Public travel rules guide
Travel rules for NDIS, WorkSafe Victoria and TAC
The rules Doorside uses to work out provider travel, published as they stand. This page is built from the same rule files as Doorside's billing engine, so it shows what the engine would apply.
None of these rules has been reviewed by a billing specialist yet. That review happens before Doorside's beta. Until then, read this page as our working notes, not guidance, and check every figure against the official sources.
Generated 6 November 2026. Amounts are in Australian dollars.
NDIS therapy travel
Rule pack 2026.3Effective 24 September 2026Reviewed not yet
Not yet reviewed by a billing specialist. These are Doorside's working rules for NDIS therapy travel, not official guidance. Don't bill from this page. Check every figure against the official sources listed below.
Travel time
Half the therapy hourly limit, charged only when travel is part of the client's service agreement.
| Discipline | Up to, per hour |
|---|---|
| Occupational therapy | A$97.00/h |
| Physiotherapy | A$92.00/h |
| Speech pathology | A$97.00/h |
| Exercise physiology | A$81.00/h |
Time limit by zone
A limit on travel time to each client, each way. The zone is the Modified Monash Model (MMM) zone where the client receives the support, not where the trip starts.
| MMM zone | Limit each way |
|---|---|
| MMM 1 | 30 min |
| MMM 2 | 30 min |
| MMM 3 | 30 min |
| MMM 4 | 60 min |
| MMM 5 | 60 min |
| MMM 6 and 7 | Not handled by Doorside yet |
Remote and very remote zones are a gap in Doorside, not an NDIS rule. Doorside holds that travel for a person to check.
Kilometres
Up to A$0.99/km for the vehicle, on its own line, only if the client agreed to a km rate in advance. If an agreed rate is higher, Doorside uses A$0.99/km.
Shared trips
Travel can be divided between clients as agreed in each service agreement. Doorside splits a trip equally, or by each client's own leg. If the clients on one trip have different split methods in their terms, the trip is held until they match. Each client's share is capped by their own zone.
Official sources
- NDIS pricing schedule effective 24 Sep 2026
- NDIS Pricing Arrangements 2025-26 (claiming guidance pending update)
- NDIS Pricing Arrangements and Price Limits (ndis.gov.au)Where the documents above are published
What isn't settled yet
Points the billing specialist still needs to decide. Where a rule is unclear, Doorside holds the line for a person to check instead of guessing.
5 open points
- Rounding: Doorside rounds travel time to 2 decimal hours before multiplying by the rate. The NDIA works from hours and minutes, so some amounts can differ by cents. To be set with the billing specialist.
- Remote and very remote zones (MMM 6 and 7) aren't handled by Doorside yet. That's a Doorside limit, not an NDIS rule.
- The return trip from the last participant is claimable only in some cases (for example, when the worker is paid for it, or for a sole trader). How Doorside checks this is still to be confirmed.
- The travel rate can't exceed the rate agreed for the support itself. Doorside prices at the scheduled limit and doesn't check the agreed rate yet.
- 2026-27 claiming guidance hadn't been published when these rules were written. Which item and claim type the new provider travel (_PT) items use is still open.
WorkSafe Victoria
Rule pack 2026.1Effective 1 October 2026Reviewed not yet
Not yet reviewed by a billing specialist. These are Doorside's working rules for WorkSafe Victoria, not official guidance. Don't bill from this page. Check every figure against the official sources listed below.
WorkSafe pays provider travel per km, never per hour. It uses its own metropolitan and regional areas, not MMM zones. Rates exclude GST. Doorside records km to 1 decimal place.
Physiotherapy
Fee schedule effective 1 October 2026
| Area | Item | Per km |
|---|---|---|
| Melbourne metropolitan | PY141 | A$2.72/km |
| Regional / rural | PY142 | A$1.84/km |
- Prior written approval from WorkSafe is needed for travel.
- A trip is paid at the rate of the area where most of its km were driven.
- When workers are seen one after another, travel is measured from one appointment to the next.
- Travel is included in
PY130,PY132,PY133,PY135, so it isn't billed separately with them.
Occupational therapy
Fee schedule effective 1 July 2026
| Area | Item | Per km |
|---|---|---|
| Melbourne metropolitan | OT510 | A$2.50/km |
| Regional / rural | OT520 | A$1.56/km |
- The fee schedule states no approval requirement for these items.
- No majority-area or leg-to-leg rule is published, so mixed-area and shared trips are held.
- Only payable with items
HHSNA02,OT610,OT611.
Official sources
- WorkSafe Victoria Physiotherapy Services fee schedule, effective 1 October 2026Read 4 November 2026 · official PDF
- WorkSafe Victoria Physiotherapy services policy (Travel section)Read 4 November 2026 · official web page
- WorkSafe Victoria Occupational Therapy Services fee schedule, effective 1 July 2026Read 4 November 2026 · official PDF (matches https://www.worksafe.vic.gov.au/occupational-therapy-services-fee-schedule)
- WorkSafe Victoria Occupational therapy services policyRead 4 November 2026 · official web page (no provider travel section found)
What isn't settled yet
Points the billing specialist still needs to decide. Where a rule is unclear, Doorside holds the line for a person to check instead of guessing.
12 open points
- Metro/regional boundary dataset: policy says areas are 'as defined by the Victorian Department of Health'. Doorside has no version of that dataset yet; a visit without a WorkSafe area is held.
- km rounding: no published rule for rounding km on PY141/PY142/OT510/OT520. Pack uses 1 decimal.
- Majority-area tie (equal metro and regional km): not covered by the policy example. Held.
- OT mixed-area trips: the majority-area rule is published for physio only. Mixed OT trips are held.
- OT shared trips: the leg-to-leg rule for consecutive workers is published for physio only. Shared OT trips are held.
- OT home-visit 'H' items (OT602H, OT604H, OT606H) are priced higher than 'R' items; whether that is intended to cover travel is not stated. Travel with them is treated as not payable (OT510/OT520 are only payable with HHSNA02, OT610, OT611).
- OT approval: the schedule states no approval for OT510/OT520. Confirm none is needed.
- Physio eligibility: travel is payable only if clinically justified, not already in the consultation rate, and no equivalent physio is within a 30 km round trip. Doorside relies on the recorded WorkSafe approval for these; it cannot check them.
- Physio: 'travel must be recorded from the practice rooms nearest to the worker's location' where a physio has several practice addresses. Doorside does not check the start point.
- Physio aquatic items: PY135 (Aquatic Group Consultation) is listed under Group Consultation, not under the 'rates are inclusive of travel' heading. Treated as inclusive of travel; confirm.
- Services before a schedule's effective date (physio before 1 Oct 2026, OT before 1 Jul 2026) use earlier rates that are not in this pack. Held.
- GST: rates are exclusive of GST; WorkSafe pays GST on top where applicable. Lines here are ex GST.
TAC
Rule pack 2026.1Effective 1 July 2026Reviewed not yet
Not yet reviewed by a billing specialist. These are Doorside's working rules for TAC, not official guidance. Don't bill from this page. Check every figure against the official sources listed below.
The Transport Accident Commission (Victoria) pays provider travel time per hour. We found no per-km provider travel item. The TAC website blocks automated access, so these figures were read from search excerpts of its pages and still need checking in a browser.
Physiotherapy
Fee schedule effective 1 July 2026
| Item | Up to, per hour | Billed in |
|---|---|---|
PHY500 | A$200.14/h | 15-minute steps |
- The TAC must approve provider travel before it can be paid.
- The TAC doesn't say how a part step rounds, so Doorside holds any trip that isn't a whole number of 15-minute steps.
Occupational therapy
Not in Doorside's rules yet, because the TAC's own pages conflict. OT travel lines are held for a person to check.
Official sources
- TAC Physiotherapy fees (fee schedule for services on or after 1 July 2026)Read 4 November 2026 · search excerpt (site blocks automated access)
- TAC Physiotherapy (what the TAC can pay for)Read 4 November 2026 · search excerpt (site blocks automated access)
- TAC Occupational therapy (what the TAC can pay for)Read 4 November 2026 · search excerpt (site blocks automated access)
What isn't settled yet
Points the billing specialist still needs to decide. Where a rule is unclear, Doorside holds the line for a person to check instead of guessing.
11 open points
- Every TAC figure was read from search excerpts; tac.vic.gov.au blocks automated access. Open each source page in a normal browser and confirm.
- PHY500 rate: an earlier page (1 Feb 2026 rates) shows $194.00/h; the schedule for services from 1 July 2026 shows $200.14/h. Pack uses $200.14 from 1 Jul 2026; confirm it is still current.
- PHY500 rounding: 'billed in 15 minute increments' does not say whether a part increment rounds up, down or to nearest. Trips that aren't a whole number of 15 minutes are held until this is set.
- Approval: excerpts say pre-approval is required, and also that within the first 90 days travel may not need approval (approval via the Allied Health Treatment and Recovery Plan after that). Pack requires an approval reference on every line; confirm the 90-day rule.
- Physio shared trips: an excerpt says total travel costs for several TAC clients in one travel period 'should be split equally', but the page it came from is unclear. Shared trips are held.
- 1 September 2026: the physiotherapy service page says provider travel is billed separately for services from 1 September 2026; no physio rate change from that date was found. Confirm.
- GST: the excerpt for PHY500 shows one rate; older team-meeting travel items had GST and non-GST rates (PHY900/PHY901). Confirm whether $200.14 is ex GST.
- No TAC per-km provider travel item found. Lines carry time only; staff mileage is separate.
- TAC OT: sources conflict. One excerpt lists travel item OTN200 at $164.86/h (15-minute increments) for providers not on the OT Access Registry; another says travel is included in the out-of-rooms consultation fee. Not encoded; OT lines are held.
- Eligibility: travel is considered only when the client is medically unfit to travel or treatment in the client's functional environment is clinically justified. Doorside relies on the recorded approval for this.
- Services before 1 July 2026 use earlier rates that are not in this pack. Held.
Other schemes
Doorside starts in Victoria, and we're working on more integrations. Trips and staff mileage are recorded whichever scheme pays for the visit, and a client who can't be charged is shown with the reason.
| Scheme | In Doorside |
|---|---|
| ReturnToWorkSA | Not supported yet |
| WorkCover Queensland | Not supported yet |
| Support at Home | Included in price: travel is built into the service price |
| Private health | Not supported yet |
| DVA | Not supported yet |
Spotted something wrong? Tell us.