Medicare cards 011-44150000

Medicare card details

This table outlines the different types of Medicare cards and the access to benefits.

Note: a digital copy of any type of Medicare card may be accessed through online services.

Medicare card type	Medicare access	Colour	Expiry date format
Australian resident card (image) for: Australian citizens New Zealand citizens, or Permanent residents	Full benefits. See: What Medicare covers	Green	MM/YYYY Cards issued for a period of up to 5-7 years. See: Australian citizens eligibility for Medicare Medicare eligibility for New Zealand citizens Medicare eligibility for customers with permanent resident status
Interim card (image) for: Applicants for permanent residency Applicant for Partner visa (subclass 309/100 and 820/801) Applicants for permanent protection Customers eligible under Ministerial Orders	Full benefits. See: What Medicare covers	Blue	DD/MM/YY The expiry date is determined by the policy and procedures that apply to the relevant entitlement type. See: Ministerial orders and Medicare eligibility Applicants for permanent residency eligibility for Medicare Applicant for Partner visa (subclass 309/100 and 820/801)
Reciprocal Health Care Agreement (RHCA) card (image) for eligible customers from: Belgium Finland Italy Malta Netherlands Norway Slovenia Sweden United Kingdom	Medically necessary treatment, including treatment in a public hospital as a public patient.	Yellow	DD/MM/YY The expiry date is determined by the policy and procedures that apply to the particular RHCA country. See: Reciprocal Health Care Agreements (RHCA) eligibility for Medicare and Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme (PBS)

Medicare card issue cancellation reason codes

Table 2: this table explains some of the most common cancellations and their descriptions.

When a Medicare card is requested through CDMS or the customer's /Medicare online account (MOA) or an automated card re-issue occurs, the system automatically validates the request to make sure the card can be issued. If there is an issue that prevents the card from being issued, the request is cancelled, and a cancellation reason is recorded in CDMS history.

Reason code	Card cancellation description
7	Mail returned flag is on
20	No active members on the card
21	Card issue request date is after the group eligibility end date
22	Card issue request date is after the group eligibility end date Note: if the group eligibility date is less than, or equal to 30 days in the future the card issue is cancelled. It is set to 30 days to allow for postal delivery delays.
36	Card member name is invalid
56	Active member entitlement end dates are not the same
59	Card has a production control address

Forms

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Card extract request

Services Australia website

Add someone to a Medicare card

How to get a digital card

Someone else's Medicare

myGov app

Contact details

Medicare Enrolment Services