What travel time is paid
Travel between clients during a continuous shift is paid time.
When a worker travels from one client's home to another client's home during the same shift, that travel counts as ordinary time worked. The worker must be paid their ordinary rate for the duration of that travel. If the travel takes 25 minutes, that 25 minutes is on the clock.
This applies regardless of whether the worker uses their own car, public transport, or travels on foot. The vehicle allowance (see below) is a separate entitlement that covers costs, not just the time.
What travel time is not paid
Travel from home to the first client, and from the last client home, is generally not paid time.
The trip from a worker's home to their first engagement of the day is considered ordinary commuting. The same applies to the trip from the final client back to the worker's home. Unless the employment contract expressly provides otherwise, these are not compensable under the Award.
Exceptions to note
- If a worker is directed to start at a specific depot or office before going to the first client, travel from the depot to the first client is paid.
- If a worker is required to use a specific organisation-owned vehicle with specialist equipment, travel arrangements may differ. Check the contract.
- Some enterprise agreements covering SCHADS employees provide more generous travel entitlements. Always check the applicable agreement first.
The vehicle allowance
Rate: at the current SCHADS vehicle allowance rate (SCHADS clause 20.3) — check the Fair Work Pay Guide for the operative figure
The vehicle allowance applies when a worker is required to use their own vehicle to travel between clients during a shift. It is paid for the distance driven between work locations, not for travel to the first or from the last client. It may also apply when a worker transports a client in their own vehicle — though when the participant is in the vehicle, kilometres are often claimed against the participant's Core — Transport budget rather than as a SCHADS vehicle allowance; check the participant's plan and your enterprise agreement.
The allowance covers fuel, depreciation, and running costs. You can also reimburse reasonable parking costs and tolls incurred while on shift.
Record keeping requirements
Workers should record start and finish addresses for each client segment, the distance travelled between clients, and total kilometres for the day. Mileage tracking apps are acceptable. Odometer readings are the most defensible record if a dispute arises.
Important: The vehicle allowance does not replace paid travel time. A worker who drives 20 minutes between clients is entitled to both 20 minutes of paid time AND the applicable per-kilometre reimbursement. These are separate obligations.
Travel time and minimum engagement
The minimum engagement for casual and part-time workers in disability and home care is 2 hours per period of work (SCHADS clause 10.5, amended from 1 July 2022).
Travel time between clients during a continuous shift does not break the shift into separate engagements. If a worker does Client A (1 hour), then travels 20 minutes, then does Client B (45 minutes), that is one continuous engagement of 2 hours and 5 minutes. The minimum engagement is satisfied.
However, if a roster has a gap between two separate client visits that is long enough to constitute a break, the two visits may each be treated as separate periods of engagement. If either period is less than 2 hours, the worker must still be paid for 2 hours. This is the core reason why roster gaps matter — a 3-hour gap between clients is not travel time, it is a break.
Worked example: 3-client day
Permanent part-time, Level 3.1, Monday weekday. Apply the current ordinary rate from the Fair Work Pay Guide for the applicable SCHADS classification.
| Segment | Notes |
|---|---|
| Home to Client A | Unpaid commute |
| Client A visit | Paid at ordinary rate |
| Travel: Client A to Client B | Paid at ordinary rate |
| Client B visit | Paid at ordinary rate |
| Travel: Client B to Client C | Paid at ordinary rate |
| Client C visit | Paid at ordinary rate |
| Client C to home | Unpaid commute |
Total paid time: 1 hr + 18 min + 2 hrs + 22 min + 1.5 hrs = 5 hrs 10 min
Vehicle allowance: 8 km (A→B) + 12 km (B→C) = 20 km × [current SCHADS vehicle allowance rate — see Fair Work Pay Guide]
Total ordinary pay: 5.17 hrs × [current Level 3.1 ordinary rate — see Fair Work Pay Guide]
Total entitlement for the day: ordinary pay + vehicle allowance (plus super)
The home commute segments are not paid and do not attract the vehicle allowance.
The common mistake: roster gaps that are not travel
The most frequent compliance error in disability and community care rostering is treating a roster gap as unpaid travel time when it is actually a break.
Example of the mistake
A coordinator rosters a worker at 9:00 am for Client A (1 hour) and then again at 11:30 am for Client B (1 hour). The 90-minute gap is labelled "travel" in the roster. The actual drive between clients takes 15 minutes. The worker is at home or a cafe for 75 of those 90 minutes. That is a break, not travel.
The 11:30 am start is a second period of engagement. Since it is less than 2 hours, the minimum engagement obligation applies — the worker must be paid for 2 hours for the second period, not 1. A broken shift allowance may also apply if the break between the two work periods exceeds one hour (SCHADS clause 10.4).
How to spot this on your roster
If the gap between two client visits is longer than the realistic drive time, assume it is a break. Use mapping tools to test whether the gap is genuinely travel or downtime.
Travel time in NDIS funding
NDIS providers can claim travel time as a support-related expense under the NDIS Pricing Arrangements, subject to conditions:
- You must have agreement in the participant's service agreement that travel will be claimed.
- Provider travel time (worker travelling to or between participants) is billed at the same support item rate as the support being delivered — not a separate line item. It is subject to time caps: generally up to 30 minutes in MMM 1-3 areas (metropolitan and regional centres) and up to 60 minutes in rural and remote areas (MMM 4-5). Check the current NDIS Pricing Arrangements for the applicable limits.
- The per-kilometre vehicle cost is claimed as a separate non-labour line item, subject to the relevant per-km cap and distance limits.
- When transporting a participant in your vehicle, kilometres are generally claimed against the participant's Core — Transport budget, not as provider travel. This is a separate funding source with different rules.
If your rosters are generating more paid travel than you are recovering through NDIS travel claims, your pricing or rostering approach needs review.