Comcare Psychologist — Doctor and Psychologist, One File
Hurt at work and need a psychologist for a Comcare claim? We've got you. The scheme needs a doctor's certificate and referral before a psychologist can treat you, and our clinic has both. Psychology runs in person across NSW and in Canberra or by telehealth Australia-wide, with approved treatment billed direct to Comcare at scheme rates. Certificate appointments are booked in person.
Your Claim Needs a Doctor and a Psychologist, and We Have Both
Comcare will not accept a certificate of capacity from a psychologist. Only a doctor (a GP or a psychiatrist) can certify your capacity for work, and psychology treatment itself requires that doctor's referral and written directive before the scheme will fund it. So every psychological claim runs on two clinicians: a doctor for the certificate and the referral, and a psychologist for the treatment.
Most people are left to assemble that pair themselves, across two practices. At WorkCover Hub, our doctors and our psychologists work in one clinic, on one file, so the certificate, the referral, the directive and the treatment all come from the same team. The claims and paperwork side sits here too, rather than with you. If you're new to the scheme, our Comcare workers compensation guide explains how claims, payments and treatment fit together.
Roughly 1 in 3
Claims are psychological
Share of Australian Government employee claims that are psychological, on Comcare's scheme dashboard, financial year to date at 30 September 2025.
Over 31 weeks
Median time off work
Median time off work for a psychological claim, on Comcare's psychological injury factsheet. The longest recovery tail in the scheme.
50s vs high 80s
Return-to-work rates
Comcare's published return-to-work rate for psychological claims sat in the 50s per cent in 2024-25, against high 80s for physical injuries.
How Comcare Psychology Actually Works
You don't have to learn any of this. We run every step for you. But if you want to see what happens and when, here is the pathway, step by step, and what we do at each stage.
Start with a doctor
Only a legally qualified medical practitioner — a GP or a specialist such as a psychiatrist — can complete the Comcare certificate of capacity. The same doctor writes the psychology referral and a directive setting out the form, frequency and duration of treatment. Our doctors do both in one appointment.
The claims manager approves treatment
Your claim is lodged through your employer, and the claims manager approves psychology treatment in writing, wherever possible in advance. Psychological claims are assessed under the Act's disease provisions: employment must have contributed to a significant degree, and injuries resulting from reasonable administrative action taken in a reasonable manner are excluded. Clear clinical documentation from the first consultation matters, and that's our doctors' job.
Five sessions to start
Once approved, Comcare funds an initial five psychology sessions of up to 60 minutes each, enough to begin treatment properly while the longer plan takes shape.
A Psychology Treatment Plan for continuation
To continue beyond five sessions, your psychologist submits a Psychology Treatment Plan to the claims manager. The same applies after a gap of more than 12 months, or if you change clinics. We prepare and submit the plan, so you don't chase it.
Longer sessions need prior approval
Consultations over 60 minutes need prior approval, whatever the format. We request it before anything is booked, so there are no surprises on either side.
Your doctor stays in the loop
Follow-up with the referring doctor is part of how Comcare psychology works. Because our doctors and psychologists share one file, your certificate of capacity is updated as your capacity changes, without you re-telling the story.
Quick Facts
5
Initial psychology sessions Comcare funds once treatment is approved.
60 min
Maximum session length before prior approval is needed.
90 min
Telehealth psychology is paid at exact dollar parity with in-person up to this length.
60 days
Statutory timeframe for deciding a psychological (disease) claim once a complete claim is received.
Why Your Certificate Has to Come From a Doctor
This is where Comcare psychological claims most often stall. A psychologist can diagnose you and treat you, but Comcare refuses certificates of capacity from psychologists. If your claim involves any time off work or change to your duties, the certificate must be completed by a legally qualified medical practitioner: a GP or a specialist such as a psychiatrist. The only exception is a claim for medical treatment alone, with no incapacity component, where an allied health practitioner's certificate can suffice.
In practice that means a psychologist-only pathway cannot carry a Comcare psychological claim. You need a doctor for the certificate and the psychology referral, and a psychologist for the treatment. If they work in different practices, you become the courier between them.
That is the problem this clinic is built to remove. Our doctors complete the certificate of capacity and write the referral and directive; our psychologists deliver the treatment; both work from the same file. In Canberra, the same team also covers the territory's other scheme. See our workers compensation psychologist in Canberra page, or start with a workers compensation doctor in Canberra.
Wherever You Are in Australia, We Can See You
Our psychologists see Comcare patients in person across New South Wales and in Canberra, and by telehealth anywhere else in Australia. Which of those suits you is a clinical and practical decision, not a funding one. The scheme pays the same either way.
Comcare publishes dedicated telehealth psychology item codes at the same dollar rates as in-person consultations, for sessions up to 90 minutes, at Comcare's current published rates (checked August 2026). Telehealth under this scheme is a published, funded way to receive treatment wherever you are in Australia. The published Comcare treatment rates for psychology are national, not state-based.
That matters because Comcare coverage follows your employer, not your postcode. An APS employee in Cairns and one in Canberra are under the same Act, the same rates and the same rules. In Canberra you can be seen in person; in Cairns you are seen by video. Approved treatment is billed direct to the scheme either way, at the same published rates.
One boundary, stated plainly: telehealth applies to psychology treatment. Certificates of capacity are a separate, doctor-only step, and we book those appointments in person, with our doctors across New South Wales and in Canberra. Comcare has published no position on certificates completed from a remote consultation, and we would rather not have your claim be the one that finds out what that silence means. If you are outside our in-person footprint, the certificate stays with a doctor who can see you face to face, and we say so before anything is booked.
In person or by video
In-person appointments across NSW and in Canberra; telehealth anywhere else in Australia. Coverage follows the employer, not the postcode.
Published parity rates
Telehealth psychology items pay the same dollar amounts as in-person, up to 90-minute sessions.
Billed direct
Approved treatment is billed to Comcare at scheme rates, so you don't pay and claim back.
Doctors attached
Certificates of capacity and psychology referrals are completed by our doctors, on the same file, at in-person appointments.
Need More Than Psychology? Same Team, Same File
A psychological injury rarely travels alone, and the scheme funds a good deal more than counselling. Section 16 of the SRC Act funds reasonable medical treatment obtained in relation to a compensable injury, and the same claim, on the same file, can carry the rest of it.
Our doctors
The certificate of capacity with a DSM-5-TR or ICD-10 diagnosis, the psychology referral and directive, and updated certification as your capacity changes.
Our physiotherapists
Comcare states you do not need a referral to start physiotherapy. Five sessions to begin, then a Physiotherapy Treatment Plan for continued care.
Specialist and surgical care
Medical procedures including surgery sit inside the Act's definition of medical treatment. Our doctors refer on, and the claims manager approves in advance in writing.
Imaging, pathology, reports
Tests ordered by a doctor are compensable in their own right, including the report on them. A report your claims manager asks for is paid separately from treatment.
All of it runs through the same claims manager and the same approval test. Appointments with our doctors, psychologists and physiotherapists are available in person across New South Wales and in Canberra, with telehealth for treatment and reviews elsewhere in Australia. Certificate appointments are booked in person. If an operation is ever needed, where it takes place is decided with you and follows the claims manager's approval. Our Comcare workers compensation guide sets out what the scheme funds and how approvals work.
Work for Any of These Employers? We Can Help
The SRC Act reaches well beyond the public service. If your employer is on this list, we know your scheme.
Australian Public Service
Employees of Commonwealth agencies and statutory authorities, anywhere in Australia: Comcare manages the claim. Defence civilians (APS employees of the Department of Defence) are included.
ACT Government (ACTPS)
Nurses, teachers and the wider ACT public service are under the same SRC Act. The ACT Government self-insures, and EML manages the claims. Same clinical rules, different claims manager.
Self-insured licensees
Around 40 national employers — including Telstra, Australia Post, the major banks and Medibank — self-insure under the SRC Act. Claims run through their own claims managers, on the same statute.
Serving ADF members: military compensation is not part of the Comcare scheme. It runs through the Department of Veterans' Affairs under the MRCA. This page doesn't apply to those claims. Not sure which scheme you're under? If you work in Canberra, check which workers compensation scheme covers you.
Comcare Psychology FAQs
Want the full picture of the scheme, including payments, timeframes and disputes? Read our Comcare workers compensation guide. Working in the capital? Start at our workers compensation hub for Canberra and the ACT.
Doctor and Psychologist, One Phone Call
If your claim is under the Comcare scheme, the pathway is clear, and we run all of it from one clinic.
Call (02) 7238 7379