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Health Care Cards

A Health Care Card entitles you to cheaper medicines and some other concessions.

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Eligibility

You may be eligible for a Health Care Card if you are below age pension age and you get any of these payments:

Foster carers

You may be eligible for a Health Care Card if you are a foster carer, or caring for another person’s child, including a relative’s child— for example, if you are a grandparent or an aunt. The card is issued in the name of the child in your care.

Ex Carer Allowance child

You may be eligible for a Health Care Card if you used to have a Carer Allowance (caring for a child under 16 years) Health Care Card.

More information

Shared care

You may be eligible for a Health Care Card if you share care of a child for at least 14% of the time (2 or more nights per fortnight). The card is issued in the name of the child in your care.

Low income earner

You may be eligible for a Low Income Health Care Card if you are a low income earner—for example, if you are studying or training or a foster carer, and if you meet the Low Income Health Care Card income test.

Returning to work

You may be able to keep your Health Care Card for 6 months after you return to work if you have participated in a Community Development Employment Project (CDEP), or if you have received one of these payments for more than 12 months:

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Residence requirements

You need to be living in Australia and be:

  • in Australia, and
  • an Australian resident, or
  • the holder of a special category visa—that is a New Zealand citizen.

You also need to meet a 104-week newly arrived resident’s waiting period or be exempt from this requirement, for example if you are a refugee or the partner of an Australian citizen.

Benefits

A Health Care Card entitles you to cheaper medicines under the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme (PBS) and various concessions from the Australian Government—these could include:

  • bulk billing for doctor’s appointments (this is your doctor’s decision)
  • more refunds for medical expenses through the Medicare Safety Net
  • assistance with hearing services through the Office of Hearing Services
  • discounted mail redirection through Australia Post.

Note: You may get some of these Australian Government concessions for a dependent child.

State and Territory Governments and local councils may offer concessions, such as:

  • energy and electricity bills
  • health care costs including ambulance, dental and eye care
  • public transport costs
  • water rates.

Please check with your state and Territory Government regarding which concessions are available to Health Care Card holders. Concessional entitlements may vary between States and Territories.

Note: When using services covered by Medicare, you will need to present your Medicare card.

More information

Other websites

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Claiming

If you receive an eligible payment

If you are receiving an eligible payment from Centrelink, you automatically receive the card. We will automatically send you a new card when it is due for renewal, if you are still eligible.

If you need to lodge a claim

You need to lodge a claim if you:

You should submit your claim for a Health Care Card as soon as possible.

You can also register an intent to claim for a Health Care Card. This means you will get your card from the earliest possible date.

Claiming with forms

For a claim form you can:

Documentation

When lodging your claim we will ask you for information to assess your entitlement. This includes your and your partner's income and assets and tax file numbers.

Once you submit your claim you will need to provide proof of identity. We will also tell you if there are other verification documents and forms you need to provide. You will need to submit these within 14 days. The sooner we receive your documents, the sooner we can process your claim.

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Claim outcome

We will send you a letter advising if your claim has been successful.

If you claim is successful, we will send your Health Care Card in the mail.

If you disagree with a decision we make

You always have the right to appeal any decision made by Centrelink.

If you leave Australia

If you leave Australia temporarily, your card will remain current for up to 13 weeks. If you leave Australia permanently, your card will be cancelled on departure.

Note: To make sure you get the right entitlements, contact us if you plan to leave Australia and also when you return.

Change of circumstances

You need to tell is if your circumstances change. For instance, if your income goes up, you start or return to work, or you change address.

If you stop receiving your payment from Centrelink, we will automatically cancel your Health Care Card.

If you return to work, you need to ask us if you can keep your Health Care Card for a short time.

Find out more

On the Department of Families, Housing, Community Services and Indigenous Affairs website

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