More people will now be able to access discounted rail travel in the UK. Seven extra groups qualify for a Disabled Person’s Railcard following an extension to the scheme made on March 1.

Until this month, the Disabled Person’s Railcard had only been available to those receiving specific benefits or with certain medical conditions.

It now covers a broader range of visible and non-visible disabilities. People who now qualify include those who:

• Have a blue badge
• Have a disabled person’s bus pass (England, Scotland and Wales)
• Have a disabled person’s Freedom Pass (London only)
• Can’t drive on medical grounds
• Receive Armed Forces Compensation Scheme benefits
• Receive Industrial Injuries Disablement Benefit for 20% degree of disablement or higher
• Are without speech

Other people who still qualify

The previous qualifying criteria for a Disabled Person’s Railcard is still valid, which means you can hold a railcard if you:

• Receive Personal Independence Payments or Adult Disability Payment
• Receive Disability Living Allowance or Child Disability Payment at either the higher or lower rate for the mobility component, or the higher or middle rate for the care component
• Have a visual impairment
• Are registered as deaf or use a hearing aid
• Have epilepsy and receive drug treatment for it
• Receive Attendance Allowance, Severe Disablement Allowance or Pension Age Disability Payment
• Receive war pensioner’s mobility supplement
• Receive war or service disablement pension for 80 per cent or more disability
• Buy or lease a vehicle through the Motability scheme

From September 2026 it is planned that the scheme will expand further allowing even more people to apply for a card. On the Disabled Persons Railcard website, it says: “Phase 2, launching in September 2026, will further extend eligibility to disabilities and conditions that require professional health evidence and more detailed assessment, including some long-term or degenerative medical conditions, and neurodiversity where it has a substantial impact on a person’s ability to travel by train.

“More detailed evidentiary requirements will be made available for this phase closer to implementation in September 2026.” It is important to note that if you already hold one of these railcards, the changes won’t affect you.

The website adds: “These upcoming changes to the eligibility criteria won’t affect your current Railcard or your eligibility. You can continue using your Railcard as usual without any disruption.”

How to apply

You can apply online here. You can choose to have a digital card that can be accessed on your phone, which is available within five working days.

Or you can opt for a physical card, which can take up to 15 days to arrive in the post. The process should take no more than 10 minutes to complete.

Before you begin, you must make sure you have the following ready:

• A valid debit or credit card
• Documented proof of the disability of the Railcard holder that can be scanned and uploaded as a file
• A passport-style photo (it can even be taken with your phone)

You cannot apply in person at a train station but you can apply by post. To do so, you can download a Disabled Persons Railcard application form online or collect an application form from any staffed station ticket office.

You will then need to complete and return this application, along with the required proof of disability and payment to:

A full list of what is accepted as documented proof of the disability can be found online here.

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