Vaccinations at 12–13 years

Key facts

  • Two vaccines are recommended for your adolescent at 12–13 years of age (year 7 or age equivalent). These vaccines are available for free as part of the National Immunisation Program. They are:

    • a combined booster vaccine that protects against diphtheria, tetanus and pertussis (whooping cough), commonly known as dTpa
    • a vaccine that protects against nine types of human papillomavirus (HPV). 

  • These two vaccines are available through school immunisation programs, a doctor, a clinic nurse or a community health worker. Across Australia, a pharmacist can also provide them. If your adolescent is vaccinated outside of a school, you may have to pay a fee for the clinic visit. 

  • Some adolescents with very weak immune systems (severely immunocompromised) and those who have certain medical risk conditions may need additional vaccine doses to be fully protected against these diseases.

  • It is also recommended that all adolescents receive an influenza (flu) vaccine before the flu season. Only some adolescents qualify for a free flu vaccine under the National Immunisation Program. 

Last updated on 13 August 2025.

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What free vaccines are recommended for my adolescent?

Two age-specific vaccines are recommended and free for all 12–13 year-olds (year 7 or age equivalent). The technical names of the vaccines are:

Some adolescents with certain health or medical risk conditions and Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander youth may be eligible for free additional vaccine doses. Speak with your doctor, nurse or community health worker to understand if your adolescent qualifies.

What vaccines are recommended but may not be free?

It is recommended that all adolescents get an influenza (flu) vaccine before the flu season (which is usually from June to September) each year. A flu vaccination is one of the best ways to protect adolescents against flu. You may be charged a fee for both the vaccine and the clinic visit.

What diseases do these vaccines protect my adolescent against?

The vaccines recommended for your adolescent at 12–13 years old will strengthen their immunity to the following diseases.

Diphtheria is a serious disease that spreads between people through droplets in the air (especially from coughs and sneezes) or through direct contact.1 

The diphtheria germ (bacterium) can cause severe swelling of the throat or neck, blocking the airway and affecting breathing. 

The diphtheria vaccine is still used in Australia because there is a particular risk from travel to countries where diphtheria remains more common, including in the Western Pacific Region and Southeast Asia.

Learn more about diphtheria and diphtheria vaccination

Tetanus is sometimes called ‘lockjaw’. This is because the germs (bacteria) that cause tetanus can cause the muscles we use for chewing to lock or become stiff. This makes it difficult to swallow or chew. Tetanus can also affect all of the muscles of the body, including the ones used for breathing.

The germs that cause tetanus live in soil, dust or manure. This means people can get tetanus through a cut, a burn, a bite, or even just a prick from a nail or a thorn.2

Learn more about tetanus and tetanus vaccination

‘Whooping cough’ is the common term for pertussis. This germ irritates the airways, making them sore or painful.

The germs spread very easily from one person to another through the air and can quickly infect people who live together.2 When someone who already has the disease coughs or sneezes, the pertussis germs float through the air in tiny droplets. If a person breathes in those droplets, they can catch whooping cough.

Symptoms of whooping cough can include:

  • a runny nose
  • stuffiness (congestion)
  • a low-grade fever.

These symptoms are common in the early stages of the disease. Whooping cough can also cause sudden long coughing fits that can be very severe.1

Learn more about pertussis and pertussis vaccination

HPV is a common sexually transmitted infection that occurs in both females and males. 

There are many types of HPV that can affect various parts of the body. 

Many people can have HPV without knowing it. Even if they have some symptoms of an HPV infection, most people’s immune systems clear HPV infections within two years. However, HPV may also stay present in the body for many years. If this happens, some HPV types can cause cancer.3

Cancers that may be caused by HPV infection include cervical, vaginal, vulval, anal, penile, and some head and neck cancers. 

Other HPV types cause small lumps that appear around the vagina, penis or anus (genital warts) and benign (non-cancerous) tumours that grow in the throat (recurrent respiratory papillomatosis).

Learn more about HPV and HPV vaccination

Influenza (commonly known as ‘the flu’) is a viral infection. Illness usually begins with a sudden onset of symptoms that can include: 

  • high temperature (fever)
  • shivering/shaking (chills)
  • headache
  • cough
  • sore throat
  • extreme tiredness and lack of energy (fatigue). 

If it progresses, flu can also cause your body to lose water (dehydration) and lead to other complications such as lung infections (pneumonia) or swollen airways (bronchitis). More serious complications can also occur, including: 

  • secondary bacterial infections
  • heart, blood and nervous system (neurological) abnormalities such as swelling (inflammation) of the brain (encephalitis). 

Adolescents with certain medical health conditions (such as asthma or a heart defect) and some Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander youth are more likely to become so unwell from flu that they need treatment in hospital.

Learn more about influenza and influenza vaccination

Adolescents with certain health and medical risk conditions and Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander youth may qualify for additional free vaccines. Speak with your doctor, nurse or community health worker to understand if your adolescent qualifies.

What do I need to do before the vaccination visit?

Your adolescent can be vaccinated in a few different locations, including at their school, a GP clinic or a community health clinic. In all states and territories, pharmacists can also vaccinate adolescents.

The vaccines given at school are free. If your adolescent gets vaccinated at a clinic or a pharmacy, you may be charged a fee for the visit.

To receive a free school vaccine, parents or guardians must complete and return a consent form. This form can be available online or through a printed information pack sent home by the school. You give permission for your adolescent to get vaccinated at school by completing and returning the consent form.

Learn more about how to prepare for school vaccination

Your adolescent can also receive their routine or recommended vaccines through a clinic visit with a doctor, nurse, community health worker and in all states and territories, a pharmacist. Contact your preferred vaccination provider to ask about the specific vaccines they can provide and to arrange an appointment. You may be charged a fee for these vaccination visits.

Learn more about how to prepare for your clinic visit

What do I need to do after the vaccination?

After their vaccinations, your adolescent may be tired and want to rest more than usual. Some adolescents also experience mild discomfort or pain where the injection was given. These symptoms should only last for a day or two.

Serious side effects are very rare, but they can happen. Some parents want to know more about them before they vaccinate their adolescent.

If your adolescent doesn’t seem to be getting better after their vaccines or you are worried about them, you can get help:

  • from your doctor
  • at your nearest emergency department
  • by calling Healthdirect on 1800 022 222.
When does my adolescent need their next vaccination(s)?

When your adolescent is 14–16 years old (year 10 or age equivalent), they are recommended to receive vaccines that protect them against meningococcal disease.

It is also recommended that your adolescent get an influenza (flu) vaccine every year before the flu season.

What if I still have questions?

You can read some answers to common questions here.

If you still have questions about vaccinations for your adolescent, write them down and make an appointment with your doctor, nurse or community health worker so you can ask them.

Please note: In SKAI Adolescent, the phrase ‘your adolescent’ refers to all guardian relationships where health decisions for an adolescent fall under your responsibility.

Drafts of this page were reviewed by members of our Consumer Advisory Group.


  1. World Health Organisation. Diphtheria. September 2023. Available from https://www.who.int/news-room/questions-and-answers/item/diphtheria
  2. Australian Technical Advisory Group on Immunisation. Australian Immunisation Handbook. Australian Government Department of Health and Aged Care; Canberra: 2024. Available from: immunisationhandbook.health.gov.au
  3. IARC Working Group on the Evaluation of Carcinogenic Risks to Humans. Human Papillomaviruses. IARC Monographs on the Evaluation of Carcinogenic Risks to Humans. 2007; 90. Available from https://publications.iarc.fr/108