The Pensioner Concession Card is the widest-reaching concession card in Victoria — more programs key off it than off any other card. Most of them are not automatic. The card makes you eligible to ask; somebody still has to ask.
Every entry below links to the government page it came from and shows the date we last checked it. We don't decide who qualifies — the agency does.
Check which of these fit your household — 2 minutes
33 programs in our library name this card. Biggest first.
15 hours a week of funded kindergarten, free or at low cost, at services that do not offer Free Kinder
Tell your kindergarten or childcare service that you are eligible when you enrol your child, or at any point during the year.
Timing: No deadline, but you must tell the service - it is not applied for you.
Official page · last checked 2026-07-21
An interest-free, fee-free loan of up to $2,000 for essential goods and services
Phone 13 NILS (13 64 57) or apply at nils.com.au, or through a Good Money store.
Timing: No deadline.
Where the official source is unclear: The DFFH page we link was last updated in August 2022 and lists only the $2,000 essentials tier. The $3,000 rental-bond tier is published by Good Shepherd, who deliver the scheme, not on the DFFH page.
Official page · last checked 2026-07-29
Half-price public transport fares for concession cardholders (50% off the full fare)
Get a concession myki for your concession type through Public Transport Victoria (1800 800 007) and top it up as normal.
Timing: No deadline - order the concession myki whenever you start travelling.
Official page · last checked 2026-07-21
Up to $650 towards an overdue non-mains bill, per utility, every two years
Apply online via the concessions website (go.vic.gov.au/3ZNIGTG) with your overdue account details and evidence of your hardship.
Timing: No deadline, but you must be behind on the bill (or unable to afford your next one) and in a current financial crisis.
Official page · last checked 2026-07-21
Free with a concession card; $39 per child for card-free children aged 0-12 (family cap $156)
Call your community dental clinic to join the waiting list.
Timing: If you're issued a private-clinic voucher it expires in ~3 months (1 month for emergency vouchers) — then you're back in the queue.
Handled by: Department of Health (Victoria); care delivered by community dental agencies and Dental Health Services Victoria — Contact your local community dental clinic to register and join the waiting list
Official page · last checked 2026-08-21
A discount on TAFE enrolment fees for eligible cardholders and their dependent spouses (amount depends on the course)
Ask the TAFE institute about a fee concession when you enrol, and show your card.
Timing: No deadline - claim it at enrolment for each course.
Where the official source is unclear: The amount is set by each TAFE and depends on the course, so no fixed figure exists. Ask the specific institute what the concession fee is for your course.
Official page · last checked 2026-07-22
50% off the registration fee — and 50% off the TAC charge too, but only on a Pensioner or DVA Gold card
Apply through VicRoads with your card number, at least 5 days before your renewal falls due — it does not backdate. Ask specifically about both components; they are administered as separate concessions.
Timing: Every renewal until registered.
Official page · last checked 2026-08-03
$400 per child per year (raised from $154/$256 in 2026)
Submit the form through your school. Renews automatically at the same school — but FIRST applications, school changes, card changes and new siblings all need a new form.
Timing: Applications run 27 January – 26 June each year. For 2026 they closed on 26 June; the 2027 round opens late January.
Where the official source is unclear: The official page gives two opening dates one day apart — the prose says applications "will open from 27 January 2026" while the Key dates table says "28 January to 26 June 2026". We use 27 January, the earlier of the two, so nobody is told the window is shut on a day it might be open. Read 2026-08-06.
Official page · last checked 2026-08-06
Up to $650 per utility over 2 years ($1,300 if electricity-only home)
Ask your retailer or water company to start the application if a bill has become unmanageable — also open to non-cardholders on low income.
Timing: Per 2-year cycle.
Official page · last checked 2026-08-03
$389 a year off non-mains (embedded-network) electricity, plus $560 a year off non-mains water for haemodialysis (2025-26 rates)
Ask your doctor to sign the Non-Mains Life Support Concession medical statement, then apply through the Victorian Concessions and Allowances portal.
Timing: Can be backdated up to 12 months (or your card start date), so apply as soon as the machine is installed.
Official page · last checked 2026-07-21
50% off council rates, up to a published maximum of $266.00 for 2025-26, plus an automatic $50 reduction on the Emergency Services and Volunteers Fund (ESVF)
Apply once with your council when the rates notice arrives (Jul–Sep); it then renews automatically.
Timing: Note: HCC does not qualify for this one.
Official page · last checked 2026-07-30
17.5% off the part of your annual electricity bill above $4,038.82 (the year starting 1 December 2025)
Watch for the application form your electricity retailer sends if you cross the threshold; sign it in front of any adult witness and post it to DFFH.
Timing: Applies to the annual period from 1 December; act when your retailer sends the form. If you already get the Life Support or Medical Cooling concession you get this automatically with no form.
Official page · last checked 2026-07-21
50% off water and sewerage charges — up to $186.05/yr if you are billed for only one service, up to $372.10/yr if you are billed for both (the official 2025-26 caps). We count the lower one, because we never ask which you get.
Register once with your water company — renters qualify too if the bill is in your name.
Timing: Re-register when you move or change water company.
Official page · last checked 2026-07-29
Up to $666 a year for EACH non-mains energy type — LPG, firewood, heating oil, embedded-network electricity or generator fuel
Apply through the Victorian Concessions and Allowances portal with your year's invoices ready to upload.
Timing: Applications open 1 July each year; you have until 31 December of the following year to claim a given year. You can make a second, top-up claim if you spend more later.
Official page · last checked 2026-07-21
A concession on CAE course fees for eligible cardholders (amount depends on the course)
Ask the CAE about a concession when you enrol and show your card (03 9652 0611).
Timing: No deadline - claim at enrolment.
Where the official source is unclear: The concession depends on the course; no fixed figure is published. Ask the CAE what the concession fee is for the course you want.
Official page · last checked 2026-07-22
17.5% off the part of your winter gas bill above $2,598.58 (1 May to 31 October 2026)
Watch for the application form your gas retailer sends if you cross the threshold; sign it with an adult witness and post it to DFFH.
Timing: Covers gas used 1 May to 31 October; act when your gas retailer sends the form.
Official page · last checked 2026-07-21
2 or 4 free off-peak trips a year, depending on where you live — V/Line included
Registration has two intakes a year: register between 1 March and 31 August and your vouchers are available from 1 November; register between 1 September and 28 February and they are available from 1 May. Once registered, they top up automatically each year.
Timing: Use by 30 October — the allocation refreshes 1 November and unused vouchers are not carried over.
Official page · last checked 2026-09-10
Up to $200 per child per round (membership and registration fees)
Round 11 opens during September 2026 — exact dates not yet published. Rounds run about 4 weeks and vouchers expire roughly a month after issue.
Timing: Round-based; places run out.
Where the official source is unclear: Victoria publishes that Round 11 opens 'during September 2026' but has not published the opening or closing date. The only dated guidelines on the site are still Round 10's.
Official page · last checked 2026-09-10
Up to $423 a year off water you buy when you are not connected to mains supply
Apply through the Victorian Concessions and Allowances portal with your water-purchase invoices ready to upload.
Timing: You can claim up to three times a year (max $423 total); claims for a year close 30 June of the following year.
Official page · last checked 2026-07-21
Glasses from ~$51 (normally $300+)
Book with a participating optometrist (ACO in Melbourne, partner optometrists regionally).
Timing: Roughly one subsidised pair per 2 years.
Where the official source is unclear: Department page (health.vic.gov.au) lists only the PCC; the operator ACO's page carries the full eligibility list (PCC/HCC/DVA Gold). Verified against the operator page 2026-07-24.
Official page · last checked 2026-07-24
Free clinically necessary road and air ambulance anywhere in Australia — so you do not pay Ambulance Victoria membership, which is $109.93 a year for a family ($54.97 single) until 31 July 2026, and $112.95 a year for a family ($56.47 single) from 1 August 2026
Do nothing to enrol, but give paramedics your concession card number when transported, and cancel any Ambulance Victoria membership you are paying for if your card already covers you.
Timing: No deadline - but your card must be valid on the date of the ambulance service.
Official page · last checked 2026-07-30
Discounted admission to zoos, galleries and museums, and some cinemas and AFL games
Ask for the concession price and show your card when you buy admission.
Timing: No deadline.
Official page · last checked 2026-07-21
A reduced fee to redirect your mail for up to 12 months, plus cheaper concession stamps
Take your concession card to a Post Office, or apply for a MyPost Concession Account (13 13 18).
Timing: If you are moving, set up the mail redirection around your move date - the reduced fee covers up to 12 months.
Official page · last checked 2026-07-21
A discount on cat and dog registration (amount varies by council)
Ask your local council for the pensioner or concession rate when you register or renew your pet.
Timing: Renew by 10 April each year.
Where the official source is unclear: The discount amount is set by each council — no statewide rate is published. Pensioner-concession-card entitlement is statewide; Health Care Card acceptance varies by council. Confirm the figure with your own council.
Official page · last checked 2026-07-22
You do not have to buy a recreational fishing licence (saves about $37 a year, or roughly $97 over three years)
Just carry your card when you fish - there is nothing to apply for.
Timing: No deadline.
Official page · last checked 2026-07-30
17.5% off your electricity usage and supply charges, all year — the discount is a percentage, not a fixed amount, so we cannot put a dollar figure in your total
Register your card with your electricity retailer once.
Timing: If you switch retailers the concession does NOT follow you — re-register, and backdating is capped at 12 months.
Official page · last checked 2026-07-29
The cost of 1,880 kWh of electricity a year free (470 kWh a quarter), at your retailer's general domestic tariff
Ask your electricity retailer for a Medical Confirmation Form and have any doctor or nurse who can confirm you use the machine sign it.
Timing: Can be backdated up to 12 months (or your card start date), so apply as soon as the machine is installed.
Official page · last checked 2026-07-30
The cost of 168 kilolitres of water a year free (42 kL a quarter) for haemodialysis users
Get a Life Support Concession (water) form from your water corporation or the Concessions Information Line (1800 658 521) and have a doctor confirm the machine.
Timing: Can be backdated up to 12 months (or your card start date), so apply as soon as the machine is installed.
Official page · last checked 2026-07-30
17.5% off your electricity usage and service costs from 1 November to 30 April, on top of the Annual Electricity Concession
Ask your electricity retailer or the Concessions Information Line (1800 658 521) for a Medical Cooling application form and have your doctor complete and sign it.
Timing: Covers 1 November to 30 April each year; can be backdated up to 12 months (or your card start date).
Official page · last checked 2026-07-30
A once-in-a-lifetime stamp duty exemption on a home up to $600,000, or a partial concession from $600,001 to $750,000 - often a five-figure saving
Claim it through the digital duties form when you buy, or ask the State Revenue Office (13 21 61) for a paper application.
Timing: No deadline, but you can only ever use it once, and you must move in within 12 months of settlement and live there for 12 straight months.
Official page · last checked 2026-07-30
50% off the TAC charge in your registration bill (usually a few hundred dollars a year)
Ask VicRoads to apply the TAC charge concession to your registration, using your Pensioner Concession Card or DVA Gold Card number.
Timing: No annual deadline, but it does not backdate far — sort it before your next registration renewal.
Official page · last checked 2026-07-30
Pays the full cost of connecting your home to mains water and sewerage when you have been ordered to connect
Wait for your water corporation to send you an application - they issue one automatically when they serve a concession-card holder with a compulsory notice to connect.
Timing: No fixed deadline, but the grant can only be claimed once in your lifetime, so use it for the connection you have actually been ordered to make.
Official page · last checked 2026-07-21
17.5% off your gas usage and service costs across the winter window. The first $62.40 of the bill is not discounted, and usage above $2,598.58 needs a separate Excess Gas Concession — so what it is worth depends entirely on your own bill.
Register your card with your gas retailer.
Timing: Window runs 1 May – 31 Oct each year; switching retailers breaks it — re-register.
Official page · last checked 2026-08-17
Free or heavily subsidised hearing assessments and hearing aids/devices (money saved, not cash)
If you hold a Pensioner Concession Card (or are the spouse of one), or a DVA card, you can register for the Hearing Services Program and get subsidised hearing checks and aids — many pensioners get hearing aids fully covered.
Timing: No fixed deadline, but you have to register and choose a provider to start — nothing happens automatically.
Handled by: Hearing Services Program (Department of Health, Disability and Ageing) — online: the voucher scheme eligibility checker — 'If you are eligible, you will be directed to a page to complete your application'; then choose an approved provider
Official page · last checked 2026-08-21
$203.00 a year for each piece of eligible medical equipment, and for medically-needed heating or cooling
If you hold a Commonwealth concession card and pay to run essential medical equipment (or heating/cooling for a medical need) at home, claim $203 a year toward the energy cost — for each piece of equipment.
Timing: Claim once — you don't need to claim again for the same equipment. Re-claim only if you get another eligible machine or you move address.
Handled by: Services Australia (Centrelink) — myGov → Centrelink online claim; else paper form, the Disability and carers line, or a service centre
Official page · last checked 2026-07-28
This page is a general list. The 2-minute check narrows it to your household — and tells you which deadlines are close.