Protecting the NDIS brand
The National Disability Insurance Agency (NDIA) is responsible for maintaining the integrity of the National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS) and its brand.
This includes identifying and taking action in response to any misuse of the NDIS logo, the NDIS acronym or other trade marks registered in the NDIA’s name.
Trade marks are a form of legal protection for a business name and other elements of your brand. For more information about trademarks visit What Are Trade Marks? IP Australia
In addition to monitoring use of the NDIS name and logos, the NDIA monitors the provider marketplace to identify business practices that may, by falsely suggesting an affiliation with the NDIS, amount to misleading or deceptive conduct under the Australian Consumer Law . Providers engaging in such practices will be reported to the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) for further action.
This page outlines:
- who is authorised to use NDIS logos and the NDIS acronym
- the consequences of misusing NDIS logos and the NDIS acronym
- the type of provider conduct that the NDIA will report to theACCC .
NDIS logo use
The NDIS logo and acronym are registered trade marks in the NDIA’s name.
No provider, person or business is permitted to use the NDIS logo without written consent from the NDIA. This includes use of the NDIS logo on publicity materials, advertising, vehicles, buildings, emails, stationery and business cards.
Use of logos by providers
Only registered NDIS providers are permitted to use the ‘I/we heart NDIS’ and ‘I/we support NDIS’ logos with the tagline, ‘Registered Provider’.
A registered NDIS provider is a person or organisation that is registered with the NDIS Quality and Safeguards Commission in accordance with section 73E of the National Disability Insurance Scheme Act 2013.
The full list of registered NDIS providers can be found on the provider finder page.
'Registered provider' tagline pack (2.8MB) - includes .JPG, .EPS print quality and .SVG files.
Unregistered NDIS providers are not permitted to use the ‘I/we heart NDIS’ and ‘I/we support NDIS’ logos with the tagline, ‘Registered Provider’.
Use of the statement ‘registered provider’
You may only advertise your business as a ‘registered provider’ if it is registered with the NDIS Quality and Safeguards Commission in accordance with section 73E of the NDIS Act.
If you are not a registered NDIS provider, you must not advertise or pass yourself off as a ‘registered provider’ or use other language (for example, ‘official NDIS provider’), which falsely implies you are registered.
Statements of affiliation
You must not suggest an affiliation or relationship with the NDIA or NDIS where no such relationship exists.
The NDIA understands there are times when providers may need to use the NDIS acronym, and other words or acronyms over which the NDIA may own intellectual property rights, in a descriptive sense. However, this must not be done in a way that infringes the NDIA’s intellectual property or could cause confusion or be misleading to members of the public.
Examples of misleading statements of affiliation include use of the NDIS acronym in business names, trading names or domain names, and use of the NDIS acronym in the name of a product or service such as ‘NDIS packages’ or ‘NDIS bundles’.
Positioning of goods or services
Providers should not make broad statements that may be confusing or lead NDIS participants to incorrectly assume they can pay for the costs of a product or service under their NDIS plan when this may not be the case.
It is not correct to state or imply that particular goods or services will, in all cases, be covered by the NDIS, or that NDIS funding is 'guaranteed’.
Accordingly, when advertising goods or services, providers should refrain from:
- using statements such as ‘NDIS approved’ or ‘100% NDIS funded’
- using the ‘I heart NDIS’ logo or ‘we support NDIS’ logos to indicate your product or service is funded by the NDIS. Such activity may mislead participants into claiming for supports that are not covered by their NDIS plan.
Actions we take
The NDIA is committed to ensuring that NDIS participants receive accurate information in the marketplace.
The NDIA continues to monitor the marketplace for trade mark infringement and provider practices that may be in breach of Australian Consumer Law .
The NDIA takes infringement action against providers found to be misusing the NDIS logos or NDIS acronym. This includes issuing cease-and-desist letters and taking further legal action when warranted.
The NDIA also reports any potential breaches of the Australian Consumer Law to the ACCC for further investigation and action.