Direct registration with a provider for Inclusive Employment Australia 001-02230030

Customers with a disability, injury or health condition may directly approach an IEA provider to register for employment assistance.

This pathway is known as ‘direct registration’ and applies to customers who are:

• receiving an income support payment and do not have mutual obligation or participation requirements
• not receiving an income support payment
• Employment Services Assessment (ESAt)/Job Capacity Assessment (JCA) exempt - includes an Eligible School Leaver (ESL), Special Class Client (SCC), Ongoing Support (Work Assist) participant
• NDIS participant with a previous ESAt/JCA
• DSP recipient with a previous ESAt/JCA
• IEA volunteers. This includes those meeting Program of Support (POS) requirements for DSP purposes

See Eligibility criteria for participation with Inclusive Employment Australia (IEA) for details about ESL, SCC and Ongoing Support (Work Assist).

From 1 November 2025, a person who is not receiving an income support payment is eligible to participate with an IEA provider as a volunteer.

Customers may be referred for an Employment Services Assessment (ESAt) by a provider when a customer does not have a current (if required) and valid assessment of their work capacity, to determine the most suitable assistance.

DSP customers can also directly register with a provider. DSP customers do not require a current ESAt/JCA to be referred to IEA. As long as the DSP customer has had an ESAt/JCA, regardless of the age and referral recommendation, the DSP customer is eligible to participate in the IEA program.

Note: DSP customers who have never had an ESAt or JCA will need to have an ESAt completed to commence in IEA. The outcomes of the ESAt will not affect the customer's eligibility for DSP.

The IEA provider will assess whether the customer is eligible for their service. The provider may advise the customer they:

• are immediately eligible to be placed in their service without the need for further assessment
• need to be referred for a ESAt to determine which type of assistance is most suitable for them
• are not eligible for the service offered by that provider

If an IEAprovider determines that an ESAt is required to determine the most suitable employment assistance for a person then the provider arranges the ESAt referral. In these circumstances, Assessment Services will action the referral.

When the ESAt takes place, the Assessor is generally responsible for connecting the job seeker with any recommended services.

The role of Services Australia (the agency) in direct registration includes any of the following:

• advising the customer about IEA and local providers (including specialist services), if approached by the customer. The Resources page has a link to the Inclusive Employment Australia - Providers website
• assisting the provider with parts of the direct registration process. For example, confirming or creating a Customer Reference Number (CRN) if required
• Assessment Services conduct the ESAt and make the recommendation and referral where appropriate
• accepting the ESAt, after it is submitted by the Assessor
• referring the customer to a recommended service. For example, where the customer has a current (if required) and valid ESAt, has previously chosen not to accept a referral to that service, but subsequently approaches the agency requesting a referral
• providing advice to the provider about circumstances that may affect the customer’s eligibility for a particular service

When a customer directly registers with an IEA provider, the provider needs to ensure that the person is registered as a job seeker and has a Job Seeker Identification (JSID) number. The provider should complete the job seeker registration if the person is not already registered.

As part of the job seeker registration and referral workflow the person's job seeker record will be matched with their Services Australia (agency) record (if they have one) using the Customer Reference Number (CRN).

If the customer is an agency customer and cannot provide their CRN, the IEA provider should assist the customer in contacting the agency to obtain their CRN to continue the Direct Registration process.

As a general rule, a referral cannot take place unless IEA is recommended in the customer's most recent current and valid Job Capacity Assessment (JCA) or Employment Services Assessment (ESAt).

Some groups of customers are exempt from the requirement for an ESAt or JCA, including Ongoing Support (Work Assist) participants, SCCs and ESLs. The IEA provider will determine whether an exemption applies.

DSP customers and NDIS participants who have had an ESAt/JCA are eligible for IEA. Their work capacity, referral outcome and age of the ESAt/JCA does not determine eligibility for IEA referral.

Where required a customer may be referred for an ESAt to assess eligibility for IEA, including customers who 'directly register' with an IEA provider.

Job seekers located in a Department of Employment and Workplace Relations designated remote area are referred to a Remote Australia Employment Service (RAES) provider. The RAES provider will provide job seekers with similar Disability supports as IEA.