Using your School Opal card
Guidelines for using your School Opal card.
The School Opal card gives eligible students free or discounted travel between home and school using metro, train, bus, ferry and light rail services you nominate in your application.
School travel passes are not transferable. Each school travel pass is issued to a specific student and is printed with the eligible student's name. Fines may apply for misuse.
Student must comply with the Students' Code of Conduct.
Tap on and tap off every time
All school students must travel with a valid school travel pass. If you use a School Opal card, you must tap on and tap off every time you use public transport to travel to and from school. This helps us to understand customer travel patterns and adjust services if necessary.
When to use your School Opal card or travel pass
You can use the School Opal card:
- On school days between home and school.
- For travel between 6:30am and 7:00pm (TAFE students: 6:30am – 9:30pm).
Free school travel passes do not include travel to and from:
- before and after school care or child-minding premises.
- before and after school activities.
- school excursions.
- sports events.
- work experience.
- Vocational Education and Training (VET) at a location away from where the student is enrolled.
- multi-campus high schools, weekend schools, pre-schools or mini-schools (except for full-time geographically isolated distance education students).
Students with a current School Opal card can update their details to include Sydney Light Rail or Newcastle Transport Services. Update a School Opal card or travel pass.
School Opal card error message codes
You can only use your school travel pass for travel on school days between your home and school/TAFE college between 6.30am and 7pm (6.30am and 9.30pm for TAFE). If you use a School Opal card outside these hours, you may see a message code appear on the Opal card reader.
School excursions
Each child and adult in the excursion group requires their own Opal card.
Child/Youth Opal cards are for personal travel including school excursions using public transport.
Schools are encouraged to ask parents to provide their child with a Child/Youth Opal card prior to school excursions. It is important to ensure there are sufficient funds on each card to cover the excursion travel expenses.
Travel outside of school
The School Opal card is only for travel to and from school. A Child/Youth Opal card is needed for travel after hours, on weekends or during school holidays.
- Children and school students aged 4–15 years and secondary students aged 16 years and over are entitled to concession fares on public transport in NSW.
- Secondary students aged 16 and over will need a Transport Concession Entitlement Card (NSW/ACT Senior Secondary Student Concession) as proof of entitlement when travelling on these fares.