myGov: Australia's government services portal — set up and connect
myGov (my.gov.au) is the Australian government’s online portal — a single account that gives you access to many different government services. Instead of creating a separate account for each agency, you only need one myGov account and you link services to it.
Lodging tax through myTax, checking Medicare, registering with Centrelink, viewing your immunisation history, managing NDIS — all of it goes through myGov.
Creating a myGov account
Go to my.gov.au and choose “Create account”. You will need:
- An email address (a personal email, not a work email if possible)
- A phone number to receive verification codes
Once it is created, myGov asks you to set up a secure sign-in method — usually a code by SMS or through an authenticator app. This is an important step because myGov holds sensitive information.
Protect your account: don’t share your password, don’t sign in on public computers, and turn on two-factor authentication.
Linking services
After you create your account, the next step is to link services to myGov. Go to “My services” and choose the service you want to link — the system will ask you to verify your identity with each agency.
Medicare: You need your Medicare number (on the card or in the Medicare app), your name, and your date of birth. Once linked, you can check Medicare claims, update your address, and view your visit history.
ATO (Australian Taxation Office): You need your Tax File Number (TFN) and details from your most recent tax return (or details from your employer). Once linked, you access myTax to lodge tax, view income statements, and manage your superannuation.
Centrelink: If you receive, or want to apply for, Centrelink payments, link it through myGov. You need a CRN (Customer Reference Number) from Centrelink.
Australian Immunisation Register (AIR): View your immunisation history and your children’s — useful when enrolling in school or childcare.
Not every service is relevant to everyone — link only what you actually need.
myGov Inbox — reading government mail online
One of the important changes once you have myGov: the myGov Inbox is where many government agencies send notices instead of paper mail.
The ATO will send:
- Tax refund notifications
- Reminders to lodge your tax return
- Requests for more information
Medicare and Services Australia send notices about claims and changes to your details.
Check your myGov Inbox at least a few times a year — there are important notices with deadlines that can cause problems if you miss them.
Turning off paper mail: Some services automatically switch to digital once you link them — no more paper mail sent to your home address. If you move house, update your address across all services through myGov.
The myGov mobile app
The myGov app (iOS and Android) gives you quick access and can be used as a sign-in method instead of SMS. Some features are only available in the app, for example the Digital Wallet (a digital Medicare card, a digital concession card).
Download the app from the App Store or Google Play — search for “myGov” with the Australian government logo.
After you’ve signed up
As soon as you have myGov and have linked Medicare and the ATO, two important next steps:
- Lodging your annual tax return — using myTax through myGov (see the related guide)
- Understanding the Australian health system — to understand how to use the Medicare you have just linked (see the related guide)