NDIS Rights During Home Visits: Key Points

  • Your home is your private space. Having NDIS supports delivered there does not reduce your rights to privacy, dignity, consent, or safety.
  • Every support worker from a registered provider who works in a risk-assessed role must hold a current NDIS Worker Screening Clearance. You can ask to see proof.
  • You can refuse entry, ask a worker to leave, or request a different worker at any time. These actions cannot be used as grounds to reduce or remove your services.
  • Providers cannot photograph, record, search, or share your personal information without your explicit consent.
  • The NDIS Code of Conduct legally binds all providers and workers to standards of dignity, respect, privacy, and safety.

Why Home-Based Support Raises Unique Rights Issues

Receiving NDIS supports at home is personal in a way that attending a service centre or community program is not. You are inviting a worker into your private space. They may assist you with intimate personal care, handle your belongings, observe your household routines, and interact with your family.

The laws and standards that protect your rights do not pause because a worker has entered your home. In fact, your right to privacy, safety, and consent is more important in this context, not less. Understanding your rights before supports begin is the most effective way to make sure those rights are respected.

The key frameworks that protect you are:

  • The NDIS Act 2013: Establishes the principles of individual autonomy, dignity of risk, and the right to make decisions about your own life.
  • The NDIS Code of Conduct: Legally binds all registered providers and workers to standards of respect, safety, privacy, and honesty.
  • The Privacy Act 1988: Governs how your personal and health information is collected, stored, and shared.
  • The NDIS Practice Standards: Set the quality requirements that registered providers must meet, including those relating to dignity and privacy.
  • Australian Consumer Law: Gives you rights in relation to the services you are buying.

Your Right to Privacy in Your Home

What privacy means in practice

Privacy is not just about information. In the context of home-based NDIS supports, it means:

  • Workers do not enter rooms you have not invited them into.
  • Workers do not go through your belongings, mail, or personal documents without your permission.
  • Workers do not observe or comment on aspects of your home life that are not connected to the service being delivered.
  • Workers do not discuss your situation with other clients, neighbours, or anyone not authorised to receive that information.
  • Workers do not use your home address or contact details for any purpose other than delivering the agreed supports.

Information collection at home visits

Workers may need to complete service notes or progress records during or after a home visit. This is a normal part of service delivery. However:

  • Notes should record only information relevant to the support delivered.
  • Any assessment tools, observation checklists, or outcome measures used during a home visit must be explained to you in advance.
  • You have the right to access your own records at any time. Ask your provider how to submit a records access request.

Photography and recording

A support worker visiting your home cannot take photographs or video recordings of you, your family, or your home without your explicit prior consent. This applies whether the stated purpose is care documentation, incident reporting, or any other reason.

If a provider wants photographic evidence for a legitimate purpose (such as documenting a home modification need), this must be:

  • Explained to you in plain language.
  • Agreed to by you in writing.
  • Used only for the specific purpose you consented to.
  • Stored securely and not shared beyond that purpose.

If you ever discover a worker has taken photos or recordings without your consent, raise it with the provider in writing immediately. Depending on the circumstances, this may also constitute a breach of the Privacy Act 1988 and can be reported to the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner.

Signing a service agreement or intake form at the start of a provider relationship does not mean you have consented to everything that may happen during home visits for the life of the agreement. Consent is ongoing.

Before any new activity, assessment, or change to the way supports are delivered in your home, the worker or provider must seek your agreement. This is particularly important for:

  • Personal care activities (showering, dressing, medication assistance).
  • Any new or changed procedure.
  • Involving other people (a student on placement, a supervisor observing a session).
  • Taking your vital signs or performing any health-related observation.

You have the right to say no to any of these at any time, even if you have agreed to them before. A worker who continues an activity after you have withdrawn consent is not respecting your right to bodily autonomy and is acting outside the NDIS Code of Conduct.

If you have a guardian or nominee authorised to make decisions on your behalf, providers should work with you and your nominee together. The nominee’s role is to support you, not to make decisions on your behalf without your involvement where you are capable of participating. Providers should not bypass you to deal only with a family member or carer unless your plan or a legal order specifically authorises this.

If you are not sure whether a particular consent arrangement in your plan is appropriate, speak with your support coordinator or contact the Office of the Public Advocate in your state or territory.

What you can always refuse

At any time, without needing to give a reason, you can refuse or withdraw consent for:

  • A specific worker entering your home.
  • A particular activity or task during a session.
  • Photography, recording, or observation by a third party.
  • Sharing your information with another organisation or person.
  • A supervisor, student, or additional person attending a session.

Refusing any of the above cannot be used by a provider as grounds to reduce, suspend, or terminate your services, as long as the refusal does not prevent the core agreed support from being delivered safely.

Your Right to Safety

Worker screening

All workers employed by registered NDIS providers in risk-assessed roles must hold a current NDIS Worker Screening Clearance. Risk-assessed roles include direct support workers who provide personal care or other supports in your home.

A clearance means the worker has passed a national criminal history and other relevant checks. An excluded worker is legally prohibited from working in NDIS roles.

You can ask a provider to confirm that any worker coming to your home holds a current clearance. Registered providers are required to maintain this information and to verify clearances before workers begin in risk-assessed roles.

Providers who use unregistered subcontractors or volunteers should be asked directly what screening checks those individuals have completed, as the mandatory clearance requirement applies specifically to registered providers.

What workers must not do in your home

The NDIS Code of Conduct establishes a set of standards that bind all providers and workers. In the context of home visits, workers must not:

  • Use physical force or restraint unless it is specifically authorised in a behaviour support plan approved through the NDIS Quality and Safeguards Commission.
  • Threaten, intimidate, or verbally abuse you or anyone in your household.
  • Search your belongings or home.
  • Use your household resources (food, utilities, vehicles) without your explicit permission.
  • Ask you for money, gifts, or any form of personal benefit.
  • Engage in a personal or romantic relationship with you.
  • Discuss your situation with other clients or people not authorised to receive that information.
  • Attempt to influence your NDIS plan, funding decisions, or choice of providers for their own benefit.

Any of the above constitutes a breach of the NDIS Code of Conduct and should be reported to the NDIS Quality and Safeguards Commission.

Incident reporting

Registered providers are required to report certain incidents to the NDIS Quality and Safeguards Commission. These include unexpected deaths, serious injuries, abuse, neglect, unlawful sexual or physical contact, and use of restrictive practices.

You also have an independent right to report any incident or concern directly to the Commission, regardless of whether the provider has done so. You do not need the provider’s permission or knowledge to contact the Commission.

If you are in immediate danger, call 000.

Environmental safety

Providers delivering home-based supports have an obligation to work in a way that does not create safety hazards in your home. This includes:

  • Following manual handling protocols to avoid injuries to you or themselves.
  • Not bringing equipment into your home without prior notice and your agreement.
  • Respecting any infection control or hygiene requirements you have communicated.
  • Leaving your home in the same condition as when they arrived, unless cleaning or organising is part of the agreed support.

Refusing Entry or Asking a Worker to Leave

You have the right to refuse entry to any worker at any time. You also have the right to ask a worker to leave during a session.

You do not need to explain your reason. You may simply feel uncomfortable, the worker may have arrived unannounced when you were not expecting them, or you may have a concern about their conduct.

If you refuse a worker’s entry or ask them to leave:

  1. Contact the provider as soon as possible to let them know what happened.
  2. Put your concern in writing (an email or text message is sufficient).
  3. If the refusal relates to a concern about the worker’s conduct, ask the provider to send a different worker until the matter is investigated.

The provider should not charge you a short-notice cancellation fee if you refused entry due to safety concerns or a conduct issue.

Requesting a Different Worker

You can request a different support worker at any time. You do not need to give a detailed reason. Common reasons include a change in your needs, a communication mismatch, or concerns about conduct.

Your request should be made in writing to the provider. A reasonable provider will accommodate your request promptly and without making you feel that you have done something wrong. If a provider refuses your request or reduces your services in response, this may constitute a breach of your rights and can be reported to the NDIS Commission.

If you are looking for providers who approach worker matching thoughtfully, Carevo connects you with vetted NDIS providers who take participant preferences seriously from the start.

Making a Complaint About a Home Visit

If something happens during a home visit that you are not comfortable with, you have multiple avenues:

  1. Raise it with the provider first. Contact the service manager or complaints officer in writing. Ask for a response within 7 business days. Keep a copy of your complaint and the provider’s response.

  2. Contact the NDIS Quality and Safeguards Commission. If the provider’s response is unsatisfactory, or if the issue is serious, contact the Commission directly:

  3. Contact a disability advocate. An independent advocate can support you to make a complaint, communicate with the provider, and understand your options. Find an advocate through Disability Advocacy Network Australia (DANA).

  4. For privacy breaches. If your personal information was shared or used without your consent, you can also complain to the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner (OAIC).

Key External Resources

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I refuse entry to an NDIS support worker at my home? Yes. You have the right to refuse entry to any person at any time. If you are uncomfortable with a specific worker, contact the provider and ask them to send someone else. Your right to refuse entry cannot be used to reduce or remove your services.

Does an NDIS support worker need a clearance to visit my home? Workers employed by registered providers in risk-assessed roles must hold a current NDIS Worker Screening Clearance. You can ask the provider to confirm this. Unregistered providers are not subject to the same mandatory requirement.

Can a support worker take photos in my home? No, not without your explicit prior consent. Photography or recording of you, your family, or your home requires your specific agreement, must be for a stated purpose, and must be stored and used only for that purpose.

What should I do if a worker goes through my belongings? Ask the worker to stop and contact the provider in writing the same day. If the provider does not respond appropriately, report the incident to the NDIS Quality and Safeguards Commission on 1800 035 544.

Can I have someone present during a home visit? Yes. You can have a family member, friend, advocate, or support person present at any time. You do not need the provider’s permission to have someone there.

What if I feel unsafe during a session? If you are in immediate danger, call 000. For non-emergency safety concerns, ask the worker to leave and contact the provider. If the provider does not address your concern, contact the NDIS Commission.

Can a provider reduce my services because I made a complaint? No. Retaliating against a participant for making a complaint is a breach of the NDIS Code of Conduct. If this happens, report it to the NDIS Commission immediately.