NDIS transport is one of the most misunderstood areas of the scheme. Many participants don’t know it exists, confuse the three very different types of transport funding, or lose out because their plan doesn’t include it. This guide covers how NDIS transport works, the three funding levels, what you can spend it on, and how to get transport included in your plan.
Who Can Access NDIS Transport Funding?
NDIS transport funding is available to participants who cannot use public transport without substantial difficulty due to their disability. This is the eligibility threshold set by the NDIA. The test is not whether you prefer not to use public transport, or whether public transport is inconvenient. It is whether your disability creates a genuine barrier to using it safely and independently.
Transport support is not automatically included in every NDIS plan. To receive transport funding, you need a transport-related goal in your plan. This might be a goal around community participation, employment, social activities, attending day programs, or accessing appointments. If your goals don’t reference transport, your planner may not include it, even if you would qualify.
The NDIA also considers informal support from family or carers, state taxi subsidy eligibility, and community transport options when deciding your transport level. Understanding this context helps you make a stronger case at planning meetings.
The Three Types of NDIS Transport Support
Most people searching for NDIS transport information are looking for one thing but there are actually three separate and distinct types of transport support in the NDIS. Confusing them is the most common source of planning disputes and underfunded plans.
Type 1: Participant Transport Allowance
This is the transport funding paid directly to you. It sits under Core Supports Category 02 (Transport) and is the one most people mean when they talk about NDIS transport funding. It covers your costs of getting yourself to appointments, activities, work, study, and community participation using taxis, rideshare services, specialised disability transport, accessible vehicle hire, or community transport providers.
This funding is a stated support. Unlike most Core funding, you cannot flex it across to other Core Support categories. It must be used for transport. It is not interchangeable with your daily living or community participation budgets.
The transport allowance is typically paid fortnightly into your nominated bank account. You use the money as you travel, paying for taxis, rideshare, or other eligible transport. You do not need to submit receipts to the NDIA but you must keep records in case of an audit.
Type 2: Activity-Based Transport
This type is claimed by your provider, not by you. When a provider transports you to or from a community activity as part of delivering a support, they can claim vehicle running costs against a specific NDIS line item.
The line item is 04_590_0125_6_1, capped at $1.00 per kilometre. This funding comes from the Social and Community Participation budget (Category 04), not from your Core Transport budget. It covers fuel and vehicle running costs when your support worker drives you to a community activity. It does not cover the support worker’s time, which is claimed separately against the activity’s support item.
This applies to participants who attend group programs, community outings, or activities delivered by a support worker who also provides transport. Ask your provider whether they are claiming this item correctly, as some do not.
Type 3: Provider Travel
Provider travel is what you pay when a worker travels to you to deliver a support. It is separate from both the participant transport allowance and activity-based transport. Provider travel covers the cost of the worker’s time travelling to your location, plus vehicle running costs.
From 1 July 2025, new rules apply to how therapy providers claim for travel time. Therapy providers can now only claim 50% of their hourly price limit for travel time. For example, a physiotherapist with a price limit of $183.99 per hour can now claim only approximately $92.00 per hour for travel time to and from the participant.
This 50% cap applies only to therapy providers. Disability support workers providing personal care, daily living, or community participation supports are not affected. All providers, including therapy providers, can still claim actual non-labour travel costs: fuel, road tolls, and parking fees.
Travel time for metro areas (MMM 1-3) is capped at 30 minutes each way. In regional areas (MMM 4-5), the cap is 60 minutes each way. Remote and very remote areas are not subject to time caps.
The Three NDIS Transport Funding Levels
The participant transport allowance operates at three levels, based on your work, study, and community participation situation.
Level 1: Community Access ($1,784 per year)
Level 1 is for participants who are not currently working, studying, or attending day programs but want to enhance their community access. The annual amount is $1,784, which works out to approximately $69 per fortnight. This covers transport to social, community, recreational, and health-related activities.
Level 2: Part-Time Work or Study ($2,676 per year)
Level 2 applies to participants who are working or studying part-time (up to 15 hours per week), attending day programs, or participating in other social, recreational, or leisure activities. The annual amount is $2,676, approximately $103 per fortnight.
Level 3: Work or Study ($3,456 per year)
Level 3 is for participants currently working, looking for work, or studying at least 15 hours per week who cannot use public transport due to their disability. The annual amount is $3,456, approximately $133 per fortnight.
Exceptional Circumstances
Higher transport funding is available in exceptional circumstances where a participant has general or funded supports in their plan that enable participation in employment. If your employment requires transport and the standard Level 3 amount does not cover your genuine costs, you can make a case for higher funding. This requires clear documentation of your transport needs and employment-related goals.
What NDIS Transport Funding Covers
The participant transport allowance can be used for:
- Taxis
- Rideshare services (Uber, Didi, and similar)
- Specialised disability transport services
- Community transport services that charge a fee
- Accessible vehicle hire
- Private vehicle expenses directly related to disability (in limited circumstances)
- Public transport fares where you need to pay for a support worker to accompany you
What NDIS Transport Funding Does Not Cover
Understanding the limits prevents both incorrect spending and unnecessary disputes. NDIS transport funding does not cover:
- Carer or family transport costs: The NDIS does not fund the cost of a family member or unpaid carer driving you. This is considered a reasonable informal support. Your transport funding is for your own travel costs using paid transport services.
- Everyday travel that is not disability-related: The transport must be an additional cost incurred because of your disability. General transport costs that any person would pay are not funded.
- Provider or carer vehicle costs where the provider is travelling to you: That is provider travel, claimed separately against the relevant support budget.
- Transport for carers attending their own appointments: Only the participant’s transport needs are covered.
Looking for NDIS Accommodation or Support in Victoria?
Tenax Supports provides person-centred Supported Independent Living, Support Coordination, and Community Access across Melbourne and regional VIC.
Make an NDIS Referral Or call 03 7018 8666The Victoria Multi-Purpose Taxi Program and NDIS
Victoria’s Multi-Purpose Taxi Program (MPTP) provides eligible members with a 50% discount on commercial passenger vehicle fares, up to a maximum subsidy of $60 per trip. The annual subsidy cap is $2,180 per financial year, resetting on 1 July.
MPTP eligibility requires a severe, permanent disability that prevents safe and independent use of public transport. This is assessed by a medical practitioner. The MPTP is administered by Safe Transport Victoria.
NDIS participants in Victoria who qualify for the MPTP can use both schemes. The MPTP subsidy reduces the out-of-pocket cost of each trip, and the NDIS transport allowance covers the remaining gap. However, you cannot use both schemes to cover the same trip simultaneously. The NDIA takes the MPTP into account when determining your transport level, as some of your transport costs are already subsidised.
If you are unsure whether you are eligible for the MPTP, speak to your GP. The application requires a medical assessment confirming the nature and permanence of your disability’s impact on public transport use.
Travel Training: Building Independence in Transport
Travel training is a separate type of support that helps participants learn to use public transport independently. It is funded under Capacity Building supports, not under Core Transport. Travel training is appropriate where the goal is to build skills for independent travel, rather than fund ongoing transport costs.
Training can include learning bus and train routes, reading timetables, purchasing tickets, navigating interchanges, and building confidence and safety awareness to travel independently. Travel training funding does not cover the transport fares during training. Fares need to come from the participant’s transport allowance or other sources.
For participants who could build partial travel independence but not full independence, a combination of travel training under Capacity Building and an ongoing transport allowance under Core can be appropriate. A support coordinator can help structure a plan that includes both.
How to Get Transport Funding Into Your NDIS Plan
- Set a transport-related goal. Transport is most easily justified when it connects to a stated goal. Work, study, community participation, attending day programs, and accessing health services are all valid goal areas. Be specific: “I want to attend my weekly psychology appointment” is a goal. “I want to get around” is not specific enough.
- Provide evidence of your transport needs. Documentation from your GP, occupational therapist, or specialist confirming that your disability prevents safe, independent public transport use strengthens your request significantly.
- Know your level before your planning meeting. Identify which level applies to your situation: community access only (Level 1), part-time work or study (Level 2), or full-time work or study (Level 3). Having this clear going in prevents your planner from offering a lower level than you qualify for.
- Mention the MPTP. If you are eligible for the Victoria MPTP, mention it at your planning meeting. The NDIA factors in the state scheme when setting your transport level. If you are not on the MPTP, make clear that you have not applied or are not eligible.
- Request an internal review if transport is denied. Transport denied at a planning meeting can be appealed. An NDIS internal review or, if needed, an Administrative Review Tribunal (ART) application can be pursued with supporting evidence. Advocacy support is available to help with this process.
Transport Is Not in My Plan: What Can I Do?
If your plan doesn’t include transport funding and you think it should, talk to your my NDIS contact. You can ask for your plan to be changed, and the NDIA explains how in its guide to changing your plan. A letter from your GP or OT about the transport barrier, plus a record of the costs you’ve paid yourself, can help support the request.
A support coordinator can help build the evidence, draft a letter to the NDIA, and navigate the review process. For participants who have been denied transport at multiple planning meetings, disability advocacy support can be valuable in presenting the case effectively.
Why Choose Tenax Supports for NDIS Support in Melbourne
Transport is not just an NDIS line item. It is the difference between attending therapy, going to work, taking part in community life, or remaining isolated at home. We understand this and we work to ensure participants get the transport support they are entitled to. Tenax Supports is a Victoria-based registered NDIS provider. We work with people with disability, their families, and carers to navigate the NDIS, including transport funding that was missed, denied, or underestimated at planning.
Our Support Coordination service helps participants understand and implement their NDIS plans, including transport funding. Support coordinators can identify which transport level applies to a participant’s situation, ensure providers are claiming activity-based transport correctly, and help participants use their transport allowance effectively. This includes handling complex situations, such as isolation risk, employment depending on unfunded transport, or repeatedly unsuccessful plan reviews, and helping build the evidence for internal reviews and connect participants with the NDIS Appeals Program where needed.
Transport needs are often directly connected to employment goals. Transport is frequently the final barrier between a participant and employment, and having the right level reflected in a plan, alongside the right supports, makes the difference.
Our Community Access service includes support workers who can accompany participants on community outings, including where activity-based transport is being claimed under the community participation budget.
A functional assessment from an occupational therapist is often the documentation that shows how disability affects a participant’s ability to use public transport, and this can be critical for transport funding requests.
For related reading, see our guides to NDIS community participation, NDIS support coordination, and NDIS employment support.
Tenax Supports is a registered NDIS provider based in Victoria. Our services are guided by helping participants get the supports they’re entitled to under their plan, including transport funding.
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 Transport
How does NDIS transport funding work?
NDIS transport funding is available to participants who cannot use public transport without substantial difficulty due to their disability. There are three distinct types of transport support in the NDIS. First, the participant transport allowance (paid to you, Core Category 02). Second, activity-based transport (claimed by your provider per kilometre). Third, provider travel (the cost of a worker travelling to deliver a support to you). The transport allowance has three levels: Level 1 ($1,784/year), Level 2 ($2,676/year), and Level 3 ($3,456/year), paid fortnightly into your bank account.
What are the three NDIS transport funding levels?
Level 1 is $1,784 per year (~$69/fortnight) for participants not working or studying who want to enhance community access. For part-time workers or students up to 15 hours per week, Level 2 provides $2,676 per year (~$103/fortnight). Full-time workers or students at 15+ hours who cannot use public transport receive Level 3 at $3,456 per year (~$133/fortnight). Higher funding is available in exceptional employment-related circumstances.
Is NDIS transport a flexible or stated support?
NDIS transport is a stated support under Core Supports Category 02. It is quarantined for transport purposes only and cannot be flexed across to other Core Support categories like daily living or community participation. It must be used for eligible transport costs: taxis, rideshare, specialised disability transport, accessible vehicle hire, and community transport services.
Can I use the Victoria MPTP alongside NDIS transport funding?
Yes. The Victoria Multi-Purpose Taxi Program (MPTP) provides a 50% subsidy on taxi fares, up to $60 per trip and $2,180 per year. NDIS participants eligible for the MPTP can use both schemes, but not for the same portion of the same trip. The NDIA takes the MPTP into account when setting your transport level. Apply for the MPTP through Safe Transport Victoria with a medical assessment.
What is activity-based transport in the NDIS?
Activity-based transport is claimed by your provider (not by you) when they transport you to or from a community participation activity. The line item is 04_590_0125_6_1, capped at $1.00 per kilometre for vehicle running costs. This comes from the Community Participation budget (Category 04), not the Core Transport budget (Category 02). Ask your support worker or provider whether they are claiming this correctly when driving you to community activities.
What changed about NDIS provider travel from 1 July 2025?
From 1 July 2025, therapy providers can only claim 50% of their hourly price limit for travel time to a participant. A physiotherapist with a $183.99/hour rate can now claim approximately $92.00 per hour for travel. This applies only to therapy providers. Disability support workers are not affected. All providers can still claim actual non-labour costs: fuel, tolls, and parking. Metro travel is capped at 30 minutes each way; regional at 60 minutes each way.
Does NDIS transport funding cover my carer driving me?
No. NDIS transport funding does not cover carer or family transport costs. This is considered a reasonable informal support. NDIS transport funding covers your costs of getting yourself to appointments, activities, work, or study using paid transport: taxis, rideshare, specialised transport, or community transport services.