Eligible South Australians on low or fixed incomes can receive help with water and sewerage rates.
To apply you'll need:
- your Centrelink customer reference number (CRN), DVA file number or a copy of your most recent tax assessment
- your SA Water account number (SA Water customers only).
You can also use the form to update your details - eg address or bank details.
One application covers all household concessions.
Who should apply
You must:
- own or rent your principal place of residence
- pay for water supply and/or all water usage
- hold an eligible card, receive an eligible Centrelink payment or meet low income provisions.
Eligible cards
- Pensioner Concession Card
- Gold Card from the Department of Veterans' Affairs (DVA)
- 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
Eligible Centrelink payments
- JobSeeker Payment
- Widow Allowance
- Youth Allowance
- Partner Allowance
- Parenting Payment
- Special Benefit
- Community Development Program (CDP)
- New Enterprise Incentive Scheme (NEIS)
- ABSTUDY
- Austudy
- Farm Household Allowance (FHA)
- War widow pension under legislation of the United Kingdom or New Zealand.
Low income provisions
You must demonstrate that you and your spouse or domestic partner meet low-income provisions.
Residential parks
If you live in a residential park, you may be eligible for a combined concession for your water, sewerage and energy.
What happens next
Applicants with SA Water
Your water or sewerage account will be automatically credited with the concession amount.
Applicants not with SA Water
Your concession is paid directly into your bank account by electronic funds transfer (EFT).
Council Community Wastewater Management Systems (CWMS) charges
Your sewerage concession is paid directly into your bank account by electronic funds transfer (EFT).
Concession amount
Concession amounts are indexed each financial year.
Water
The water concession is calculated as up to 30% of your total water bill for a financial year, subject to the minimum and maximum amounts in the table below.
Amount (2022/23) | |
|---|---|
| Minimum for homeowner-occupier | $207.60 |
| Maximum for homeowner-occupier | $331.10 |
| Minimum for tenants who pay for all water usage and supply charges | $207.60 |
| Maximum for tenants who pay for all water usage and supply charges | $331.10 |
| Minimum for tenants who pay for all water usage only | $134.70 |
| Maximum for tenants who pay for all water usage only | $258.10 |
Sewerage
The maximum sewerage rate remission is $123.50 per annum.
Note: tenants are not eligible for a concession on sewerage rates.
Tenants
Information about water and other charges should be included in your lease agreement. You may be separately billed for water supply and/or usage even if nothing is written in your agreement.
You may be charged quarterly or as part of your weekly rent.
Check your agreement or separate water bill for charges for:
- supply – a set quarterly amount
- usage – payment per kilolitre (kL) used
- excess or partial usage – charges for water above a set kL limit.
Top up payments
Top up payments are an additional annual payment made when water bills for a full financial year exceed certain amounts.
To be eligible, your bill/s for the 2021/2022 financial year must be more than the amount shown below.
| Amount | |
|---|---|
| Tenants who pay only for all water usage | over $449.00 |
| Tenants who pay for all water usage and supply charges | over $692.00 |
| Homeowners | over $692.00 |
Top ups are automatically applied to eligible SA Water customers.
Homeowners with council or privately supplied water and private tenants must provide bill/s for the whole financial year to receive a top up payment. Bill/s must clearly show amounts charged for water.
Phone the ConcessionsSA Hotline to find out if you are eligible for a top up payment.
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.
