Who Is ILO for? Eligibility for Individualised Living Options
ILO is for NDIS participants aged 18 or over, or 17 and planning ahead, who need support at home for at least 6 hours a day and are ready to design their own living arrangement. It's less likely to suit people who need 24-hour rostered support, frequent overnight support, or restrictive practices. Every ILO support also has to meet the NDIS funding criteria.
When Might ILO Be Right for You?
The NDIA's guideline lists four things.
- You're 18 or over, or 17 and thinking about where you'll live in future
- You need support at home, formal or informal, for at least 6 hours each day
- You're ready to explore your home and living needs, what you'd like and your options
- You're willing to put time and effort into creating your future home
People who know the person well can help. The NDIA says family and friends can play an important part in exploring options and making decisions, and can be involved in designing and managing the ILO if the person wants that.
When Might ILO Not Be Right?
The guideline is just as clear about when ILO is unlikely to fit.
- You're under 18, unless you're 17 and planning your future living arrangement
- You need less than 6 hours of support at home each day, and don't need help with problem-solving at other times
- You need 24-hour rostered support from one or more support workers
- You need frequent support overnight
- Restrictive practice is part of your behaviour support plan
If ILO isn't the right fit, the NDIA says other home and living supports might suit better, such as supported independent living (SIL), specialist disability accommodation (SDA), home modifications or personal care supports.
Looking for an ILO Provider?
We'll connect you with a registered ILO provider who may be able to help.
What Are the NDIS Funding Criteria for ILO?
Every NDIS support, and the whole package, has to meet them. For ILO the NDIA asks these questions.
| Question | What the NDIA looks at |
|---|---|
| Is it related to your disability support needs? | If you need support to live independently because of your disability |
| Does it help you pursue your goals? | A home and living goal in your plan that ILO would help with |
| Is it effective and beneficial? | Whether the service proposal describes the supports clearly, includes flexible back-up support and monitoring, and shows you were involved and agree |
| Is it legal and safe? | Whether it's likely to cause harm to you or others |
| Is it value for money? | The cost compared with other supports that would achieve the same outcome |
| Is it something family or community would reasonably provide? | ILO is meant to complement unpaid support, not replace it |
| Is it an NDIS support? | Not something another system, like health, should fund |
Do You Need a Home and Living Goal?
Yes. The NDIA says it can fund home and living supports if you have a goal about home and living in your plan.
A goal like moving out of your parents' home for the first time is the kind of example the NDIA gives. Setting more or bigger goals doesn't mean more funding, and naming a type of support in a goal doesn't oblige the NDIA to fund it. Our guide on how to ask for ILO funding covers the evidence that helps.
What About People Under 18?
ILO is for adults, with one exception for 17 year olds planning ahead.
If you're 17 with a goal to move out after you turn 18, the NDIA may include supports in your plan to explore an ILO. For children in out-of-home care, guardians make decisions about the home environment, and the NDIS doesn't fund supports that state and territory child services provide.
Questions People Ask
Do I need a certain disability to get ILO?
The ILO guideline doesn't limit ILO to a particular disability. It looks at how much support you need at home, whether ILO would work for you, and whether it meets the funding criteria.
Does the 6 hours have to be paid support?
No. The NDIA counts support at home whether it's formal or informal, so help from family counts towards the 6 hours a day.
Can I get ILO if I need help overnight?
The NDIA says ILO might not be right if you need frequent support overnight. Occasional overnight help can be part of supplementary supports, such as a support worker staying over.
Can I have ILO and SDA?
ILO and SDA are separate supports. The Pricing Arrangements say an ILO isn't determined by SDA eligibility, and SDA isn't part of ILO funding. Ask your my NDIS contact how they would fit together for you.
Keep Reading
- What is ILO?What ILO means in the NDIS: support built around one person, living with a host or housemates, the two funding stages, what it covers and what it doesn't.
- How to ask for ILO fundingHow to ask for individualised living options funding: the home and living goal, the evidence the NDIA wants, how to send it, what happens next and if it's no.
- Exploration and designILO stage 1, exploration and design: what it's for, how the NDIA decides on 30, 50 or 100 hours, what a provider does in that time, and how it ends.
- ILO vs SILILO vs SIL in the NDIS: who each one suits, how much support each gives, who you live with, how they're funded, and how to tell which might fit you better.
- How ILO funding worksHow ILO funding works in an NDIS plan: the two stages, the three stage 2 support levels up to $230,000 a year, what's excluded, and how the funding is managed.
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