Concessions and rebates

> Local council rates

> Water and energy

> Motor vehicles and drivers/riders licences
> Travel concessions
> Health-related concessions
> Pensions and allowances
> Discounts
> A guide to concessions and services for NSW veterans (PDF, 201 KB)

For up-to-date information on concessions contact the organisations involved.  You can also contact the Seniors Information Service on 13 12 44. If English is your second language and you would like an interpreter to help you with your enquiry, please call the Translating and Interpreting Service (TIS) on 13 14 50.

Local council rates
Concessions are available for eligible pensioners for ordinary rates and domestic waste management service charges, water rates or charges, and sewerage rates or charges.  For more information contact your local council.

Water and energy
The NSW Government funds rebate programs for eligible pensioners on electricity, gas and water. Detailed information about these programs is available from the Department of Energy, Utilities and Sustainability, the Energy and Water Ombudsman NSW and your local supplier.

Rebates you may be eligible for include the:

• Pensioner Energy Rebate - this covers both electricity and gas bills, with the rebate being taken off your electricity bill.
• Life Support Rebate - if you require medical equipment in your home to sustain your life, such as a kidney dialysis machine or respirator/ventilator, you may be entitled to a rebate on your electricity bill.
• Pensioner Water Rebate - water suppliers provide rebates on water and sewerage charges for eligible pensioners. Sydney Water and Hunter Water also provide rebates to customers who use water in life sustaining equipment such as kidney dialysis machines. Conditions vary.

Contact your electricity or water supplier to find out more and receive these rebates.

Motor vehicles and drivers/riders licences
The Roads and Traffic Authority (RTA) offers concessions for eligible pensioners on a range of products including vehicle registration and driver’s licence fees. For more details contact the RTA on 13 22 13.

Travel concessions
A range of travel concessions are available for transport in NSW for different types of concession card holders on regulated rail, bus and ferry services. These include half fare tickets, Pensioner Excursion Tickets (the metropolitan/outer metropolitan), Country Pensioner Excursion Ticket (CPET) and limited pensioner free travel on long distance rail services (plus booking fee on CountryLink services).

For more information refer to the:

• Ministry of Transport website for an explanation of concession categories, entitlements and application processes.
• Transport Infoline website or call 131 500 for Greater Sydney transport service information.
• CountryLink website or call 132 232 for information on CountryLink services and bookings.

Health-related concessions
There is a wide variety of health-related assistance available. The following is a list of some of them.  For more information talk to you GP or contact the organisations listed.

• Some ambulance services are provided free of charge to eligible pensioners. In order to claim this service you need to complete your pension or Pension/Veterans’ Affairs/Health Care Card details on the invoice.  For more information see the NSW Ambulance Service website or email them on generalenquiry@ambulance.nsw.gov.au.
• Eligible people can receive a range of hearing services, including hearing aids.  Talk to your GP.  For more information call 1800 500 726 (or for users of TTY 1800 500 496).
• Free dental assistance is available to eligible people through public dental clinics.  For more information contact your local Area Health Service (see under Health NSW in the White Pages) for the nearest clinic.
• Eligible people can receive free eye examinations with optometrists who bulk-bill Medicare – talk to your local optometrist. You may also receive free eye examinations through government eye hospitals and eye care clinics at selected public hospitals. For more information contact your local Area Health Service (see under Health NSW in the White Pages).
• The NSW Government Spectacle Program provides assistance to eligible people with accessing a range of appliances including bifocals, multi focals, contact lenses or low vision aids. Phone VisionCare NSW on (02) 9344 4122 or (non-metropolitan callers) 1800 806 851.

Pensions and allowances
If you have not tried applying for an Australian Government pension, allowance or health care card lately, it may be worth investigating your current eligibility. Various forms of assistance are available through Centrelink including (but not limited to):

• age pension
• telephone allowance
• utilities allowance
• rent assistance
• seniors concession allowance
• seniors health card.

For more information contact Centrelink on 13 23 00 or visit your nearest Centrelink Customer Service Centre.

Discounts
There are many recreational activities that you can undertake, often at a discounted price, if you hold a Pensioner Concession Card or a NSW Seniors Card.

Many local councils, libraries, clubs, theatres and cinemas provide free events or pensioner and other concessions. For example, some theatres stage shows at a reduced cost or free for pensioners at set times during the year. Museums and art galleries often have general exhibitions for which there is no entry cost. They may also offer discount entry to holders of a NSW Seniors Card or pension card for those exhibitions that are not free. Contact the venue, or the Seniors Information Service on 13 12 44 for more information. It never hurts to ask if a place offers pensioner discounts or concessions. 
 
If you have a NSW Seniors Card you are eligible for discounts and special offers from many businesses in NSW. To find out what discounts are available see the NSW Seniors Card website or contact the Seniors Hotline on 1300 364 758.