Eligible South Australians on low or fixed incomes can apply for household concessions to help with the cost of energy bills for their principal place of residence.
You could also receive:
- SA Concessions Energy Discount Offer if you already receive the energy concession
- Energy Bill Relief rebate from 1 July 2023 if you are in an eligible household or run a small business.
If you live in a residential park, you could be eligible for a combined concession for your energy, water and sewerage - Residential Park Concessions.
Apply for household energy concessions
To apply you'll need:
- your Centrelink customer reference number (CRN) or DVA file number
- information from your most recent electricity bill, including:
- retailer name
- account number
- National Metering Identifier (NMI) number
- billing dates.
You can also use the form to update your details - eg address or bank details.
One application covers all household concessions.
What happens next
How your concession is paid depends on your living arrangements - how payments are made
Who should apply
You must:
- live at the property
- have an energy account in your name and be listed first on your energy bill
- hold an eligible concession card or receive an eligible Centrelink payment
- not be living with anyone who has an income of more than $3,000 per year, unless they either:
- get an allowance from Centrelink or the Department of Veterans' Affairs (DVA)
- are your spouse, domestic partner or dependent.
Eligible cards
- Pensioner Concession Card
- DVA 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
- Low Income Health Care Card
- Commonwealth Seniors Health Card
Eligible Centrelink payments
- JobSeeker Payment
- Youth Allowance
- Partner Allowance
- Parenting Payment
- Special Benefit
- Community Development Program (CDP)
- ABSTUDY
- Austudy
- Farm Household Allowance (FHA)
- War widow pension under legislation of the United Kingdom or New Zealand.
Asylum seekers
If you are a verified asylum seeker and your principal place of residence is in South Australia, you can apply for an energy concession through your Status Resolution Support Service (SRSS) if you:
- are receiving case management and/or support from an organisation contracted by the Department of Home Affairs to provide services under the SRSS program
- meet low income requirements
- hold an energy account in your name for your principal place of residence
- are not living with anyone who earns more than $3,000 per year.
How to apply
Contact your SRSS provider to apply.
Concession amount
The concession is calculated as a flat rate per day and is indexed each financial year.
For 2022-23, you could receive up to $241.63 a year to cover energy payments, including fuels used to generate energy (eg LPG bottled gas and petrol).
From 1 July 2023, the maximum yearly concession will be $263.15.
How payments are made
Home owners
Your concession will be applied directly to your electricity bill.
Housing SA tenants
Your concession will be applied to your utility bill.
Private tenants
Your concession will be applied directly to your electricity bill.
If you live in a residential park
You will receive a quarterly combined payment directly into your bank account for all eligible concessions.
If you live in a retirement village
Depending on the arrangements you have with your retirement village operator, concessions will be:
- received as a quarterly payment directly into your bank account
- if you receive an electricity bill in your name from a retailer, your concession will be applied to this bill.
If you don't get a bill from an energy retailer (eg you generate your own energy)
Your concession will be paid directly into your bank account.
Changing retailers
When changing energy retailers, your name must:
- be listed as an account holder on your electricity bill
- match your Centrelink or DVA card.
Use the online household concessions form or phone the ConcessionsSA Hotline on 1800 307 758 to update your details, once you have received your first electricity bill from your new energy retailer.
Note: energy retailers in South Australia cannot transfer your concession, you must contact ConcessionsSA.
Changing address
If you move house, you must:
- update your address details with Centrelink or DVA
- wait until you have received your first electricity bill at your new address before contacting ConcessionsSA
- use the online household concessions form or phone the ConcessionsSA Hotline on 1800 307 758 to update your details with ConcessionsSA.
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.
Related information
On this site
- Cost of living concession
- Electricity bill relief
- Medical heating and cooling concession
- SA Concessions Energy Discount Offer
