1. Start with Service NSW
The single best first stop is the Service NSW Savings Finder — a free tool (online or in any Service NSW centre) that checks which of the state's dozens of rebates and vouchers your household can claim. Many people are entitled to more than they realise.
2. Energy and essentials
- Energy rebates — NSW offers several (low-income, family, seniors, medical energy rebates) that come straight off your electricity bill.
- Energy Accounts Payment Assistance (EAPA) — crisis vouchers if you can't pay an energy bill.
- Water and council support — pensioner concessions on water and council rates.
- Toll relief — check the current NSW toll relief scheme if you drive regularly on Sydney's motorways.
3. Family, health and getting around
- Active and Creative Kids voucher — the separate Active Kids and Creative Kids vouchers closed on 31 January 2024 and were replaced by a single $50 voucher, two per school-aged child each year, usable for either sport or creative activities. Check current eligibility on Service NSW.
- School and travel concessions — school travel passes, tertiary transport concessions and the Opal weekly cap.
- Health concessions — ambulance fee exemptions for concession-card holders, and patient travel assistance for regional patients travelling for specialist care.
4. If you're doing it tough
If bills have become debts: free financial counselling is available through the National Debt Helpline, and no-interest loans (NILs) can replace essential appliances without a payday lender. You are not alone, and none of these services cost anything.
5. The bigger fix
Rebates patch the symptoms. Our cost-of-living policy is about the causes — housing, energy, tolls and insurance — so households need less rescuing in the first place.