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The Cost of Living Concession replaced the council rate concession to help people on low or fixed incomes with their general living expenses - eg council rates, energy and medical bills.
You don't need to reapply if you received a Cost of Living Concession payment previously and your living and income circumstances have not changed.
This concession is paid between August and December each year by electronic funds transfer (EFT). Tenants are paid at the same time as other customers.
Apply or update your details
You must apply by 31 December to receive the Cost of Living Concession for that financial year.
Use the online form to apply for all household concessions, or to update your details - eg address, energy account, or bank details.
You'll need:
- your Centrelink Customer Reference Number (CRN) or Department of Veterans' Affairs file number
- If you don't have one of these - a copy of your most recent tax assessment.
- information from your most recent electricity and water bills
- your ownership number from your most recent Notice of Emergency Services Levy Assessment (homeowners only).
What happens next
The concession is paid once a year directly into your bank account by electronic funds transfer (EFT).
Who should apply
The concession can only be paid to one person per household.
Assessment is based on your circumstances on 1 July of the relevant financial year.
You must:
- live at the property
- hold an eligible card, receive an eligible Centrelink payment, or meet low income provisions
- tenants must not be living with anyone who earns more than the low income provisions, unless they either:
- get an allowance from Centrelink or the Department of Veterans' Affairs (DVA)
- are your spouse, domestic partner or dependant.
Eligible cards
- Pensioner Concession Card
- Veteran Gold Card:
- Totally and Permanently Incapacitated (TPI)
- Extreme Disablement Adjustment (EDA)
- War Widow
- issued to a person with 80 or more overall impairment points under the Military Rehabilitation and Compensation Act 2004 (Cth)
- Low Income Health Care Card
- Commonwealth Seniors Health Card.
Eligible Centrelink payments
- JobSeeker Payment
- Youth Allowance
- Parenting Payment
- Special Benefit
- Community Development Program (CDP)
- Self-Employment Allowance
- ABSTUDY
- Austudy
- Farm Household Allowance (FHA)
- War widow pension under legislation of the United Kingdom or New Zealand.
Low income provisions
For the 2023-24 financial year, your income from all sources must not be more than the income limits shown below.
| Status | Fortnightly income before tax | Annual income before tax |
|---|---|---|
| Single | $843.10 | $21,920.60 |
| Single with children | $895.20 | $23,275.20 |
| Partnered | $1,562.40 | $40,662.40 |
Concession amount
The concession amount is indexed each financial year.
Information about the 2024-25 concession amount will be available soon.
For the 2023-24 financial year, the amount per eligible household was:
- homeowner-occupiers: $243.90
- homeowner-occupiers who are self-funded retirees with a Commonwealth Seniors Health Card: $122
- tenants: $122.
Payments for the 2024-25 financial year
You don't need to do anything if you received the Cost of Living Concession in your name before or you recently applied. You will be assessed for the 2024-25 payment as at 1 July this year.
Your payment will be made by electronic funds transfer (EFT) if eligible. You must provide your banking details to receive the concession.
Use the online household concessions form if you need to update your bank details, or contact the ConcessionsSA Hotline.
How to identify your Cost of Living Concession payment
The payment description on your bank statement will show 'Concessions COLC'.
For last year's concession, look for $243.90 for homeowners, or $122 for tenants and Commonwealth Seniors Health Card holders.
Contact
Email: concessions@sa.gov.au
Phone: ConcessionsSA Hotline (9:00 am to 5:00 pm, Monday to Friday) - 1800 307 758
Translations: to arrange an onsite or telephone interpreter, or to have a document translated, please call the Interpreting and Translating Centre (ITC) on 1800 280 203.
