Council offers rebates and concessions for eligible pensioners who own and occupy a rateable property. Under State legislation, you must satisfy all of the following criteria to be an “eligible pensioner”:

• You hold a current pensioner concession card issued by either Centrelink or the Department of Veteran's Affairs. (Ratepayers can check with Centrelink or Veteran’s Affairs to see if they are entitled to a Pensioner Concession Card for the purposes of Council Rates and Charges concessions.)

• You (solely or jointly) own the dwelling for which a rebate is sought

• The property is your sole or principal residence.
   

Pensioner Rebate

The pensioner rebate is made up of both a mandatory and voluntary component:

• A mandatory State Government rebate up to maximum of $250.00 per financial year. This rebate is funded 45% by Council and 55% by the State government.

• An additional voluntary rebate on top of the mandatory rebate, 100% funded by Council. This has increased up to a maximum of $150 for the 2019/2020 financial year (prior financial year’s rebate was up to a maximum of $75). This additional rebate is applied against the domestic waste management annual charge.

Pensioners who have already been granted a rebate with Council will have their Rates and Charges Notice automatically adjusted provided there has been no change to their eligibility.

Eligible pensioners will receive rebates proportionate to the number of full quarters remaining in the financial year after the day the person becomes an eligible pensioner (Local Government Act 1993, Section 575). This is illustrated in the table below:
 

Date of Pensioner Concession Card	Rebate entitlement within financial year
Before 1 July of financial year	Full rebate
Before 1 October	75% rebate
Before 1 January	50% rebate
Before 1 April	25% rebate
Between 1 April and 30 June	No rebate

Council will retrospectively grant rebates relating to the current and up to 12 months prior for pensioner applications submitted where eligibility during these periods is confirmed.

When a person ceases to be an eligible pensioner, dies or sells the property, a proportion of the rebate granted for the financial year is written back as payable. This applies in the same manner as a granted rebate: the write back will equal the number of full quarters remaining in the year.

To apply, please complete and submit a Rates Pensioner Concession Rebate Application form, along with a copy of your Pensioner Concession Card.

Please contact Council immediately if your eligibility changes.
 

Other assistance offered by Council

Payment Arrangement

If you are experiencing financial difficulties, please contact Council to discuss entering into a payment arrangement or complete the online form (Local Government Act 1993, Section 564).

Interest charges will apply to arrangements in accordance with the Section 566 of the Local Government Act 1993.

To apply, please complete and submit an Arrangement for Payment of Rates & Charges form.
 

Financial Hardship

Council has the discretion to defer, reduce or waive the payment of rates and/or accrued interest in circumstances where payment would cause the ratepayer substantial hardship (Local Government Act 1993, Sections 564, 567 and 601).

Ratepayers must complete a rate relief hardship application detailing their financial position to be assessed by Council officers. Hardship applications are generally available only for exceptional circumstances.

To apply, please complete and submit a Rate Relief Hardship Application (Including eligible pensioner) Statutory Declaration form.