All You Need to Know About Energy Concessions Available for Customers in Australia

New South Wales is a state located in South Australia with a population of 8.2 million. As per recent data, NSW electricity consumption reached 68.1 Terawatt hours in 2020-21. The average annual electricity bill of NSW households is around $1421, which is higher than other states like Victoria ($1012) and Queensland ($1240).

The state government offers several energy concessions to NSW electricity consumers to make the energy bills affordable. You can visit websites that conduct energy compare nsw to know the different concessions available. Here are some energy concessions available for customers in Australia.

Family Energy Rebate

As per 2016 data, 24% of NSW households contained only one person, while the dominant household size in Greater Capital cities is household containing two persons. NSW offers family energy rebates to households having dependent children. The rebate gives the family credit on an energy bill up to $180.

The recent data suggests there are around 424,954 NSW households with three persons. You can find more information about family energy rebates on websites that conduct energy compare in NSW.

To get the family energy rebate, you need to fulfil the eligibility requirements given below.

• A resident of New South Wales and account holder with energy retailer in NSW
• Should be a recipient of Family Tax Benefit (FTB) for the previous financial year
• The person who is receiving the FTB should apply to the energy retailer

Senior Energy Rebate

The NSW government offers Senior Energy Rebate to eligible independent retirees to cover the cost of electricity bills. As per recent data, NSW has around 1.3 million retirees. The Senior Energy Rebate is $200 per household financial year. Even if your household has more than one retiree, you will get only one Senior Energy Rebate per financial year.

To get Senior Energy Rebate, you need to fulfil the following eligibility requirements.

• Should be an NSW resident
• Should have valid Commonwealth Seniors Health Card (CSHC) from DVA (Department of Veterans Affairs) or Centrelink
• Should be primary account holder named on electricity bill
• Should have applied for Senior Energy Rebate for a primary residence

Low Income Household Rebate

The Low Income Household Rebate is provided to NSW households with low income to help pay electricity bills. It is provided as a credit on each quarterly bill up to $285 per financial year.

To receive a Low Income Household Rebate, the following eligibility requirements need to be fulfilled:

• Should be an NSW resident and an account holder with an NSW energy retailer
• Should have at least one concession card of the following:
• Pensioner Concession Card issued by DVA or Services Australia
• Health Care Card issued by Services Australia
• A DVA Gold Card marked with either ‘Disability Pension’ (EDA), or a ‘Totally and Permanently Incapacitated’ (TPI), or ‘War Widower Pension’, or ‘War Widow.’

The NSW government has clearly defined income bands for various median incomes.

• If your household annual income range is $41,900 or below, you fall in the Very low-income household category.
• If your annual income range is $67,000 or below, you fall in the Low-income household category.

NSW households having annual income in the range of $41,900 to $67,000 can apply for this rebate. The Low Income Household rebate can only be applied to the electricity bill of your primary residence.

To get any concession or rebate offered by the NSW government, you need to call your energy retailer, fill the application form, submit eligibility documents and request to apply the concession/rebate to your energy bills.

To sum up, rebates and concessions offered by the NSW government can be helpful in the payment of your electricity bills. These concessions make electricity bills more affordable and their payment easy.