Free Bus Travel for Under 22s

Even if you already have a National Entitlement Card (NEC) or Young Scot NEC, you must apply for a new or replacement card to travel by bus for free. Parents, guardians or carers must provide approval for children aged between 5-15 to access the scheme by applying on their behalf.

Young people aged 16-21 should apply themselves. However, if you’re aged between 16 and 21 and already have an active NEC or Young Scot NEC, you can download free bus travel onto your existing card using the Transport Scotland Pass Collect app. This means you may not need to apply for a new card to access your free bus travel. Freebus.scot provides information on the scheme and how to apply.

There are a number of different ways to apply, not just through the online portal:

Online at getyournec.scot (or through parentsportal.scot if this is used by your child’s school).
Through Perth & Kinross council: if you cannot, or do not want to, apply online please phone: 01738 475000 or Email: concessionarytravel@pkc.gov.uk who can tell you how to proceed.
Using the Transport Scot Pass Collect app: if you’re aged 16 or over and have an active NEC / Young Scot NEC you can use the app to download your free bus travel onto your existing card.

You can find out more and watch Young Scot's video on how to use the app at freebus.scot

The app guides you through the process of downloading free bus travel onto their card, with simple step-by-step instructions. It will tell them when free bus travel has been successfully downloaded onto the card, and then they are ready to jump on the bus for free straight away.

The app can also be used by anyone to ‘read’ an NEC or Young Scot NEC to see what smart travel concession passes or other travel entitlements are stored on the card.

Who can use the app?

Anyone aged 16 and over with an existing active NEC or Young Scot NEC. Active cards are those received since 2016 – they’ll have a long number next to the ITSO logo and, if there is a date of birth shown, it will be highlighted with a pink strip, as shown.
Anyone with a compatible smartphone can use the app to download free bus travel onto an existing card or read an NEC or Young Scot NEC. So if you don’t have a compatible phone, a family member or friend can download the app on their phone for you.
The photo on the card must be kept up to date and should still look like the cardholder.

What device is needed to download the app?

Android (version 6 or later) or iOS phone (version 6 or later).
The phone must be connected to the internet (Wi-Fi or mobile connection 3G+).
It must have Near Field Communication (NFC) - this is the same service used for mobile contactless payment.