In Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander cultures.
gunanoos, which means children
in Aboriginal language are everything.
We all play a role in keeping our mob safe.
On behalf of all staff at Blue Card Services,
I'd like to begin by respectfully acknowledging
the Traditional owners of the land on which
we are recording this podcast today.
The Jagera and the Turrbal people and
pay my respect to Elders past, present and emerging.
We extend a special welcome to all Aboriginal
and Torres Strait Islander peoples listening to this podcast.
Hello everyone.
I'm Jess, a proud Bidjara women and I work
in Community Information team at Blue Card Services.
Today I'd like to introduce our deadly guest Zoe
from the Community Information team to yarn
about applying for a blue card.
There are a few things people need to know
before applying for a blue card and Zoe is
here to tell us all about them.
Thanks for joining me today, Zoe.
Hi Jess and thanks for inviting me.
Let's start with what people need in order to apply.
We work with the Department of Transport and
Main Roads, also known as TMR.
This is a place where you go to
get your driver's licence or your car rego?
Yeah, I think it's known as TMR or licencing mob.
Perfect.
So we work with them to confirm a person's identity.
As you know, blue cards now have a photograph on them and
this is how we get the photo for the blue card.
So to apply, you must have
a Customer Reference Number from TMR.
We call this a CRN.
The CRN is not the same
number you have with Centrelink.
The CRN is found on any TMR product.
And by the TMR product you mean something like
a driver's licence or a proof of identity card,
boat licence or even a registration notice.
Absolutely correct, Jess.
The CRN is essentially your driver licence number.
But I'm just thinking, Zoe, that there must
be people, particularly our mob in community, who don't
have a driver's licence and might have never
had a TMR product before.
Can they still apply for a blue card?
Absolutely, they can.
They will just need to get their free TMR CRN first.
And the best way to get this is
to visit a TMR Customer Service Center.
They have a list of these service centres on their website.
We do also understand it can be hard for people in
remote parts of Queensland to get to a TMR service center.
So for mob in community who might not be able to
get to a service center, they can visit a Queensland Government
Agent Program, which is also known as a QGAP office.
And they can normally be found in a courthouse or
a Post Office or even their local Police Station.
Do they need to take anything with them?
Yes, they will need to
take three original identification documents.
There's a full list of the documents
that are needed on the TMR website.
What about the communities with none of these services
what can people do if they need help?
There are plenty of different ways to get a TMR CRN.
They can contact us and we'll be able to work
out the best way for them to get the CRN.
We also have what's called a remote pack which we can
send out and you can even have your own photograph taken
and get your identity verified by the blue card mob.
That sounds great.
Can you tell me more about what happens
if a person's photo is too old?
I have a lady ring me the other day and
she was trying to apply for a blue card but
got a message saying her photo was too old.
Yes, this does happen when you have your photograph taken
with the TMR it essentially has a 10 year shelf life
and what that means is that every 10 years
you need to get your photograph updated.
You know Jess, we all age and even
though we want to look younger sometimes we
have to have that photograph updated.
Yes, I do know it.
So when you get a blue card Jess it is
valid for 3 years. So if a person's photo with
TMR was taken more than 6 years and 9 months
ago they just need to get the photograph updated.
Now we can check how old
a person's photograph is for them.
If they're not sure they can just give
us a ring and it also doesn't cost
anything to get the new photograph taken.
Okay so once they have their CRN from
TMR can they apply for a blue card? Yes they can.
So let's talk about that in maybe our next episode.
Zoe, thank you so much for your time today.
I certainly have enjoyed our time together and
big thank you to those who are listening.
Our next podcast will be on how to
apply for a blue card so until then
keep our little gunanoos safe and stay deadly.