Young Persons's Free Bus Travel Scheme

Scheme terms and conditions

Using your card

National Entitlement Card/ Young Scot NEC must be in good working order

  • You – and parent/ guardians of cardholders aged between 5-15 years old – must ensure that your NEC or Young Scot NEC is kept in a good condition and presented to the bus ticket machine or other transport ticketing equipment in good working order i.e. undamaged in any way.
  • If your NEC or Young Scot NEC is damaged so that it cannot be scanned on the bus ticket machine (or other transport ticketing equipment) you will be required to pay the full fare for your journey. You – and parents/guardians of cardholders aged 5-15 years old – will have to ensure that the appropriate bus fare or other transport ticket can be paid in full by cash or other alternative payment methods.
  • If your NEC or Young Scot NEC is damaged it is your responsibility (or parents/guardians of young people aged between 5-15 years old) to request a replacement card from your local authority to allow access to free bus travel and any other transport discounts.
  • If you need a new or replacement NEC or Young Scot NEC then please see the advice above on how to a new card may be requested by using getyournec.scot, parentsportal.scot by contacting your local authority.

NEC / Young Scot NEC – Not Transferable

  • Those eligible to access the young persons free bus travel scheme will be provided with a NEC or Young Scot NEC that is unique to them. Please carry your card with you when you are travelling.
  • Cards should be kept safe and must be used by the named cardholder only to access free bus travel.
  • Cards must not be used by or given to any other person for their use.
  • Transport operators may refuse free travel to anyone where the image on the card doesn’t match the person presenting it.
  • Transport Scotland has a fraud policy and any person(s) found to be misusing any aspect of the scheme (including allowing a card to be used by someone else) may have their entitlement to free bus travel suspended. Incidents of misuse may also be reported to the Procurator Fiscal.
  • Cardholders (and parents/guardians of cardholders aged 5-15 years old) have a duty to report any changes of circumstances which may affect entitlement, including changes of address, to their local authority.

General Information

  • Travel using a NEC or Young Scot NEC is subject to the normal regulations and conditions of carriage of each transport operator.
  • Your card gives you the same rights as a full-fare paying passenger.
  • The Young Scot NEC is part of the accredited national proof of age card scheme PASS. This means that the Young Scot NEC can be used as proof of age.
  • The photo on your card needs to be kept up to date to use it to prove your age for age restricted products or services. Your card must not be used by any other person.