Tasmania Pensioner Concessions List: Benefits Beyond Council Rates

Council rates remission gets most of the attention, but the Pensioner Concession Card unlocks a much broader set of discounts across Tasmania. If you hold a PCC, Health Care Card, or endorsed DVA Gold Card and are only claiming the rates remission, you are likely leaving money on the table.

Property and Water Concessions

The two big-ticket property concessions work through separate agencies:

Council rates remission — 30% off your general rates (including waste and stormwater charges), capped at $591 for non-TasWater customers or $401 for TasWater customers in 2026/27. Applied through your local council; the state government reimburses the council. A 20% rebate on the State Fire Commission levy also applies.

TasWater concession — up to $249.43 per year across water and sewerage charges, applied directly to your TasWater bill. This requires a separate application to TasWater; your council remission does not trigger it automatically. TasWater applies the concession pro-rata from the day after they receive your form, and they do not backdate — so every day of delay costs money.

Principal-residence land is generally exempt from Tasmania's land tax under separate provisions in the Land Tax Act 2000, subject to the applicable conditions. This is separate from pensioner rates remission, but it is worth confirming the rules if you have recently changed your primary address.

Energy Concessions

Eligible concession-card holders can receive an annual electricity concession as a daily discount on their bill. Applications go through the customer's electricity retailer.

Check the Tasmanian Government's Concessions and Discounts Guide for current eligibility and values, and contact your electricity retailer with billing questions. The concession sits alongside any federal energy supplement you receive through Centrelink.

Transport Concessions

Eligible concession-card holders can get reduced fares on public buses, the River Derwent Ferry, and Area Connect services. The listed fare discount is 50% off the full fare, with a further 20% discount when using a smartcard such as Greencard or Transportme, where available.

Eligible concession-card holders can receive motor vehicle registration concessions through Building Tasmania. The concession applies to one vehicle of each type registered in the eligible person's name.

Health Concessions

The Pensioner Concession Card itself — issued federally by Services Australia or DVA — provides cheaper Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme medicines and may help you get bulk-billed doctor visits, at the doctor's discretion. It also provides increased Medicare Safety Net benefits once you reach the relevant threshold. These are federal concessions that apply nationally, but they are worth mentioning because some Tasmanian pensioners hold only a Commonwealth Seniors Health Card (CSHC) and assume it provides the same Tasmanian state concessions.

The distinction matters for rates too: a CSHC does not qualify you for the Tasmanian pensioner rates remission or TasWater concession. Only a PCC, HCC, or DVA Gold Card endorsed with TPI or War Widow/er status qualifies for those schemes.

Which Card Unlocks What

Not every concession card opens every door:

Pensioner Concession Card (PCC) and Health Care Card (HCC) — qualify for council rates remission, TasWater concession, fire levy rebate, electricity concession, transport concession, and motor vehicle registration discount, subject to each program's rules.

DVA Gold Card (TPI or War Widow/er endorsed) — qualifies for council rates remission and TasWater concession. Eligibility for other concessions depends on the specific program; a DVA Gold Card is not eligible for Tasmania's annual electricity concession.

Commonwealth Seniors Health Card (CSHC) — provides PBS concession rates and may help with bulk-billed GP visits at the doctor's discretion, but does not qualify for council rates remission or TasWater concession.

Tasmanian Seniors Card — a commercial discount card providing retail and leisure discounts from participating businesses. It carries no statutory entitlement to government concessions on rates, water, or energy.

Checking What You Are Missing

The Tasmanian Government's Concessions and Discounts Guide, available through Service Tasmania (1300 13 55 13), lists every state-funded concession by card type. It is the most comprehensive single reference for checking whether you are claiming everything you are entitled to.

For the council rates remission specifically — including how to apply, the deadlines, the dual-agency process with TasWater, and how backdating works — see the Tasmania Pensioner Rates Remission Claim Guide.

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