If your NASC allocates you Individualised Funding, you choose a host provider. The host is the organisation that sits between you and the government money: it processes your claims, pays your invoices or your support workers, keeps the records straight, and gives you guidance along the way.
One thing the official policy is very clear about: the decisions are yours, not the host's. The policy says disabled people have "responsibility for, and decision-making authority over" purchasing with their funding, and hosts must "give effect to the will and preference of the disabled person". The host administers and advises. You decide.
The official list
Nine hosts, one list.
Disability Support Services publishes the list of contracted host providers. As at the date this guide was last checked, there are nine:
- Access Community Health access.org.nz
- My Funding My Way myfundingmyway.co.nz
- Manawanui Support Limited manawanui.org.nz
- Home Support North homesupport.co.nz
- Enliven enlivennorthern.org.nz
- The Lifewise Trust lifewise.org.nz
- Vision West visionwest.org.nz
- Florence Nightingale Agency florence2care.co.nz
- Care on Call careoncall.nz
Coverage differs. Some hosts work nationally, some regionally. Care on Call and Florence Nightingale Agency are sister companies sharing one platform, roughly split North Island and South Island. If a host you have heard of is not on this list, it may have merged, renamed, or stopped hosting; the official page is the list that counts.
What every host must do
The same job, by contract.
The core of hosting is identical everywhere, because DSS contracts it: process claims, monitor spending against your plan and budget, check purchases and records, give you regular access to your own funding data, and feed into your NASC review. Where a purchase needs prior approval, the host is the approver.
Hosts are paid by DSS for this. The policy says a host must "not charge the disabled person for any services they are contracted by DSS to provide". So hosting itself never costs you funding. What can cost extra are optional add-ons you choose, like a payroll service if you employ your own staff.
How closely a host works with you is set by your support tier, decided by your NASC, not by the host. Tier 1 means a check-in at least annually; Tier 2 at least every six months; Tier 3 at least every three months with ongoing coaching; Tier 4 at least monthly, with planned purchases checked before you make them. Your tier changes the guidance level, never the funding amount.
Where they differ
What each host publishes, and what nobody does.
Honest limitation first: there is no official comparison of hosts. DSS publishes the list and the rules, not fees, speed, or service quality. What follows is only what the hosts publish about themselves, which is uneven.
- Claim payment timing. Manawanui is the only host publishing a cycle: expense claims submitted by midnight Monday after the fortnight ends are paid Tuesday evening, in your account Wednesday morning; payroll timesheets pay a day later. No other host publishes claim timing.
- Optional fees. My Funding My Way is the only host publishing a figure: its services are fully DSS-funded, with an optional payroll service at $15 + GST per fortnight. Manawanui describes a "small fee" for payroll without a number. The rest publish none.
- Platforms. Manawanui runs its own customer portal. My Funding My Way has a 24/7 online portal. Care on Call and Florence Nightingale Agency share the CareNet platform. All let you see budget and claims online.
- Extras. Some hosts bundle employer supports for people who employ their own staff, like free employer-association membership or advice lines. Check the host's own site for what is current.
If a detail matters to you and a host does not publish it, ask them directly before choosing. "What do you charge for payroll" and "how fast are claims paid" are fair questions, and a host that hosts well answers them plainly.
Switching
Changing hosts goes through your NASC.
You are not locked in. The official policy requires NASCs to "support a disabled person, where necessary, to change their host". The route is to contact your NASC and ask, not to negotiate between hosts. There is no official page describing the switching process step by step; the NASC duty is the sourced fact.
If you employ support workers, ask both your NASC and the new host how continuity works during the transition, so nobody misses a pay.
Source Individualised Funding (host provider list), Disability Support Services
Source Tiers of host support guidance, Disability Support Services
Source Manawanui: frequently asked questions (claims timeline)
Source My Funding My Way (fees)
Last checked 25 August 2026
General information, not advice, and not a recommendation of any host. Which host suits you depends on your situation; your NASC is the right place to talk that through. Fee and timing details are the hosts' own published claims, checked on the date shown.
Working out the funding side?
Talk it through with a person.
Jamie has worked inside the funding system for fifteen years. The Discovery Call is free, 15 to 30 minutes, no commitment. Or email jamie@neurosupport.co.nz.