Total VeteranLeaving the Australian Defence Force: Veteran Transition Guide
A practical guide to ADF transition: the seminar and timelines, DVA claims and the Veteran Card, Open Arms, employment help and how Australia compares with the UK and US.
- The 2021 Census counted 496,276 former ADF members; DVA had 357,984 clients at December 2025.
- The Transition Seminar is mandatory within 12 months of your transition date; JTA support runs up to 24 months after.
- From 1 July 2026 all new DVA compensation claims fall under the improved MRCA.
- Open Arms offers free counselling on 1800 011 046, 24 hours a day.
- DVA says over 6,000 people leave the ADF each year.
Leaving the Australian Defence Force (ADF) runs through Defence while you serve and the Department of Veterans' Affairs (DVA) afterwards. Defence's Joint Transition Authority delivers the ADF Member and Family Transition Seminar, coaching and support for up to 24 months after you leave. DVA provides compensation, the Veteran Card and health care, and Open Arms provides free counselling. Start planning at least 12 months before your transition date, attend the seminar and lodge your DVA claims through MyService.
How many Australians have served
The 2021 Census found 581,139 Australians had served or were serving in the ADF: 84,865 current members and 496,276 former members. Women made up 13.4% of former members and 20.6% of current members. The largest age group of former members was 65 to 74 (26.1%, or 129,437 people), and veterans made up 2.8% of the population aged 15 and over (Australian Bureau of Statistics, 2021 Census release; DVA summary of the census).
DVA counts its own clients separately. At 31 December 2025 DVA had 357,984 clients, including 288,760 veterans, 107,075 Gold Card holders and 194,955 White Card holders (DVA projected beneficiary numbers, December 2025). The census and DVA figures differ because they measure different things: the census counts everyone who reports service, and DVA counts people it supports.
About 7,333 members transitioned in the financial year 2021 to 2022, up from 6,512 the year before, according to the Joint Transition Authority 2022 annual report. DVA says more than 6,000 members leave the ADF each year (DVA, New Veteran Employment Program, August 2023).
How transition works
The ADF Member and Family Transition Guide describes transition as a series of events and tasks before, during and after you leave. The Joint Transition Authority (JTA) delivers the Defence Force Transition Program, with support for up to 24 months after you transition. Transition Support Officers work from JTA Transition Centres and you can contact them at any time in your career.
Key timelines in the guide
| Step | Timing |
|---|---|
| Start considering transition | At least 12 months before your transition date |
| Transition Seminar | Mandatory within 12 months of your transition date; serving members are advised to attend every 3 to 4 years |
| Voluntary transition | At least three months' notice on form AC853 |
| Non-medical involuntary transition | Notice period of up to 90 days |
| Medical transition | 120-day notice period after a Military Employment Classification Determination |
| Civilian driver licence transfer | Request at least 60 days before transition |
| Support after leaving | Up to 24 months through the JTA |
The guide also covers Job Search Preparation workshops, ADF Civil Recognition (which translates Defence training into civilian qualifications), links to Workforce Australia and APSJobs, and contact with ex-service organisations. The JTA reported about 1,600 qualifications awarded each year through its civil recognition work since 2020. Members with complex circumstances can be referred to the Transition for Meaningful Engagement program, which the guide names for medical transitions.
What DVA provides
MyService and compensation claims
You lodge claims for service-related injury or illness through MyService at dva.gov.au. DVA announced a change to the legislation: from 1 July 2026 a single ongoing Act, the improved Military Rehabilitation and Compensation Act (MRCA), covers all new compensation claims, and the older VEA and DRCA streams stopped taking new claims at 11.59 pm AEST on Tuesday 30 June 2026. Existing payments continue unchanged. The April 2026 notice also lists a travel-for-treatment rate of $0.68 per kilometre with the 50 kilometre minimum removed (DVA, VetAffairs April 2026).
Veteran Card
The Veteran Card comes as Gold, White or Orange. The White Card gives treatment for accepted service-related conditions. DVA says it normally sends a White Card automatically after you leave if you have at least one day of continuous full-time service, or when it accepts a service-related condition. DVA's eligibility chart says the White Card also covers all mental health conditions, cancer and pulmonary tuberculosis through non-liability health care (DVA healthcare eligibility flowchart, February 2026).
The Gold Card covers clinically required treatment for all conditions. Under DVA's 2024 factsheet you qualify under the MRCA with a permanent impairment of at least 60 points from service, or with the Special Rate Disability Pension. The Orange Card is for certain Commonwealth and allied veterans of the Second World War. DVA's Veteran Card page gives 1800 VETERAN as 1800 838 372 for claim forms and White Card applications, and the Defence and Veteran Services Commissioner lists the same number.
Employment support
DVA runs the Veteran Employment Program, a $24 million initiative announced in 2023. It funds an advisory service that helps employers recruit and keep veterans, and grants that help universities recognise prior learning. The Veterans' Employment site hosts the Veteran Employment Toolkit and the Veteran Employment Commitment, which organisations sign to show they hire and support veterans.
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Open Arms and mental health support
Open Arms offers free and confidential counselling for serving and ex-serving personnel and their families, with individual, couple and family sessions, group programmes and peer workers who have military or military-family experience. The 24-hour line is 1800 011 046. Open Arms says it does not share information with other government agencies or outside parties without your consent.
Australia: Open Arms 1800 011 046 (24 hours); Lifeline 13 11 14 (24 hours); Suicide Call Back Service 1300 659 467; Defence All Hours Support Line 1800 628 036 for serving members; call 000 in an emergency. UK: Samaritans 116 123; Combat Stress helpline 0800 138 1619. US: Veterans Crisis Line, dial 988 then press 1, or text 838255.
The Australian Institute of Health and Welfare monitors suicide among people who have served since 1985. Its 2026 report gives an ex-serving male rate of 25.5 per 100,000 per year for 2022 to 2024, down from 33.3 in 2014 to 2016, and an ex-serving female rate of 8.3, down from 23.4 in 2015 to 2017. The authors mark the 2022 to 2024 deaths data as preliminary (AIHW, serving and ex-serving ADF suicide monitoring 2026).
Ex-service organisations
Ex-service organisations (ESOs) provide advocacy, social connection and other support. The RSL describes itself as the largest ESO providing fee-free advocacy, and it has called for the Royal Commission's recommendation that DVA fund ESO paid advocates to be fully implemented (RSL Australia). Some advocates charge fees, others are free, so ask before you sign an agreement. The Defence and Veteran Services Commissioner's office lists the main contacts on its services page.
Who to contact
| Need | Who | Number or link |
|---|---|---|
| Transition planning | Joint Transition Authority, Transition Support Officer | Through Defence; see the Transition Guide |
| Defence information and help | Defence Member and Family Helpline | 1800 624 608 |
| Support at any hour (serving) | Defence All Hours Support Line | 1800 628 036 |
| After-hours medical advice (serving) | 1800 IM SICK | 1800 467 425 |
| Claims and Veteran Card | DVA, 1800 VETERAN | 1800 838 372, or MyService |
| Counselling for veterans and families | Open Arms | 1800 011 046 (24 hours) |
| Crisis talk | Lifeline | 13 11 14 (24 hours) |
| Suicide crisis counselling | Suicide Call Back Service | 1300 659 467 |
| Employer and job resources | Veterans' Employment site | veteransemployment.gov.au |
| Claims advocacy | Ex-service organisations such as the RSL | Ask for fee-free advocacy |
Australia compared with the UK and US
| Item | Australia | UK | US |
|---|---|---|---|
| People who have served | 581,139 served or serving; 496,276 former (Census 2021) | 1,853,112 in England and Wales (Census 2021) | 15.7 million (ACS 2024) |
| Transition lead | Joint Transition Authority, then DVA | Career Transition Partnership | TAP (Transition Assistance Program) and the Department of Veterans Affairs |
| Timing | Seminar mandatory within 12 months of transition; support up to 24 months after | Support from 2 years before discharge for those with over 6 years of service | Start no later than 365 days before separation for members with 180 or more continuous days |
| Health card | Veteran Card (Gold, White, Orange) | Veteran Card (see our guide) | VA health care enrolment |
| Crisis line | Open Arms 1800 011 046; Lifeline 13 11 14 | Samaritans 116 123; Combat Stress 0800 138 1619 | 988 then press 1 |
Australia keeps compensation and health care in one department, DVA, and runs its own all-hours counselling service in Open Arms. The UK sends most veterans to the NHS and uses charities for specialist help, and the US runs health care through VA medical centres. Compare the systems in more detail in our UK and US transition support guide and the UK Veteran Card guide. UK and US comparison figures come from the Career Transition Partnership page, the Air Force TAP page, the ONS and the Census Bureau.
What to do this week
- Read the ADF Member and Family Transition Guide checklist and note your transition date.
- Book the ADF Member and Family Transition Seminar well inside the 12-month window.
- Contact a Transition Support Officer to start your plan and civil recognition.
- Create a MyService account and lodge any service-related claims before you leave.
- Save 1800 011 046 and 13 11 14 in your phone.
- Ask an ESO about fee-free advocacy before signing with a paid advocate.
Questions people ask
How do I transition out of the Australian Defence Force?
What is the Veteran Card in Australia?
How do I contact Open Arms?
How many veterans does Australia have?
- Defence, "ADF Member and Family Transition Guide" (February 2026). https://www.defence.gov.au/sites/default/files/2026-02/ADFMemberandFamilyTransitionGuide.pdf
- Australian Bureau of Statistics, "2021 Census will help deliver better outcomes for veterans". https://www.abs.gov.au/media-centre/media-releases/2021-census-will-help-deliver-better-outcomes-veterans
- DVA, "Projected beneficiary numbers with actuals to 31 December 2025". https://www.dva.gov.au/sites/default/files/2026-06/executive-summary-december-2025.pdf
- DVA, "Veteran Card". https://www.dva.gov.au/veteran-card
- DVA, "Supporting the veteran community with a simpler, easier system from 1 July" (VetAffairs, April 2026). https://www.dva.gov.au/newsroom/vetaffairs/vetaffairs-vol-42-no1-april-2026/supporting-the-veteran-community-with-a-simpler-easier-system-from-1-july
- DVA, "New Veteran Employment Program" (VetAffairs, August 2023). https://www.dva.gov.au/newsroom/vetaffairs/vetaffairs-vol-39-no2-august-2023/new-veteran-employment-program
- Open Arms, Veterans and Families Counselling. https://www.openarms.gov.au/
- Joint Transition Authority, "Annual Report 2022". https://www.defence.gov.au/sites/default/files/2023-06/joint-transition-authority-annual-report-2022.pdf
- Australian Institute of Health and Welfare, "Serving and ex-serving ADF suicide monitoring 2026". https://www.aihw.gov.au/reports/veterans/serving-ex-serving-adf-suicide-monitoring-2026/contents/summary
- Veterans' Employment, Commonwealth of Australia. https://www.veteransemployment.gov.au
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