Money
Government travel concessions, and which ones are still open
We wrote this because we kept finding the same thing: a scheme that looks live on a government website, and is not. Every entry below was checked against the government’s own page, and anything that has closed says so.
Checked 1 October 2026. Next check 1 January 2027 — schemes change on the quarter, and especially on 1 July.
The big three
The three big ones right now
If you are planning travel in the next few months, these three change the sums more than anything else on this page. Two of them have end dates inside the next year.
Tasmania — all public transport is free
OpenWho: Everyone. No card, no concession test, no application.
Every Metro Tasmania, Tassielink, Kinetic, Manions, Calows and Area Connect service, the Derwent ferries, and government-contracted school buses that normally charge. SkyBus and the Bruny Island ferry are not included — which is exactly where a traveller assumes it applies.
Free until 30 June 2027. It was due to finish in June 2026 and was extended a year. the official page →
Victoria — half-price public transport for everyone
Has an end dateWho: Everyone, no card needed.
Full fare daily maximum $5.70 instead of $11.40; concession daily maximum $2.85. It covers metropolitan trains, trams and buses and V/Line regional trains and coaches. SkyBus, ferries and non-subsidised regional buses are out.
Running now, ends 1 January 2027. April and May 2026 were free; half price began 1 June 2026. the official page →
Careful. Every Victorian fare figure on this page is wrong from 1 January 2027, when the full-fare daily maximum goes back to about $11.40.
Queensland — 50 cents a trip, permanently
OpenWho: Everyone.
Fifty cents per trip, any distance, any zone. Queensland Rail City trains, buses, Brisbane City ferries, the Southern Moreton Bay Island ferry, the Gold Coast tram and fifteen regional urban bus networks including Cairns, Townsville, Toowoomba and the Sunshine Coast. Airtrain is not included, so the airport run is full price.
Made permanent in November 2024. No end date. the official page →
New South Wales
New South Wales
Fares were frozen at 2025 levels for the whole of 2026–27 in the state budget, so the July 2025 table is still what applies.
Gold Opal — $2.50 a day
OpenWho: Seniors, pensioners, asylum seekers and New South Wales (NSW) war widows and widowers.
Unlimited travel across the whole Opal network for $2.50 a day, any day of the week. Since April 2026 you can claim the senior and concession fare on a linked credit or debit card rather than carrying a physical Gold Opal, though that is rolling out gradually.
Open. Apply through Transport for NSW. the official page →
Careful. Transport for NSW publishes no Gold Opal weekly figure on its own fares page at all - only the $2.50 daily cap, which it states plainly. Announcements in 2026 gave $17.50 and an earlier one $25, and neither is on the page, so we are not repeating either as fact.
Opal daily and weekly caps — everyone
OpenWho: Any Opal user.
Adult $19.30 Monday to Thursday, $9.65 Friday to Sunday and public holidays, $50.00 a week. Child, youth and concession halve those to $9.65, $4.80 and $25.00. The weekend cap is the reason a Friday-to-Sunday trip on public transport is so much cheaper than it looks.
Frozen at 2025 prices through 2026–27. the official page →
Country Pensioner Excursion ticket
OpenWho: Pensioner Concession Card holders.
$2.50 for an economy trip anywhere in regional NSW, up to twelve hours, within the state. First class costs more but is discounted.
Open. the official page →
Pensioner Travel Vouchers — four free regional trips a year
OpenWho: NSW or ACT Pensioner Concession Card, or a NSW war widow or widower transport concession card.
Four vouchers per calendar year — two return journeys or four one-way — free in economy on NSW TrainLink Regional. A first class upgrade costs 15 per cent of the adult peak fare. Interstate legs are charged at half. You must carry the card when you travel.
Open. Claim through Service NSW. the official page →
Regional child and family fares
OpenWho: Anyone travelling with children.
Children travel for $1 on NSW TrainLink Regional with a paying adult, and under-3s are free. There is also a Discovery Pass for unlimited regional travel over 14 days, 1, 3 or 6 months, which is worth doing the arithmetic on for a long trip.
Open. the official page →
Regional Seniors Travel Card — this one is finished
ClosedWho: It was for regional seniors and pensioners.
The $250 card ran as a four-year trial and was not funded past it. It ended in November 2023.
Closed, November 2023. the official page →
Careful. The Service NSW page for it still shows application-style content, down to a live-looking “Applications close on 30 November 2022”. It looks live. It is not, and this is the single most misleading travel page in the country right now.
Victoria
Victoria, beyond the half-price period
These are standing entitlements rather than temporary discounts, so they survive 1 January 2027.
Under-18s travel free
OpenWho: Ages 5 to 17 inclusive, with a free Youth myki. Under-5s free with no card at all.
Free travel across the network. This is permanent, not a temporary youth fare cut, and it is far more generous than any other state.
Permanent, no end date. Register for a Youth myki. the official page →
The regional fare cap
OpenWho: Everyone.
V/Line regional travel is capped at the metropolitan daily fare, so a day anywhere in regional Victoria costs the same as a day in Melbourne. That is $5.70 under the half-price period and about $11.40 after it.
Permanent since 31 March 2023. the official page →
Seniors travel free every weekend
OpenWho: Victorian Seniors Card holders.
Free travel all weekend, every weekend. On weekdays a concession myki is half fare. There are also free travel vouchers — two a year for metropolitan residents, four for regional residents — for off-peak travel, for Pensioner Concession Card, DVA, Victorian Seniors Card and Victorian Carer Card holders.
Open. Register once for the vouchers. the official page →
Western Australia
Western Australia
WA cut fares substantially on 1 January 2026, and the change is permanent rather than a relief measure with an end date.
Go Anywhere and DayRider fares
OpenWho: Everyone; concession rates for card holders.
A Go Anywhere fare gives three hours across the entire Transperth network: $3.50 cash, $3.15 with a SmartRider, $2.80 with autoload. Concession is $1.28 with autoload. A DayRider is $7.00, or $3.20 concession, and a FamilyRider covers up to seven people for $7.00 cash.
Current since 1 January 2026. the official page →
Free travel every Sunday
OpenWho: Everyone with a SmartRider or contactless card.
The whole Transperth network is free on Sundays, first service to last. Regional Transwa fares were also permanently halved — about $100 off a Kalgoorlie to Perth return.
Open, no end date. the official page →
Regional Airfare Zone Cap
OpenWho: Residents living outside Perth and Peel. Personal travel only, and the fare must be a return starting and finishing at the same regional destination.
Capped one-way fares: Zone 1 (under 1,000 km from Perth) $199 low demand, $265 high; Zone 2 (over 1,000 km) $299 and $385. Rex, Nexus, Qantas, Virgin, Skippers and Airnorth participate; some require free frequent flyer membership.
Funded to June 2031. The demand-based structure started 1 July 2026. the official page →
Pensioner Annual Free Trip Scheme
OpenWho: People who have lived continuously north of the 26th parallel for two years or more and hold a Centrelink or DVA Pensioner Concession Card.
One free return air or coach trip to Perth and the South West a year, or two one-way. A DVA Gold Card gets two returns. A Commonwealth Seniors Health Card or a WA Seniors Card does not qualify.
Open. Apply on form ODT126 at least a month before you travel. the official page →
SA, NT and ACT
South Australia, the Northern Territory and the ACT
South Australia — seniors travel free, all day
OpenWho: South Australian Seniors Card holders.
Free travel on every Adelaide Metro bus, train and tram, all day, every day, with no time restriction — you still tap on. Interstate Seniors Card holders get concession fares rather than free travel. Health Care Card, Pensioner Concession Card, DVA Gold Card holders and full-time students get half fare; under-5s are free.
Free travel since 1 July 2022. Fares were frozen in May 2026. the official page →
Careful. Adelaide Metro blocks automated access, so we could not read the current fare table or the length of the freeze. Ring 1300 311 108 before budgeting on a dollar figure.
Northern Territory — buses are free
Check firstWho: Everyone.
All public bus services in greater Darwin, including Casuarina, Palmerston and the rural area, and in Alice Springs.
Free since 1 July 2025. the official page →
Careful. The most recent government page we could reach is dated July 2025 and we could not confirm a 2026–27 re-commitment. Treat it as free but check before you rely on it.
ACT — free travel for seniors, with an age line worth reading
OpenWho: ACT seniors, and interstate Seniors Card holders.
ACT seniors aged 60 to 69 travel free off-peak; 70 and over travel free at all times. An interstate Seniors Card holder aged 70 or over gets free off-peak only, not all day — a distinction that catches visitors out. Off-peak is 9am to 4:30pm and after 6pm on weekdays, and all day at weekends and on public holidays.
Current fares from 10 January 2026. the official page →
ACT fares and caps
OpenWho: Everyone.
Peak single $3.41, off-peak $2.70; concession $1.71 and $0.95. Daily caps are $10.16 on weekdays and $6.22 at weekends. After 40 paid trips in a month the rest are free — 30 for tertiary students since 1 July 2026.
Current. the official page →
Federal
Federal — what the Commonwealth cards actually do
This is the part most people get wrong. Read it before you assume a card covers you.
Pensioner Concession Card and Commonwealth Seniors Health Card
OpenWho: Age and disability pensioners, and self-funded retirees within the income test.
Neither card carries any federal transport benefit. They are keys that unlock state concessions, and what each state gives differs a good deal — the Seniors Health Card is usually narrower than the Pensioner Concession Card. Since January 2020 Services Australia no longer posts travel vouchers with the card in Western Australia or Victoria.
Ongoing. the official page →
Veterans’ cards
OpenWho: DVA Gold, White and Orange card holders, and Veteran Card holders.
The Department of Veterans’ Affairs says plainly that transport concessions are set by state, territory and local governments. DVA’s own travel payments cover getting to medical appointments, not leisure travel.
Ongoing. the official page →
Queensland Local Fare Scheme
OpenWho: Residents of 28 remote communities in the Torres Strait, Cape York and the Gulf of Carpentaria, with twelve months’ residency — three years at Weipa.
Up to $200 off each one-way flight, with a minimum $99 plus booking fees payable, and a maximum of 24 subsidised one-way fares a financial year. Personal travel only.
Open until 30 June 2028. Apply through your local council for a letter of eligibility. the official page →
Park passes
National park passes, and what they do not cover
Almost every annual pass covers vehicle entry only. Camping, tours, caves and boat landing fees are charged separately, everywhere. That is the most common misunderstanding here.
New South Wales — NPWS annual passes
OpenWho: Anyone; discounted for seniors and for concession card holders.
All Parks including Kosciuszko $190, or $152 for seniors. Multi Park, which excludes Kosciuszko, $65 or $50. Country Parks $45 or $35. A single country park $22 or $17. Two-year versions cost roughly 1.75 times the one-year. About 45 parks charge entry.
Open. The seniors discount is applied through Service NSW, and there is a separate concession pass. the official page →
Victoria — no entry fee, and half-price camping
Has an end dateWho: Everyone.
Most Victorian parks charge no vehicle entry fee at all. Better than that, camping is half price across every bookable Parks Victoria campground until July 2027, which replaced the free-camping programme that finished in June 2025.
Half-price camping runs to July 2027. the official page →
Western Australia — DBCA park passes
OpenWho: Anyone; concession rates for Australian concession card holders.
Day entry $17 a vehicle, or $10 concession. An All Parks annual pass is $130, or $80 concession. There is a $30 local park pass and holiday passes from $30. A day entry fee counts towards a pass upgrade if you do it within seven days at a Parks and Wildlife office — worth knowing on your first day.
Open. the official page →
Tasmania — parks are separate from the free buses
OpenWho: Anyone; 20 per cent off for concession card and Seniors Card holders.
A 24-hour vehicle pass is $49.15, a two-month Holiday Pass $98.35, and an annual All Parks pass $104.75 or $83.85 concession. Cradle Mountain has its own day pass including the shuttle: $30.70 adult, $12.30 child, $73.75 family. A Companion Card holder’s carer gets a free identical pass.
Concession realigned to 20 per cent on 1 December 2025. the official page →
Queensland — camping is per person, not per site
OpenWho: Anyone. Under-5s free.
$7.75 per person per night from 1 July 2026, or $31.00 a night for a family of one or two adults plus children under 18, up to eight people. There is no general seniors or pensioner concession on camping. The permit must be booked and paid before you arrive.
Current from 1 July 2026. the official page →
Northern Territory — free if you live there
OpenWho: Everyone; NT residents do not need a pass at all.
The NT Parks Visitor Pass covers 43 territory parks and reserves: $10 for a day, $60 for a year for an adult, with family and concession rates. Camping and walking fees are separate and it must be bought online before you visit.
Open. the official page →
Kakadu and Uluru — and the Territory resident rule
OpenWho: Anyone. Northern Territory residents get in much cheaper, or free.
Kakadu passes last seven days and are seasonal: adult $25 in the tropical summer, $40 in the dry, child $12.50 or $20, family $65 or $100, concession $19 or $30 — and free for NT residents. Uluru-Kata Tjuta is $38 for three days or $50 for a year, free for under-18s, and NT-registered vehicles can buy a $109 annual pass covering everyone in the car. And one to use before it goes: Kakadu is charging the lower tropical-summer rate for visits up to 31 October 2026, so a dry-season adult pass is $25 rather than $40.
Open. the official page →
Careful. Uluru publishes no general pensioner or seniors concession that we could find.
Closed schemes
Closed, whatever the page says
These no longer exist. Several still have live-looking pages, which is the reason this section is here at all.
- NSW Regional Seniors Travel Card — Ended November 2023 after a four-year trial. The Service NSW page still shows application-style content.
- Dine & Discover NSW — Vouchers expired in 2022. Archived under COVID-19 measures.
- Victorian Regional Travel Voucher Scheme — Allocations exhausted; the last round closed in 2021.
- Victorian free camping — Ended 30 June 2025 and was replaced by half-price camping, which runs to July 2027.
- ACT reduced fare caps — The temporary 20-trip caps expired 30 June 2026. Caps are back to 40 trips a month.
Checked September 2026 Three things most likely to catch you out.
Victoria’s half-price fares end on 1 January 2027 and every Victorian figure here is wrong from that day.
Queensland’s 50-cent fare does not cover Airtrain, and Tasmania’s free travel does not cover SkyBus or the Bruny Island ferry — the airport and ferry runs are exactly where people assume the deal applies.
And the NSW Regional Seniors Travel Card has been dead since November 2023 despite what its page looks like.
If something here is wrong or has changed, tell us and we will fix it.
Know a concession we have missed, or one here that has ended? We would rather be told than be wrong — tell us about this page. And if there is something you wish this site covered and it does not, tell us that too.