Terms and Conditions - WA Seniors Card Membership

Eligibility

To be eligible for a WA Seniors Card, you must meet the following requirements:

1. Age Requirement

  • You must be aged 65 years or above.

2. Australian Citizenship or Australian Permanent Resident

  • You must be a Citizen of Australia or be a Permanent Resident of Australia.
  • New Zealand Citizens are considered to be an Australian Permanent Resident for the purpose of the WA Seniors Card program.
  • If you hold a bridging visa and have applied for a Subclass 804 Aged Parent Visa or a Subclass 864 Contributory Aged Parent Visa, you may apply for a WA Seniors Card if 18 months have passed since your bridging visa was granted. You will need to provide us with a visa grant notice of your bridging visa and complete a statutory declaration by contacting us.
  • If you hold a Subclass 410 Retirement Visa, a Subclass 892 State or Territory Sponsored Business Owner Visa, or a Subclass 893 State or Territory Sponsored Investor Visa, you may apply for a WA Seniors Card. You will need to provide us with a visa grant notice of your visa and complete a statutory declaration by contacting us .
  • All other temporary immigration visa holders are not eligible to apply for a WA Seniors Card.

3. Reside in Western Australia

  • You must reside in Western Australia or be present in Western Australia for more than half the year and cannot have permanent residence outside Western Australia.
  • If you have no fixed address or if you are temporarily residing with someone else, please contact the WA Seniors Card Centre for information on how you may apply for a WA Seniors Card.

4. Working Hours

  • You must work 25 hours or less per week in paid employment.
  • If you are employed on a casual or seasonal basis, the working hours over the last 12-month period are used to determine your average working hours.
  • Paid leave (e.g. annual leave, long service leave and sick leave) is included when calculating your working hours per week. For example, if you work part-time for 20 hours per week and receive four weeks of paid annual leave, your working hours are 20 hours per week.
  • If you are retiring from full-time work, you are considered eligible the day after your retirement if you are no longer working.
  • If you are retiring from full-time work and reducing to part-time work, then your current part-time hours are used to determine whether you meet eligibility.

Identification

  1. When applying for a WA Seniors Card, you must provide 100 points of identification that provides:
    • Photo identification
    • Date of birth
    • Proof of Australian or New Zealand citizenship or Australian permanent residency
    • Proof of your current WA residential address
  2. If your name differs from your identification documents, the following documents can be provided: a Marriage Certificate, Divorce Papers, and a Change of Name Certificate from the Registrar General. These documents do not contribute to the 100-point identification score and only verify your name change.
  3. If you are unable to provide us a copy of either an Australian or New Zealand Birth Certificate, Australian or New Zealand Passport, or Australian or New Zealand Citizenship certificate, you will need to demonstrate that you satisfy the permanent residency requirement. To fulfil this requirement, you must provide us with a copy of your visa grant notification letter issued by the Department of Immigration and Border Protection that indicates you have a permanent visa.
  4. If you apply by post, you must provide a copy of each identification document. The photocopy submitted must be legible to read. The WA Seniors Card Centre may contact you to resend your documents if they are not legible.
  5. A WA Seniors Card will only be issued in your name, as shown on your identification documents.
  6. If you are applying for a replacement card, the replacement card will be sent to your current address. If your address has changed, you will need to update the details.
  7. The following identification documents are accepted ( note: you must provide either a primary or secondary document that includes your photograph):

    Category A

    You must provide either; ONE Category A document OR at least ONE Category B document that includes a photograph.

    Primary document Points
    Australian Certificate or Birth Card
    (extracts are not acceptable)     		70
    Australian Passport
    (current or expired within the last two years but not cancelled)     		70
    Australian Citizenship Certificate 70
    International Passport
    (current, not expired or cancelled)     		70

    Category B

    Your initial document from this group will be awarded 40 points, any additional documents are awarded 25.

    Primary document Points
    WA Drivers Licence 40
    Tertiary Education Institution Identity 40
    Department of Veteran Affairs Card 40
    Centrelink Card 40
    Photo Card Issued by the Department of Transport 40
    Working With Children Card 40

    Category C

    All documents in this group attract 25 points. Only one card from each institution may be counted.

    Primary document Points
    Medicare Card 25
    Council Rates Notice 25
    Utility Bills
    (e.g. Electricity, Water, Gas)     		25
    Motor Vehicle Registration 25
    Debit or Credit Card 25

Privacy policy

  1. The Department of Communities reserves the right to share your personal information collected in this form with other State and Commonwealth Government agencies. Non identifying information may be shared with our business partners to undertake analytics and to provide ongoing benefits to our members.

Other conditions

  1. You must not allow any other person to use your WA Seniors Card. If you do both you and they maybe committing a criminal offence. You must acknowledge that the benefits provided by the WA Seniors Card may change from time to time, and certain benefits may be cancelled altogether. The Department of Communities reserves the right to amend the Terms and Conditions at any time.

Business conditions

  1. The discounts on this website apply only to WA Seniors Card members. They do not apply to family members or friends.
  2. Some participating businesses have applied conditions and exclusions to their discount offer. Always contact the participating business to ensure you are aware of conditions and exclusions that may apply prior to purchasing.
  3. Businesses are not obliged to honour discounts after the transaction has occurred; therefore, you must advise that you are a WA Seniors Card member before the sale of goods or services.
  4. Unless otherwise stated, the discount offer cannot be used in conjunction with any other offer.
  5. The discounts on this website are provided for information purposes only. The Government of Western Australia does not endorse or make any guarantee as to the suitability or quality of the goods and services offered by the businesses listed. Before purchasing from a listed business, you should decide whether the product or service is of good quality and whether it is suitable for your needs.
  6. The Government of Western Australia does not accept any liability for any cost, damage, expense or loss, howsoever arising (including as a result of negligence) from the use of or reliance upon the information contained within this website.
  7. Whilst every effort has been made to ensure that the information on the website is accurate and up-to-date at the time of publication, the Government of Western Australia does not accept any responsibility for any errors, omissions, inaccuracies or changes in policy or products of businesses listed. Accordingly, users of this guide must independently verify any information contained in this directory and, if necessary, obtain their own professional advice.

Terms and Conditions - Cost of Living Rebate

Overview

The Cost of Living Rebate is an annual payment provided by the Western Australian Government to support eligible WA Seniors Card members with some of their everyday expenses.

1. Eligibility

To qualify for the Cost of Living Rebate, applicants must have a valid WA Seniors Card Membership.

2. Rebate Amount

The rebate amount may vary annually and is determined each year by the Western Australian Government. The amount payable will differ depending on whether the member is single or has a spouse, whereby a couple’s rebate amount will be provided. It is the responsibility of the member to notify the WA Seniors Card Centre if there are any changes to your relationship status, as this may impact your rebate amount.

3. Payment Process

Payments can only be made via Electronic Funds Transfer (EFT) to an authorised deposit-taking institution (ADI) operating in Australia, as listed on the Australian Prudential Regulation Authority (APRA) register. This includes Australian-owned banks, foreign bank subsidiaries incorporated in Australia, and branches of foreign banks authorised by APRA.

Payments must be made to an APRA-authorised ADI to ensure funds are transferred securely to a regulated Australian banking entity.

The nominated account must be held in Australia with an APRA-authorised ADI.

Accounts held outside Australia are not eligible.

Payments can only be made to a personal bank account in your name, unless the following applies:

  • A partner’s personal bank account, if both partners hold a current WA Seniors Card and their membership accounts are linked on the WA Seniors Card register. By nominating your partner’s bank account, you consent to the rebate being paid directly to them. It is your responsibility to ensure you can access the funds once payment is made.
  • Power of Attorney bank account (must provide evidence);
  • Enduring Power of Attorney bank account (must provide evidence);
  • State Administrative Tribunal-appointed Guardian bank account (must provide evidence).

Payments cannot be made to:

  • Business accounts;
  • Religious or charity organisation accounts;
  • Trust accounts
  • Accounts in a former name (e.g. maiden name). Please contact your bank to update your details prior to applying or if required

4. Application Requirements and Deadlines

New applications must be received by the WA Seniors Card Centre by 31 May for payment to be issued in that year.

Please note retrospective payments cannot be made and applications received after 31 May will only be processed for the following years payment.

5. Update to Details and Changes to Circumstances

You are responsible for notifying the WA Seniors Card Centre of any changes that may affect your eligibility by 31 May each year.

This includes changes such as:

  • Change of bank account details
  • Change of residential address or residency status
  • Change in employment hours
  • Passing of the cardholder or partner
  • Separation/divorce/change of spouse

Registered members who fail to update their details by 31 May may result in delay receiving payment or cancellation of the rebate. No retrospective payments will be made in these circumstances and members will need to reapply.

6. Overpayments

You must notify the WA Seniors Card Centre as soon as practicable if an overpayment has been made to you, whereby you are no longer eligible to receive the Cost of Living Rebate, due to changes in your circumstance.

7. Deceased Members

The Executor of the deceased member's estate should notify the WA Seniors Card Centre as soon as practicable.

8. Privacy and Data Protection

Information provided with your application will only be used for verifying eligibility for the Cost of Living Rebate and processing payments.

Any personal information you share with the WA Seniors Card Centre will be handled in accordance with the Privacy and Responsible Information Sharing Act 2024 information privacy principles, and WA State Government data security protocols. More information on the Department of Communities Privacy Policy can be found here.

9. Improper Use and Conduct

Providing false or misleading information to receive the Cost of Living Rebate where you are not eligible may constitute as a criminal offense. You may face serious consequences, including:

  • Cancellation of the rebate
  • Repayment of any funds received
  • Suspension of your WA Seniors Card membership
  • Referral to law enforcement agencies for further investigation

10. Payment Status

Registered WA Seniors Card members can check the status of their rebate payment by registering for online access to their account and checking their payment.

11. Income Tax

The Cost of Living Rebate payment is made by the Government of Western Australia and is not considered assessable income by the Australian Tax Office under Section 6-5 of the Income Tax Assessment Act 1997 (Commonwealth).

12. Income Test for Pension

As per the Social Security Act 1991 (Commonwealth) - Volume 1 Chapter 1 Section 8 (ZAA) - the Cost of Living Rebate is considered exempt from the income test applied by Services Australia (Centrelink).