To apply as a sole trader, you must be an NDIS or state-funded provider delivering supports or services to people with disability in Queensland.
Sole traders will also need to register as an employer for access to either the NDIS Worker Screening Database or the Queensland Employer Portal.
As a sole trader, it is important for you to understand the changes to screening in Queensland, your obligations and the impact for you and your sole trader business. If you employ staff members you can find information on screening requirements via the Employer home page or through our dedicated fact sheets FAQs for NDIS employers or FAQs for state-funded employers .
Sole traders will need an NDIS worker screening clearance if they:
To obtain an NDIS worker screening clearance for yourself, you will need to complete the following steps:
Sole traders delivering disability supports or services through a state-funded provider will need a Queensland disability worker screening clearance.
To obtain a Queensland disability worker screening clearance for yourself, you will need to complete the following steps:
If you already have a valid yellow card or yellow card exemption, you won’t need to get a disability worker screening clearance straight away. You can keep using your existing card until it expires, is suspended or is cancelled.
You can apply for a disability worker screening clearance (NDIS or Queensland) up to three months before the expiry of your yellow card or yellow card exemption. To keep working while your application is processed, it needs to be submitted and verified before your current card expires. If you fail to do so, you may be subject to ‘no card, no start’ rules which will require you to stop working until you receive a clearance.
Queensland has passed legislation to support a no card, no start approach to disability worker screening. This means that sole traders who are registered NDIS providers working in risk assessed roles or who are state-funded providers of disability supports or services are required to be screened and must have a clearance before they can start work. The changes are consistent with the reforms in the blue card system and are designed to increase safeguards for people with disability who receive funded supports and services.
‘No card, no start’ rules do not apply to sole traders who are registered NDIS providers working in non-risk assessed roles or unregistered NDIS providers. Sole traders in these categories can begin work after their application is lodged.
The WSU is bound by strict confidentiality provisions that limit how your information is used and when and to whom it can be released. There are also obligations under the Privacy Act 1988 the WSU must comply with.
To find out how your personal information will be used, read our Privacy Statement and Information Management Policy.
It is the responsibility of all disability worker screening clearance card holders and applicants to keep the WSU updated about any changes to their details or circumstances. Clearance card holders must inform the WSU within 14 days of the following, using the relevant form:
Applicants for a disability worker screening clearance must inform the WSU within 7 days of the following, using the relevant form:
Failing to notify the WSU of these updates within the required timeframe is an offence and penalties may apply.
If you have been issued a yellow card negative notice, yellow card negative exemption notice or a disability worker screening exclusion that has not been cancelled, you cannot apply for an NDIS worker screening check. It is an offence under the Disability Services Act 2006 to make an application and penalties apply.
To ensure accountability for disability worker screening decisions, most applicants or workers who have received a decision they don’t agree with have the right to review or appeal under Queensland’s new worker screening legislation.
Certain decisions made by the WSU are considered reviewable decisions. These include a decision to:
If a reviewable decision is made in relation to you and you’re dissatisfied with the decision, you can apply to have the decision reviewed. The review process includes:
For further information on review and appeal information, please see our dedicated fact sheet .
If you intend to engage workers to deliver disability supports or services, please visit the Employer home page to understand what is required.
For more information on disability worker screening for sole traders, see our dedicated fact sheet .
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