SDA vacancy payments explained: what happens when a resident leaves or dies
By The Find My SDA Team · Reviewed by Bhav Singh, Licensed Estate Agent · Published 01 Oct 2026
Short answer
An SDA vacancy payment lets a registered provider keep claiming for up to 60 or 90 days after a resident dies or notice to vacate is given. It only applies to homes enrolled for 2 to 5 residents, the room must be available for another SDA-eligible participant, and the NDIA must be told within 5 business days.
When someone moves out of a shared SDA home, or dies, the provider does not always lose that resident's SDA payment on the same day. A vacancy payment can continue it for a set number of days. The rules are narrow, and the evidence is specific. If you are a participant, this sits alongside what happens to your SDA funding if you move.
What an SDA vacancy payment is
An SDA vacancy payment is a claim a registered SDA provider can make after a resident leaves an enrolled home under certain conditions. For those days the resident is treated as still living in the home.
The money goes to the provider. It is not paid to the participant who left.
Which SDA homes can get a vacancy payment
Every one of these conditions must apply. The home is enrolled to house 2 to 5 residents. The resident left in one of the three situations below. The room is available for another SDA-eligible participant. The NDIA has been told about the vacancy.
A home enrolled for a single resident cannot get a vacancy payment. Neither can a newly built SDA home that has never had a participant living in it.
What can trigger a vacancy payment
There are three situations only: the resident dies, the resident gives notice that they will vacate, or the resident is given notice to leave because of behaviours that might be a risk to other residents, staff or themselves.
A resident who simply leaves, with no notice given by them or to them, is not one of the three.
How long the payment can run
For a home enrolled for 2 or 3 residents, the resident is treated as still living there for up to 60 days. For a home enrolled for 4 or 5 residents, it is up to 90 days. The period ends sooner if the vacancy is filled.
The days are counted from the death or the notice to vacate, not from the day the room empties. The payment only covers the days left in that period after the resident has physically moved out. So when notice is given well ahead of a move, fewer days can be claimed.
A provider cannot claim upfront. Vacancy payment requests can only be sent in arrears, once the 60 or 90 days have passed.
Telling the NDIA and the evidence it asks for
A provider must tell the NDIA within 5 business days of having an SDA vacancy, and must also complete the NDIA's SDA vacancy online form.
To claim, the provider must give evidence of the notice to vacate. That includes the auto-reply email the provider received when they emailed the NDIA about the vacancy, and the notice itself, such as a letter or email from the participant. The service agreement needs to show the last date the participant lived in the home. If the participant did not sign a termination, the provider also needs evidence that they have moved out.
How a provider claims
If the resident's plan was NDIA-managed, the provider sends the evidence and an invoice through a payment enquiry in the my NDIS provider portal. If it was plan-managed, the provider sends them to the plan manager instead.
What happens once someone new moves in
The provider must tell the NDIA straight away, through the my NDIS provider portal, when a new participant moves in. The start of the new resident's SDA funding ends any vacancy claim period, even if days were left.
Why this matters if you live in a shared SDA home
If a housemate moves out or dies, the vacancy payment is a matter between the provider and the NDIA. It does not touch your own funding or your place in the home.
Your SDA funding is set out in your own NDIS plan, and you choose where you live. Neither changes because a room next to you is empty.
Common questions
Is the vacancy payment paid to the participant who moved out?
No. It is claimed by the registered SDA provider, not paid to the person who left.
Does a vacancy payment apply to a home enrolled for one resident?
No. The home has to be enrolled to house 2 to 5 residents.
Can a provider claim a vacancy payment for a brand new SDA home?
No. Newly built SDA homes that have never had a participant living in them cannot get one.
What happens if a new resident moves in before the 60 or 90 days are up?
The claim period ends. The start of the new resident's SDA funding ends it, even if days were left.
Can a provider claim the vacancy payment as soon as the room becomes empty?
No. Requests can only be sent in arrears, once the 60 or 90 days have passed.
Sources
We check the facts in this guide against these official sources before it goes live.
This guide explains how SDA vacancy payments generally work under NDIS rules. The NDIA makes the actual funding decisions for each dwelling and participant, and these rules can change. Find My SDA does not convert properties into SDA housing and cannot guarantee any vacancy payment outcome. Speak with your registered SDA provider or the NDIA about your own situation.