway supports the carer directly with counselling, coaching, and its own respite arrangements. Using both is appropriate.

Emergency Respite Through NDIS

If a carer is suddenly hospitalised or unable to provide care and the participant needs urgent support, emergency respite can be arranged through the NDIS. Contact the NDIA on 1800 800 110 immediately. A support coordinator can help coordinate emergency arrangements from existing Core budget.

Emergency STR is subject to availability. Providers do not always have immediate vacancies. This is why having a support plan in place before a crisis occurs is important. A support coordinator can help create an emergency respite plan that identifies preferred providers, the participant’s support needs, and who to contact in each scenario.

How to Get Respite Included in Your NDIS Plan

1. Identify your respite goal first. Respite is most clearly justified when it is connected to sustaining the carer’s capacity to continue providing support. Frame it that way in planning conversations.
2. Document the carer’s support hours. The 6-hours-per-day threshold matters. Before your planning meeting, have a realistic record of how many hours per day the informal carer provides disability-related support.
3. Speak with your NDIS partner or support coordinator. They can help prepare evidence and frame the request in a way that aligns with the NDIA’s criteria.
4. Ask about changing your plan if respite isn’t included. If your plan doesn’t include respite funding and your situation meets the criteria, talk to your my NDIS contact. The NDIA explains the options in its guide to changing your plan.
5. Also register with Carer Gateway. Even if your NDIS plan includes STR, the carer may also benefit from Carer Gateway’s free counselling, peer support, and tailored support packages. These are separate and additional.

Why Choose Tenax Supports for Respite and Carer Support in Melbourne

Caring for a person with disability takes patience and persistence. So does navigating the systems designed to support carers. We work alongside families to ensure plans reflect genuine respite needs for participants and carers. Tenax Supports is a Victoria-based registered NDIS provider, supporting people with disability and their carers with service delivery that includes respite-related planning and support.

Our Support Coordination service helps participants and families plan respite, identify suitable providers, set up service agreements, and coordinate STR stays. For participants whose plans do not include respite but who meet the criteria, support coordinators can help gather evidence if you ask the NDIA to change your plan. Support Coordination can also help with more complex situations, including participants in crisis, carers at risk of breakdown, or families navigating housing, health, and family violence alongside respite needs. If respite funding has been denied or an STR allocation seems inadequate, support coordinators can help build evidence for internal reviews and connect families with the NDIS Appeals Program.

Our In-Home Support Services include support workers who can provide in-home respite directly, giving carers the break they need without requiring the participant to leave home.

Our Community Access service supports participants to build community connections and independence, which can reduce the intensity of informal carer support over time and complement respite planning.

For related reading, see our guides to NDIS community participation, NDIS support coordination, NDIS Australia, and NDIS disability support services.

Tenax Supports is a Victoria-based registered NDIS provider. Our services are guided by participant wellbeing and quality of care.

For current information on Tenax Supports’ NDIS registration, search the NDIS Commission Provider Register at ndiscommission.gov.au.

Contact Tenax Supports at tenaxsupports.com.au/contact or call 03 7018 8666. Referrals can be submitted at tenaxsupports.com.au/referrals.

Frequently Asked Questions About NDIS Respite Care

NDIS respite care gives a participant time apart from their usual care arrangements so that family members or carers can take a break. There are two types: in-home respite (a support worker comes to the participant’s home) and Short Term Respite (the participant stays elsewhere for a short period). Both are funded from the Core Supports budget but use different line items and price structures.

What is the difference between Short Term Respite and Short Term Accommodation?

They are the same support. In October 2025 the NDIA renamed Short Term Accommodation (STA) to Short Term Respite (STR) and released updated guidelines that focus the support on giving informal carers a break. If your plan says STA, it refers to the same support.

Who is eligible for NDIS Short Term Respite?

Participants generally need to live with or receive daily drop-in support from primary informal supports, and receive more than 6 hours per day of disability-related support from those carers. STR is generally not funded for participants already receiving substantial paid supports like SIL. For participants under 18, STR is only funded in exceptional circumstances.

How many days of NDIS respite can I access per year?

The NDIS generally funds up to 28 days of Short Term Respite per calendar year, with a maximum of 14 consecutive days per stay. The allocation is flexible , you can use it as a block, a weekend per month, or any combination. In exceptional circumstances, more than 28 days may be funded with evidence.

What is the Carer Gateway and how is it different from NDIS respite?

Carer Gateway is a free Australian Government program for unpaid carers, completely separate from the NDIS. NDIS respite funds the participant’s supports. Carer Gateway supports the carer directly with free planned respite, counselling, coaching, and tailored support packages. Call 1800 422 737, Monday to Friday, 8am to 5pm. For emergency respite, call at any time.

What can NDIS Short Term Respite funding be used for?

STR can cover standard accommodation, disability supports during the stay, meals in a group or centre setting, and disability-related community activities. It cannot cover holiday packages, airfares, theme park entry, meals on holiday, or accommodation costs for family members or carers.

How is in-home respite different from Short Term Respite in the NDIS?

In-home respite uses a support worker at the participant’s home, funded under Assistance with Daily Life at standard hourly rates. Short Term Respite involves the participant staying elsewhere and is priced as a daily rate. The two types use different NDIS line items with different price structures and may draw from different parts of the Core budget.