People call us confused about this more often than almost anything else. “I’m NDIS funded, does that mean I can just book a taxi and it gets paid for?” The honest answer is: it depends on how your plan is managed. Self-managed and plan-managed transport funding work differently at the point of booking, and knowing which one you are before you call saves everyone time. That’s the real difference between NDIS self-managed and plan-managed transport: who touches the money, not who drives you.
I’m Sam. We’ve been running wheelchair accessible taxis around Melbourne and the City of Casey since 2005, and this question comes up on the phone almost daily. Here’s the practical version, not the policy version.
The difference between NDIS self-managed and plan-managed transport
Under the NDIS, a participant’s plan can be managed in a few ways: self-managed, plan-managed (through a plan manager), or agency-managed. Self-managed means you or your family handle the money directly. You pay the provider, keep the receipt, and claim it back through your NDIS portal yourself. Plan-managed means a registered plan manager sits between you and the provider. You still choose who drives you, but the plan manager pays the invoice and tracks it against your budget. The NDIS’s own guide to managing your plan covers all three categories if you want the official version.
Neither one is “better.” They just move the paperwork to a different person. For the full breakdown of how NDIS transport funding works alongside things like the Multi Purpose Taxi Program, our NDIS and MPTP transport guide covers that ground in more depth.
Why it changes how you book a wheelchair taxi
This is the bit that actually matters for the phone call. If you’re self-managed, you usually pay us directly at the time of the trip, the same as anyone else, then submit that receipt yourself. If you’re plan-managed, we invoice your plan manager, and you don’t touch the payment at all. Same driver, same vehicle, same trip. Only the money trail is different.
One thing we want to be clear about: for any single trip, you’re using one funding source or the other, not both at once. NDIS transport funding and a Multi Purpose Taxi Program subsidy aren’t stacked together on the same fare. If you hold both, you pick whichever applies to that particular trip. Our Multi Purpose Taxi Program page explains how that scheme works if you’re not sure whether you qualify.
Booking as self-managed
Tell us upfront that you’re self-managed and paying yourself. We’ll give you a proper tax invoice with everything itemised, so there’s no back-and-forth when you go to claim it. Keep a folder, digital or paper, it makes quarterly claiming far less painful.
Booking as plan-managed
Give us your plan manager’s details when you book, or have them set it up with us in advance if you’re a regular. After that, most of our plan-managed clients don’t think about invoicing again. We send it, they pay it, you just get in the car.
- Self-managed: you pay us, we give you a compliant invoice, you claim it back yourself
- Plan-managed: your plan manager pays us directly, you don’t handle the invoice
- Both types can book the same wheelchair accessible vehicles, same drivers, same day
- One funding source per trip, NDIS transport funding and MPTP aren’t combined on one fare
- Regular appointments can be set up as a standing booking either way
Which one should you use for a taxi booking?
You don’t get to choose between self-managed and plan-managed on the day. That decision sits in your NDIS plan already, set with your planner or support coordinator. What you can control is telling us clearly which one applies when you book, so we set the paperwork up right the first time. If you’re not sure which category your plan falls under, your support coordinator or the NDIS itself is the right place to check, not us guessing over the phone.
If you’re new to NDIS funded transport altogether, our NDIS transport page is a good starting point before you book. And if a Multi Purpose Taxi Program card is part of the picture too, the MPTP application guide walks through getting one.
What doesn’t change either way
Regardless of how your plan is managed, the trip itself is the same. Our drivers are trained in mobility assistance, not just driving. We run ramp and hoist equipped vehicles for manual chairs, powered chairs, and scooters. We allow proper wait time at pickup and drop-off instead of rushing you. None of that depends on who’s paying the invoice.
We cover Melbourne generally and know the City of Casey suburbs particularly well, since that’s where we started in 2005. If you want to check we service your area, have a look at our suburb coverage guide, or read more about the business on our about us page.
Last updated September 2026. NDIS plan management categories and the Multi Purpose Taxi Program are administered by the NDIS and Safe Transport Victoria respectively. Check with your planner, support coordinator, or the relevant agency for anything specific to your circumstances, we can confirm how it applies to a booking but we’re not the ones who set the rules.
Not sure which category your plan falls into, or want to set up a standing booking either way? Call us on 0432 712 248 and we’ll sort out the paperwork side before the car even arrives.
