NDIS Short Term Accommodation, often called STA or respite, gives you and the people who usually support you time apart while ensuring you still have the disability-related support you need.
If you’ve used STA before, there are some recent changes worth knowing about.
A quick note about STA and respite name change.
You may have seen this support called a few different things. In 2025, Short Term Accommodation was renamed Short Term Respite. In 2026, the NDIS changed the name back to Short Term Accommodation after feedback from the community.
You may still hear people refer to it as respite, NDIS respite, STA or Short Term Respite. In this article, we use Short Term Accommodation or STA, in line with current NDIS terminology.
What is NDIS respite or Short Term Accommodation?
STA is an NDIS support that gives you a safe place to stay for a short time while you spend time apart from the people who usually support you.
It can include temporary accommodation and disability-related support with daily living, such as personal care, meals or taking part in your usual routines.
Your primary informal supports are the people in your life who regularly provide unpaid disability-related help, such as family members, friends or carers.
Who can access NDIS Short Term Accommodation?
The NDIS looks at your individual circumstances when deciding whether STA meets the funding criteria.
Generally, you need to:
- Live with your primary informal supports or receive daily drop-in support from them
- Receive more than six hours a day of disability-related help from them on an ongoing basis.
At least one of the below will need to apply, such as:
- You receive high intensity supports
- You have intensive or complex behaviour support needs
- You need specialist behavioural intervention support
- Suitable in-home supports aren’t widely available where you live
- The wellbeing of your primary informal supports, or their ability to continue providing care, is at risk
- Your primary informal supports have other significant caring responsibilities.
NDIS respite and STA for adults.
For adults, STA may be considered when family members, friends or carers provide significant ongoing disability-related support and some time apart may help those arrangements continue.
STA can include the support you usually need with personal care and everyday activities, as well as disability-related assistance to take part in social, cultural or community activities. You will generally need to pay for the activity itself.
You’re unlikely to be eligible for STA if:
- You live alone and don’t have daily informal or drop-in support
- You receive more than 18 hours of paid supports per day at home
- You’re not spending time apart from your primary informal supports
- You’re waiting for home modifications to be completed
- You live in Supported Independent Living (SIL)
- You have primary or supplementary Individualised Living Options (ILO) funding
- You need accommodation because of a housing crisis.
NDIS respite and STA for children.
The NDIS may fund Short Term Accommodation for children under 18 in exceptional circumstances. It considers whether the child’s disability-related support needs are significantly greater than would usually be expected for a child of the same age.
This may include whether the child:
- Needs more than six hours of active disability-related care each day
- Has high intensity daily support needs
- Needs direct supervision because of disability-related risks
- Has support needs that make it difficult for their family to continue providing care.
The NDIS may also consider whether other options have already been explored, such as in-home supports, assistive technology and social and community participation supports.
STA does not replace ordinary parenting responsibilities and cannot be used for babysitting, nannying or mainstream activities such as school camps.
How short term respite care works under the NDIS.
STA is funded through the Assistance with Daily Life category in your Core Supports budget. Depending on when your plan was created, STA is usually included as a specific line item or stated support in your NDIS Plan, meaning the NDIA has approved it for your individual circumstances.
- You can typically access up to 28 days of short term respite per calendar year
- Days can generally be used flexibly, for example, in blocks of up to 14 days, or one weekend per month, unless it has been specifically stated how it can be used
- The level and type of support funded will typically reflect what you usually receive from your informal or paid supports
- It can’t be used to double up on other funded supports in your plan or to build new skills.
What does NDIS Short Term Accommodation cover?
STA may include:
- Standard accommodation. This could include a respite facility, hotel, motel, short stay rental, cabin, cottage or hostel with any accessibility features you need
- Support in your own home or a homestay arrangement. In these situations, STA may fund the disability-related support you need rather than the accommodation itself
- Personal care and everyday support. This might include help with showering, dressing, cooking or eating
- Support to take part in community, cultural or social activities. STA may cover the disability-related support you need to participate, but not the cost of the activity itself
- A support worker staying with you. This may be needed if you require overnight or other disability-related assistance.
What can’t STA funding pay for?
There are some everyday costs STA won’t cover.
Meals.
You will need to pay for your own food and groceries. If you already have NDIS funding for disability-related help with preparing or eating food, you may still be able to use that support while staying in STA.
Activities.
STA can’t be used to pay for costs such as:
- Entry fees
- Tickets
- Equipment
- Membership fees.
It may still cover the disability-related support you need to take part.
Transport.
STA generally can’t be used to pay for transport to your accommodation or activities if you can travel independently or use public transport.
If you have separate transport funding in your NDIS Plan, you may be able to use that funding for travel to and from STA.
Short term respite is not for holidays.
NDIS short term respite is not for holidays or recreational travel. You can’t use it for:
- Holiday costs including packages, cruises, airfares, accommodation, passports or insurance
- Holiday accommodation outside of Australia
- Travel or accommodation costs for family or support workers while you’re on holiday
- Meals while on holiday
- Entrance fees, tourist activities or outings while travelling.
STA pricing changed from 1 July 2026.
From 1 July 2026, accommodation and disability-related support under STA are priced separately. The amount charged to your NDIS Plan may depend on:
- The type of accommodation you use
- How many hours of support you receive
- When those supports are delivered
- Whether you need standard or high intensity support
- Whether you are in a national, remote or very remote location.
What are the current NDIS STA rates?
Standard STA support rates.
| Support | National | Remote | Very remote |
|---|---|---|---|
| Weekday daytime | $73.58/hour | $103.01/hour | $110.37/hour |
| Weekday evening | $81.07/hour | $113.50/hour | $121.61/hour |
| Weekday night | $82.57/hour | $115.60/hour | $123.86/hour |
| Saturday | $103.54/hour | $144.96/hour | $155.31/hour |
| Sunday | $133.50/hour | $186.90/hour | $200.25/hour |
| Public holiday | $163.46/hour | $228.84/hour | $245.19/hour |
| Sleepover | $311.79 each | $436.51 each | $467.69 each |
High intensity STA support rates.
| Support | National | Remote | Very remote |
|---|---|---|---|
| Weekday daytime | $79.60/hour | $111.44/hour | $119.40/hour |
| Weekday evening | $87.70/hour | $122.78/hour | $131.55/hour |
| Weekday night | $89.32/hour | $125.05/hour | $133.98/hour |
| Saturday | $112.01/hour | $156.81/hour | $168.02/hour |
| Sunday | $144.42/hour | $202.19/hour | $216.63/hour |
| Public holiday | $176.84/hour | $247.58/hour | $265.26/hour |
STA accommodation rates.
| Accommodation | National | Remote | Very remote |
|---|---|---|---|
| Participant accommodation | $162.85/day | $227.99/day | $244.28/day |
| Support worker accommodation | $162.85/day | $227.99/day | $244.28/day |
These are NDIS price limits, so they are not necessarily what every provider will charge. It’s a good idea to check the Pricing Schedule before you book your STA.
How to access STA through the NDIS.
If you think STA may be right for you, speak with your my NDIS contact or raise it at a check-in meeting.
You’ll need to explain how STA relates to your disability support needs, the support your primary informal supports provide and why time apart is needed as part of your support arrangements.
If there has been a significant change in your circumstances or support needs, speak with your my NDIS contact about what options are available for changing your NDIS Plan.
Need help understanding STA in your NDIS Plan?
If you’re a Leap in! Member, we can help you understand the funding in your NDIS Plan and how it may be used.
Call the Leap in! Crew on 1300 05 78 78, email [email protected] or chat with us online.
Further reading.
Initially published 1 February 2020, updated 20 August 2020, 14 October 2021, 13 May 2025, 28 October 2025 and 22 September 2026.
