Published by SESI Care Services · Updated August 2026 · 2-minute summary
Quick answer: Neither setting is always better. Choose a home visit when your goals are about everyday living at home, travel or fatigue gets in the way, or you need an equipment or home modification assessment. Choose a clinic when treatment needs a gym, pool or parallel bars. The NDIS hourly price limit is the same in both; a home visit adds a separate, capped travel line.
Key takeaways
- The hourly price limit is identical whether your occupational therapist (OT) or physiotherapist sees you at home or in a clinic: $193.99 for OT and $183.99 for physio in 2026–27.
- Home visits add a travel line. Since 1 July 2026 provider travel is itemised on the invoice, capped, and must be agreed with you before the visit.
- Choose home for goals about showering, cooking, moving around the house, transfers, and any assessment for equipment or home modifications.
- Choose clinic for treatment that relies on a gym, pool, treadmill or parallel bars, some post-surgery rehab, and group programs.
- Telehealth is a third option for check-ins and progress reviews, claimed against the same support item.
- Mixing both is common. The NDIS has no “home” or “clinic” category; the setting is a choice you make with your provider.
Is a home visit or a clinic appointment better for allied health?
It depends on the goal, not on which setting is more “professional”. Ask: where does the problem actually happen? If it is getting out of your own shower, a clinic bathroom tells the therapist very little. If it is rebuilding strength after a knee replacement, your lounge room has no leg press. This article covers occupational therapy and physiotherapy, the two disciplines SESI delivers in homes across Victoria.
When does in-home allied health make more sense?
A home visit makes more sense when the therapist needs to see your real environment, or when getting to a clinic costs more than it gives.
Goals about daily living. Showering, dressing, preparing a meal, getting out of bed, managing the front steps. An OT who watches you make a cup of tea in your own kitchen sees the benchtop height, where the kettle sits and what is within reach. The recommendations are practical because they were made in the room where they will be used.
Fatigue, pain or a condition that makes travel hard. For some people the trip to a clinic uses up the energy the session was meant to build. A home visit puts the whole hour into therapy.
Transport barriers. If you rely on a family member, a support worker or taxi vouchers to get anywhere, every clinic appointment is also a transport job. If you do need help getting to appointments, travel and transport support comes from your Core budget, not your therapy funding.
Equipment and home modification assessments. These need a home visit. The NDIA requires a home modification assessor to recommend changes. It also distinguishes minor from complex home modifications: minor ones do not affect the structure of the home, such as simple ramps, non-slip floor treatments and lever door handles. The NDIA also explains the role of assistive technology assessors and advisors. Measuring your doorways, bed height and shower recess cannot be done from a clinic.
When is a clinic appointment the better choice?
A clinic is the better choice when the treatment depends on equipment a home cannot provide, or when getting out of the house is part of the goal.
Equipment-based treatment. Hydrotherapy needs a pool. Gait retraining often starts on parallel bars. Strength programs after surgery may need a leg press or a treadmill. A physio can bring resistance bands and a portable plinth to your home; they cannot bring a pool.
Group programs. Some clinics run group exercise or balance classes. If connection with other people is one of your goals, the group is part of the therapy.
Wanting to get out. For some people, leaving the house to see the physio is the most community participation they get. That is a legitimate reason to choose a clinic, and it can sit alongside community participation supports in your plan.
SESI does not run a clinic. If your goals need one, your therapist should say so and help you find it.
Decision table: home visit or clinic?
| Your situation or goal | Home visit | Clinic |
|---|---|---|
| Showering, dressing, kitchen and household tasks | Best fit | Limited — different room, different layout |
| Moving around your own home, transfers, stairs | Best fit | Can practise, but not on your stairs |
| Equipment or home modification assessment | Required | Not possible |
| Fatigue, pain or travel is exhausting | Best fit | Hard to attend consistently |
| Hydrotherapy, gym, treadmill, parallel bars | Not possible | Required |
| Group exercise or social programs | Not available | Best fit |
| Getting out of the house is itself a goal | Works against the goal | Best fit |
| Short progress check or exercise tweak | Either, or telehealth | Either, or telehealth |
Does a home visit cost more on the NDIS?
The hourly price is the same; the difference is a separate travel line on the invoice.
The NDIS pricing arrangements set one price limit per discipline, wherever the session happens. From 1 July 2026 that is $193.99 per hour for OT and $183.99 for physiotherapy. A provider cannot charge more per hour because they came to you.
What changes is the invoice. Since 1 July 2026 therapy invoices are itemised: direct therapy, provider travel, non-face-to-face work (such as writing your exercise program), NDIA-requested reports and telehealth are separate lines. Travel is capped and must be agreed with you in advance, so it cannot be a surprise.
So a home visit is one hour of therapy plus an agreed travel amount. A clinic visit is one hour of therapy plus whatever it costs you to get there — a support worker’s time, a taxi, or a family member’s afternoon. See our guide to the 2026–27 NDIS prices.
How to ask about travel before you book. Three questions are enough:
- “How do you charge travel, and what is the most it can be for my address?”
- “Is travel shared if you see other people in my area the same day?”
- “Can you put the travel arrangement in the service agreement?”
For what the first visit involves, see your first in-home allied health visit.
Where does telehealth fit in?
Telehealth is a third option for the parts of therapy that do not need hands-on work or a look at your home.
Therapy can be delivered by video or phone when you agree to it and it is clinically appropriate. It is claimed against the same support item as a face-to-face session and, since July 2026, shows as its own invoice line. It suits progress checks, adjusting an exercise program or talking through a report. It does not suit an initial assessment, a transfer the therapist needs to see, or a home modification measurement.
How do you decide, and who can help?
Write down two or three goals in plain words, then ask where each one actually happens.
- “I want to shower without help” happens in your bathroom. Home.
- “I want to walk to the letterbox without my stick” happens on your driveway. Home, perhaps after a clinic block if strength is the issue.
- “I want to get back in the pool” happens in a pool. Clinic.
Then talk it through with the therapist before you sign a service agreement. A support coordinator can find providers for either setting; SESI’s Support Coordination is available Australia-wide by phone and video. Whichever you choose, check the therapist is registered with their Ahpra board (the Occupational Therapy Board of Australia or the Physiotherapy Board of Australia).
If there is a waiting list, see getting a fast OT or physio referral in Victoria. For which budget pays, read funding allied health at home: NDIS vs Support at Home. The full picture is in our pillar guide, how to access in-home allied health under the NDIS in Victoria.
Frequently asked questions
Is in-home physiotherapy as effective as clinic physiotherapy?
For goals about moving safely around your own home, a home visit has an advantage a clinic cannot match: the therapist works on your stairs, your bed and your chairs. For treatment that depends on a pool, a gym or parallel bars, a clinic is the right place. Effectiveness follows the fit between goal and setting.
Does the NDIS pay more for a home visit?
No. The hourly price limit is the same in either setting — $193.99 for OT and $183.99 for physiotherapy in 2026–27. A home visit adds a separate provider travel line that is capped and must be agreed with you in advance, ideally in writing in your service agreement.
Can I use both a clinic and home visits?
Yes. Both are claimed from Capacity Building – Improved Daily Living, and the NDIS has no rule about the setting. Keep an eye on your funding period so two providers together do not use up the budget early.
Can my support worker come with me to a clinic?
Yes, and it is a good idea if they help you with transfers or exercises at home. Transport to appointments is paid from your Core budget. For community venues rather than clinics, a Victorian Companion Card (companioncard.vic.gov.au) gives your carer free entry at participating venues.
Does SESI run a clinic?
No. SESI Care Services delivers occupational therapy and physiotherapy in people’s homes across Victoria. If a goal needs a pool, a gym or a group program, our therapists will say so.
Talk to SESI
If your goals live in your own home — the bathroom, the kitchen, the front steps — tell us what is going on and we will call you back.
Tell us what’s going on: sesi.com.au/referral · Call: 1800 017 374
This guide is general information based on the NDIS pricing arrangements effective 1 July 2026 and NDIA guidance on home modifications and assistive technology current at September 2026. It is not advice about your individual plan. For help with your own plan, speak with your support coordinator or contact the NDIA on 1800 800 110.
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