Irregular SIL supports
Irregular SIL supports are extra Supported Independent Living hours funded for unplanned days at home, such as when a participant is sick or a day program is cancelled. The NDIA generally funds an initial maximum of 10 days a year for standard needs and 15 for high intensity needs.
Also called: Irregular SIL, Irregular supported independent living supports, IRSS, Irregular support days, SIL sick days
Key takeaways
- Irregular SIL supports cover unplanned periods at home, such as illness or a cancelled day program, that the regular roster doesn't fund.
- The NDIA generally funds an initial maximum of 10 irregular days a year for standard needs and 15 for high intensity needs.
- Irregular days are claimed with the irregular SIL support claim type, shown as IRSS in bulk payment request files.
- SIL, including irregular support, doesn't fund paid personal support while a participant is admitted to hospital.
- If irregular support is needed week after week, the roster and plan likely need to change.
What are irregular SIL supports?
Irregular SIL supports are extra Supported Independent Living hours used when something unplanned keeps a participant at home when they would normally be out, such as being unwell or having a day program cancelled. The NDIA funds a small number of irregular support days a year inside a participant's SIL funding, generally starting at a maximum of 10 days for standard needs and 15 days for high intensity needs.
The NDIA's roster of care guidance describes irregular SIL supports as intermittent or unplanned events that disrupt the supports first planned for in the SIL budget, so the participant is at home and needs SIL support for a period that wasn't planned or rostered (NDIA roster of care guide). The usual examples are:
- The participant is sick and stays home from work, school or a day program.
- A day program or activity is cancelled at short notice.
- Recovering at home after being unwell, once the person is no longer in hospital.
Without irregular support funding, the provider would have to staff those hours with no funding behind them, or the participant would go without support.
How irregular SIL supports work
When the NDIA prices a participant's SIL, it looks at their hours of support in an ordinary week, the support ratio, intensity, overnight support and irregular support (SIL operational guideline). Irregular support is the allowance for days that don't follow the ordinary week.
Source: NDIA SIL operational guideline. Generally the starting point; actual funding depends on evidence.
Those numbers are a starting point, not a cap that can never move. The guideline describes them as an initial maximum, and actual funding depends on the evidence. In a provider's quote and roster of care, irregular days are typically costed as 16-hour days (the NDIA's roster tool treats them that way), while public holidays are treated as 24-hour days. SIL funding also includes an average of 12 public holidays a year; these are separate from irregular days.
Giving a reason
The roster of care guide asks for a rationale for irregular hours, for example the number of days the person stayed home in the last 6 to 12 months. The NDIA's 2025–26 pricing guidance also said providers should explain why irregular supports are needed, discuss other options and get the participant's or nominee's agreement before claiming them. Check the current pricing arrangements for any update to that wording.
How to claim irregular SIL supports
Irregular SIL is claimed against the relevant SIL item with the irregular SIL support claim type. In the myplace portal it is an option on the claim; in a bulk payment request file it is the claim type code IRSS.
| Question | Answer |
|---|---|
| Which item? | The SIL item that matches the time, day and intensity of the support delivered |
| Which claim type? | Irregular SIL support (IRSS in bulk upload files) |
| Which registration group? | 0138 – Assistance with Supported Independent Living, for supports delivered from 1 July 2026 |
| Weekly or hourly regular SIL? | Regular SIL is claimed weekly or hourly, not both; irregular days are claimed on top, on the days they happen |
| What records? | Date, hours, reason, ratio and the participant's agreement |
See the NDIA's How to claim SIL supports page and its July 2026 claims update. Only one support can be claimed for any period of time, so an irregular day can't be claimed for hours already claimed as regular SIL or another support.
Irregular SIL vs regular SIL, public holidays and hospital stays
| Situation | How it is funded | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| An ordinary week at home | Regular SIL | Claimed weekly or hourly, not both, from 1 July 2026 |
| Unplanned day at home (illness, cancelled program) | Irregular SIL support | Claimed with the irregular SIL claim type |
| Public holidays | Built into SIL funding | An average of 12 a year |
| Admitted to hospital | Not funded by SIL | The health system is responsible during an admission |
| Home more often every week | Not irregular | Update the roster and seek a plan change if needs have changed |
The hospital point catches people out. SIL does not fund paid personal support while a person is admitted to hospital, because the health system is responsible during an admission. Irregular support may apply once the person is home and recovering.
When irregular support becomes regular
If a participant is home more often than planned, week after week, the support is no longer irregular. Using up the irregular days early in the plan is a signal, not a claiming problem to work around.
- Q1Was the participant at home when they would normally be out, for a reason that wasn't planned?Yes → Possibly irregular support, keep goingNo → Not irregular; it belongs in the regular roster
- Q2Was the participant admitted to hospital at the time?Yes → Not claimable as SILNo → Keep going
- Q3Is the reason recorded and has the participant agreed?Yes → Claim with the irregular SIL support claim typeNo → Record the reason and get agreement before claiming
Common causes include a day program that has ended, a job that has stopped, or health changes that mean the person is home more. In each case the right response is to update the roster, talk with the participant and their support coordinator, and, if their needs have changed, seek a plan reassessment or report a change of circumstances.
What providers and participants should do
Irregular support works best when both sides agree in advance how it will be handled, rather than sorting it out after a sick week.
- Write it into the service agreement. Set out what counts as an irregular day, how the participant will be asked to agree, and how the hours will be claimed. The service agreement is also where the weekly or hourly claiming method for regular SIL is recorded.
- Cost it honestly in the quote. Base the number of irregular days on the person's history, not a default, and show the rationale in the roster of care.
- Track the count. Report irregular days used against those funded each month, so the participant and their plan manager can see how much is left.
- Record each day properly. Progress notes should show why the person was home, the hours and ratio of support, and that they agreed to the claim.
- Look for patterns. Repeated sick days can point to a health issue worth raising with the person's GP, not just a funding question.
- The funding irregular support sits inside
- Uses the IRSS claim type for irregular days
- The fix when irregular support becomes regular
- Where irregular days and their rationale are shown
- Attract a higher initial maximum of irregular days
Common mistakes
- Claiming irregular support for a planned day at home that should be in the regular roster.
- Claiming it while the participant is in hospital.
- No written reason or participant agreement for the day.
- Forgetting the claim type, so the hours are claimed as regular SIL.
- Not tracking the year-to-date count, then running out of irregular days with months of the plan left.
- Costing irregular days with no rationale in the quote or roster of care.
Example
Illustrative example (fictional). Tom lives in a shared SIL home and goes to a day program Monday to Friday. Those hours are funded from a different part of his plan, so his regular SIL roster has no support from 9am to 3pm on weekdays.
In winter Tom catches the flu and stays home for three days. His provider rosters a worker during the day, records the reason and Tom's agreement in his notes, and claims those hours with the irregular SIL support claim type. The provider's monthly report shows Tom has now used 4 of the irregular days funded in his plan.
In spring Tom's day program closes. He is now home most weekdays. That is a regular change, not irregular support, so the provider updates the roster and supports Tom to ask the NDIA for a plan reassessment.
Frequently asked questions
What is irregular SIL support?
Irregular SIL support is funding for extra SIL hours when an unplanned event keeps a participant at home when they would normally be out, such as illness or a cancelled day program. It sits inside the participant's SIL funding and is claimed separately from regular SIL.
How many irregular SIL days does the NDIS fund?
The NDIA's SIL operational guideline sets an initial maximum of generally 10 days a year for participants with standard needs and 15 days a year for high intensity needs. Actual funding depends on the participant's evidence, such as days at home in the past 6 to 12 months.
How do you claim irregular SIL supports?
Claim the SIL item that matches the support delivered and select the irregular SIL support claim type. In bulk payment request files the claim type code is IRSS. Keep a record of the date, hours, reason and the participant's agreement.
Can irregular SIL be claimed when a participant is in hospital?
No. SIL does not fund paid personal support while a participant is admitted to hospital, because the health system is responsible during the admission. Irregular support may apply after discharge if the person is recovering at home.
What happens if a participant uses all their irregular SIL days?
Further unplanned days aren't covered by the irregular allowance. If the person is regularly home more than planned, update the roster and talk with the participant and support coordinator about a plan reassessment based on the changed needs.
Related terms
- High intensity supportsHigh intensity supports are NDIS daily living supports involving complex health-related tasks, such as enteral feeding, tracheostomy or catheter care, done by specifically trained workers. They use separate support items with a higher price limit, and registered providers must meet an extra Practice Standards module.
- Payment requestAn NDIS payment request is a claim for payment lodged with the NDIA for a support delivered to a participant. Registered providers lodge them for NDIA-managed supports and plan managers for plan-managed supports, through the myplace provider portal, often as a bulk upload file.
- Plan reassessmentA plan reassessment is the NDIA's review of a participant's whole NDIS plan to decide whether it still meets their disability support needs, ending in a varied plan or a new one. It happens before the plan's reassessment date, or earlier if needs change significantly and for good. It was once called a plan review.
- Roster of careA roster of care (RoC) is a breakdown of a typical week of Supported Independent Living (SIL) support in one home, in half-hour blocks, showing staff, ratios, shared and 1:1 time and overnight support. Under current NDIA guidance it is optional and used as evidence for SIL funding, not an agreement with the NDIA.
- SIL vacancyA SIL vacancy is an empty room in a shared Supported Independent Living home, usually because a resident has moved out or stopped sharing support for a long time. The NDIA does not fund vacancies, and providers should not increase SIL costs or claim extra from the remaining residents' plans to cover them.
- Support ratioA support ratio is the number of support workers compared with the number of participants sharing that support, such as 1:1, 1:3 or 2:1. In the NDIS, ratios decide each participant's share of worker time, and they are central to how Supported Independent Living and group supports are funded and claimed.
- Supported Independent Living (SIL)Supported Independent Living (SIL) is NDIS funding for support workers who help with or supervise daily tasks in a participant's home, usually around the clock and often shared with housemates. SIL pays for the support, not the house: rent, food and bills are paid by the participant.
Go deeper
Sources
- ndis.gov.au/media/7784/download
- ndis.gov.au/media/8721/download
- ndis.gov.au/providers/home-and-living-providers/support-live-independently/how-claim-supported-independent-living-sil-supports
- ndis.gov.au/news/11576-sil-claims-and-payment-changes-1-july-2026
- ndis.gov.au/providers/pricing-and-payments/pricing/pricing-arrangements
- ndis.gov.au/providers/home-and-living-providers/support-live-independently/guide-providing-supported-independent-living-sil
General information, not legal, clinical or financial advice. NDIS rules change — check the official source before you act.
Suppora editorial team
NDIS operations and compliance writers
The Suppora editorial team writes practical guides for NDIS providers, checked against the NDIS Commission, NDIA and Fair Work sources cited on each page.
- NDIS Practice Standards
- NDIS pricing and claiming
- SCHADS Award
- Incident management
- Supported Independent Living