CLOSE to $1.7 million commuters have put on go cards is set to be seized by the State Government under legislative changes.

TransLink has calculated there are 176,000 cards that have been unused for the past five years, each with an average of $9.50 worth of credit.

The State Government changed the law in April to gain access togo card credit after five years of no use, with the proceeds going back into public transport.

Soon millions more dollars in credit could be surrendered to the State, with the first go cards issued by TransLink in 2004 due to expire next month.

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The looming deadline is likely to go unnoticed by many with the expiry date not printed on the card – and only available through a retailer if the card is unregistered.

Commuter advocate Robert Dow from Rail Back on Track said the system was “archaic” and would leave many people in the lurch.

“There’s no way most people would know the cards are about to expire,” Mr Dow said.

“That’s going to get them in a lot of strife when they go to use their cards after July and find they’re no longer valid.”

He said a similar problem occurred in Melbourne at the start of the year, when a plethora of transport cards known as the Myki expired.

“There were massive problems in terms of people not being ready for it,” Mr Dow said.

“It really needs rectification (in southeast Queensland), perhaps in the form of a sticker on the front.”

Adult and seniors cards have a 10-year lifespan, children’s go cards expire on their 15th birthday, and concession cards usually expire on an annual basis. When a card is expired for three months or more, commuters are required to download a two-page form from the internet, fill it out and mail it back to TransLink.