Food is one of life’s essentials but when it comes to the NDIS, knowing what’s covered and what’s not when it comes to meal preparation can be hard to wrap your head around.
Here at Leap in!, we often hear questions like…“Can I use my NDIS Plan for ready-made meals?”
To make things easier, we’ve cooked up a guide to help you understand how meal supports work and what options might be available in your NDIS Plan.
Does the NDIS cover food and groceries?
Will the NDIS cover your weekly food shop? Things like fruit, veg, bread, milk and meat?
The short answer is no.
The NDIS does not cover groceries or ingredients because they’re considered everyday living expenses for everyone, not just people with disability. The NDIS only pays for costs that are related to your disability support needs.
Does the NDIS cover meal preparation and delivery?
If preparing meals is difficult due to your disability, you may be eligible to use your NDIS Plan to pay for meal preparation and delivery.
The list of NDIS supports (those you can buy with NDIS funds) includes:
“Supports that provide assistance with essential household tasks that a participant is not able to do themselves because of their disability. This includes (a) meal preparation and delivery.”
Meal preparation and delivery may cover:
- A portion of ready-made meals delivered to your home
- A support worker who comes to your home to prepare meals for you.
NDIS funding only covers the cost of preparing and delivering the meals, not the cost of the ingredients.
Top tip: If meal preparation is not specified in your plan, you can’t purchase this support with NDIS funds.
Claiming meal preparation and delivery.
If your NDIS Plan includes meal preparation, Core funding may be used for this support. The NDIS will specify how much of your Core budget you can use for meal preparation.
However, it’s important to ensure that invoices clearly state the different costs:
- Ingredients (paid for by the participant)
- Food preparation and delivery (paid for by the NDIS).
Using Core supports flexibly.
If you have a support worker who comes to your home to prepare meals, you can also use this funding flexibly in short-term situations to have meals prepared and delivered. For example:
- If you need to isolate due to an infectious illness
- Your usual support worker is unavailable
- Recovery from a hospital stay or illness
- Difficulty arranging help for a short period.
Remember, you can only use your NDIS funds to pay for the preparation and delivery, not the ingredients.
Meal preparation does not require a quote, is not a stated support and can be used where it has been specified as a reasonable and necessary support in a plan with Core funding.
Will the NDIS cover delivery services like Uber Eats?
No. The NDIS will not pay for fast food services, takeaway food or food ordered through delivery platforms like Uber Eats, DoorDash or Deliveroo.
The only exception is when a registered meal provider can itemise and separately bill for the cost of meal preparation, delivery and ingredients.
Choosing a ready-made meal supplier.
Thinking about ready-made meals delivered to your home? Whether you prefer frozen, ready-to-heat or warm meals, here are some tips to help you choose the right provider.
- Make a list of what’s important to you (eg. delivery times, dietary requirements)
- Do some online research or ask people you know for tips
- Check if the company can meet any specific needs like pureed or gluten free meals
- Ask for a menu. You want them to make food you like!
- Make sure they can do everything on your list (including delivery times).
We can help.
If you need help understanding your NDIS Plan or using your supports, the Leap in! Crew is here to support you. Call us on 1300 05 78 78 or chat with us online.
Updated 16 June 2025 with the latest information from the 2025-2026 PAPL and NDIS Supports lists. Originally published 11 July 2019 and updated 28 September 2021.
Further reading.
- What will the NDIS pay for?
- NDIS support categories explained.
- Respite care and the NDIS: Everything you need to know.
Originally published 11 July 2019, updated 28 September 2021.
