Evidence of disability or
developmental delay
(for children under 7 years of age)
What to provide with your child’s access request form?
So that we can determine whether your child meets the early intervention or developmental
delay requirements, you will need to provide evidence of your child’s permanent disability or
developmental delay to support their access request. This includes information on what your
child’s condition is, how long it will last and its impact on their life.
You can provide evidence of your child’s disability or developmental delay by having their
treating doctor or specialist complete the Evidence of disability or developmental delay from, or
you can provide the same information in a different format, such as copies of existing
assessments and reports. The information must be provided with the Access Request Form.
If you choose not to use the Evidence of disability or developmental delay form it is important
that you make sure the information you provide contains the same information that the form
collects.
The Evidence of disability or developmental delay form can be found in your child’s Access
Request Kit. If you have not received this form, please contact the NDIA.
If you are not sure whether you have enough information to support your child’s access
request, or you have trouble getting the information, we may be able to help you. See below for
information on how to contact us.
Diagnosis
You must provide us with evidence of the diagnosis of your child’s disability from your child’s
treating doctor or specialist.
‘Part B – Diagnosis of Conditions of the Evidence of disability or developmental delay form
collects this information, or you can give us other written evidence of your child’s diagnosis
from their treating doctor or specialist. This needs to include information about any treatment/s
your child is receiving.
Evidence of the impact of your child’s disability or developmental
delay form (for children under 7 years)
If your child has a condition we have already identified as always resulting in permanent
impairment and substantially reduced functional capacity, or as always benefiting from early
intervention, then we do not require any further information. A list of these conditions is over
the page.
If your child’s condition is not on the list of ‘Permanent impairment/functional capacity – no
further assessment required’ you must provide evidence of the impact of your child’s condition
on their life, including any impact on their mobility, communication, social interaction, learning,
self-care and self-management.
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You can provide this information by getting your child’s specialist or an allied health
professional to complete ‘Part C – Functional Impact’ of the Evidence of disability or
developmental delay form or you can provide us with other written evidence from their
specialist or allied health professional.
‘Allied health professional’ includes a physiotherapist, an occupational therapist or a
psychologist.
‘Other written evidence’ could include existing assessments or reports which were prepared by
a specialist or allied health professional that provide the equivalent information on the impact of
your child’s condition on their life.
Submitting evidence
The evidence about your child’s disability or developmental delay must be submitted with their
Access Request Form. Their access request will not be considered complete unless we have
received all the information we need. We will use the information about your child’s disability or
developmental delay to help us determine whether your child can become a participant in the
NDIS.
More information
If you need help understanding the information in this fact sheet, need more information or
need assistance with providing evidence, please:
•
visit ndis.gov.au
•
email enquiries@ndis.gov.au
•
call 1800 800 110
•
TTY users phone 1800 555 677 then ask for 1800 800 110
•
if you are a Speak and Listen (speech-to-speech relay) user — phone
•
1800 555 727 then ask for 1800 800 110
•
if you are an internet relay user — visit the National Relay Service website and ask
for 1800 800 110.
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Permanent Impairment/Early intervention, under 7 years – no further
assessment required
1. Conditions primarily resulting in intellectual/learning
impairment

Intellectual disability

Autism Spectrum Disorders
(diagnosed by a specialist multi-disciplinary team, paediatrician, psychiatrist or clinical
psychologist experienced in the assessment of Pervasive Developmental
Disorders/Autism Spectrum disorders, and assessed using the current Diagnostic and
Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-V) diagnostic criteria)

o
Autism
o
Asperger’s disorder
o
Childhood disintegrative disorder
o
Pervasive developmental disorder - not otherwise specified /Atypical autism
Chromosomal abnormalities resulting in permanent impairment
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o
Aicardi syndrome
o
Aicardi-Goutières syndrome
o
Angelman syndrome
o
CHARGE syndrome
o
Cockayne syndrome/ Types I and Type II / Cerebro-oculo-facio-skeletal (COFS)
syndrome/ Pena Shokeir syndrome Type II / Weber-Cockayne syndrome/ NeillDingwall syndrome
o
Coffin-Lowry syndrome
o
Cohen syndrome
o
Cornelia de Lange syndrome
o
Cri du Chat syndrome
o
Dandy-Walker syndrome
o
DiGeorge syndrome/ 22q11.2 deletion syndrome/ Velocardiofacial syndrome/
Shprintzen syndrome/ Conotruncal anomaly face syndrome
o
Down syndrome
o
Edwards syndrome/ Trisomy 18
o
Fragile X syndrome
o
Kabuki syndrome
o
Lesch-Nyhan syndrome/ Nyhan’s syndrome/ Kelley-Seegmiller syndrome/
Juvenile gout
o
Leigh syndrome/ Leigh’s disease/ subacute necrotising encephalomyelopathy
o
Menkes disease
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o
Patau syndrome/ Trisomy 13
o
Prader-Willi syndrome
o
Rett syndrome
o
Seckel syndrome/ microcephalic primordial dwarfism/ Harper’s syndrome/
Virchow-Seckel dwarfism
o
Smith-Lemli-Optiz syndrome
o
Smith-Magenis syndrome
o
Sturge-Weber syndrome
o
Trisomy 9
o
Tuberous sclerosis
o
Williams syndrome
o
Wolf-Hirschhorn syndrome
2. Conditions primarily resulting in neurological impairment



Systemic atrophies primarily affecting the central nervous system:
o
Friedrich’s ataxia
o
Hereditary spastic paraplegia/ Infantile-onset ascending hereditary spastic
paralysis/ L1 syndrome/ spastic paraplegias types 2 and 11
o
Louis-Bar syndrome/ Ataxia-telangiectasia
o
Niemann-Pick disease (Types A and C)
o
Progressive bulbar palsy of childhood/ Fazio-Londe disease
The following spinal muscular atrophies:
o
Spinal muscular atrophy Type I/ Werdnig Hoffmann disease/ infantile SMA
o
Spinal muscular atrophy Type II/ Dubowitz disease
o
Spinal muscular atrophy Type III Kugelberg-Welander disease/ juvenile SMA
o
Spinal muscular atrophy lower extremity dominant/ SMA-LED
o
X-linked spinal muscular atrophy
Extrapyramidal and movement disorders:
o

Other degenerative diseases of the nervous system:
o

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Hallervorden-Spatz syndrome / Pantothenate kinase-associated
neurodegeneration (PKAN)/ neurodegeneration with brain iron accumulation 1
(NBIA 1)
Alpers disease/ Alpers syndrome/ Grey-matter degeneration/ Progressive
sclerosing poliodystrophy/ Progressive infantile poliodystrophy
Demyelinating diseases of the central nervous system
o
Adrenoleukodystrophy / X-linked childhood cerebral form
o
Alexander disease
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

o
Canavan disease
o
Krabbe disease/ Globoid cell leukodystrophy
o
Pelizaeus-Merzbacher disease
Episodic and paroxysmal disorders
o
Lennox-Gastaut syndrome/ Lennox syndrome
o
West’s syndrome
Polyneuropathies and other disorders of the peripheral nervous system
o
Dejerine-Sottas disease/ Dejerine-Sottas syndrome/ Dejerine-Sottas
neuropathy/ progressive hypertrophic interstitial polyneuropathy of
childhood/onion bulb neuropathy
o
Infantile Refsum disease
3. Conditions primarily resulting in Physical impairment

Amputations

Diamond-Blackfan anaemia

Epidermolysis bullosa

Harlequin type icthyosis

Hay Wells syndrome/ ankyloblepharon/ ectodermal dysplasia/ clefting [AEC] syndrome

Joint or limb deformities resulting in impaired mobility

Juvenile arthritis/ Stills Disease

Osteogenesis imperfecta

Sjogren Larsson syndrome

Diseases of myoneural junction and muscle

o
Congenital muscular dystrophy
o
Congenital myotonia / Thomsens disease/ Becker myotonia
o
Distal muscular dystrophy
o
Duchenne muscular dystrophy
o
Emery-Dreifuss muscular dystrophy
o
Facioscapulohumeral muscular dystrophy
o
Myotubular myopathy
o
Oculopharyngeal muscular dystrophy
o
Paramyotonia Congenita
Cerebral palsy and other paralytic syndromes
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o
Cerebral palsy
o
Diplegia
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o
Hemiplegia
o
Monoplegia
o
Paraplegia
o
Quadriplegia
o
Tetraplegia
4. Conditions resulting in Sensory and/or Speech impairment

Permanent blindness in both eyes, diagnosed and assessed by an ophthalmologist
as follows:
a)
corrected visual acuity (extent to which an object can be brought into focus) on the
Snellen Scale must be less than or equal to 6/60 in both eyes; or
b)
constriction to within 10 degrees or less of arc of central fixation in the better eye,
irrespective of corrected visual acuity (i.e. visual fields are reduced to a measured arc
of 10 degrees or less); or
c)
a combination of visual defects resulting in the same degree of visual impairment as
that occurring in the above points.
(An optometrist report is not sufficient for NDIS purposes.)

Deafblindness confirmed by ophthalmologist and audiologist and assessed as
resulting in permanent and severe to total impairment of visual function and hearing

Deafness/hearing loss – a 45 decibels or greater hearing impairment in the better ear,
based on a 4 frequency pure tone average (using 500, 1000, 2000 and 4000Hz).
5. Conditions resulting in multiple types of impairment

Aceruloplasminemia

Addison-Schilder disease/ Adrenoleukodystrophy /

Albinism

Arginosuccinic aciduria

Aspartylglucosaminuria

Cerebrotendinous xanthomatosis/ cerebral cholesterosis

Congenital cytomegalovirus infection

Congenital hypothyroidism

Congenital iodine-deficiency syndrome /cretinism

Congenital rubella syndrome

Galactosaemia with long-term learning disabilities and neurological impairment

Global Developmental Delay

Glycine encephalopathy/ non-ketotic hyperglycinaemia

GM1 gangliosidosis

Hartnup disease
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
Homocystinuria

Lowe syndrome/ Oculocerebrorenal syndrome

Mannosidosis

Menkes disease

Mucolipidosis II / I-cell disease

Mucolipidosis III / pseudo-Hurler polydystrophy

Mucolipidosis IV

Neuronal ceroid lipofuscinosis

Niemann-Pick disease

Phenylketonuria

Pyruvate carboxylase deficiency

Pyruvate dehydrogenase deficiency

Sialidosis

Sulfite oxidase deficiency

The following mucopolysaccharidoses:


o
Hurler syndrome/MPS1-H
o
Scheie syndrome/ MPS 1-S
o
Hurler-Scheie syndrome/ MPS 1 H-S
o
Hunter syndrome/ MPS II
o
San Filippo syndrome/ MPS III
o
Morquio syndrome/ MPS IVA
o
Maroteaux-Lamy syndrome/ MPS VI
o
Sly syndrome/ MPS VII
The following lysosomal storage disorders:
o
Gaucher disease Types 2 and 3
o
Niemann-Pick disease (Types A and C)
o
Pompe disease
o
Sandhoff disease (infantile form)
o
Schindler disease (Type 1)
o
Tay-Sachs disease (infantile form)
Congenital conditions – cases where malformations cannot be corrected by
surgery or other treatment and result in permanent impairment:
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o
Chiari malformation/Arnold-Chiari malformation
o
Congenital absence of limb(s)
7
o
o
Congenital hydrocephalus
o
Fetal alcohol syndrome
o
Fetal hydantoin syndrome
o
Microcephaly
o
Spina bifida
VATER syndrome (VACTERL association)
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