Pokemon 30th Anniversary Set Release Date Australia

September 16, 2026. That date appears on every announcement for Pokemon TCG: 30th Celebration. What most coverage leaves out is that September 16 is only Wave 1. The full product rollout runs across five waves, stretching from mid-September through early December, with Wave 4 now spread across November 6, 13 and 20. If you are planning pre-orders or budgeting across products, the wave you care about may not be the one you think.

Last updated: 15 October 2026. Wave 4 release dates have moved. Toymate and EB Games have both confirmed new dates for the Figure Collection, Ditto Premium Collection and Ultra-Premium Collections, and other Australian retailers are expected to follow, most likely because of a supplier or distributor delay. Full detail in the 30th Celebration pre-orders guide. Also releasing October 30: the Ascended Heroes Focused Fighters Premium Collection.

This is also the first simultaneous worldwide Pokemon TCG launch. No staggered international release. Australian collectors get the same launch day as the US and Japan. The Australian press schedule confirms the September 16 date.

Update: Wave 1 has now launched - September 16 has come and gone. Pre-orders across every major retailer sold out or crashed within the day, and Kmart has since opened (and sold out) online pre-orders for the Ultra Premium Collection as well, well ahead of its official Wave 4 date. The wave-by-wave detail below still holds for anything yet to release.

Below is every wave, every product, and the dates that matter for each.

The Five-Wave Release Schedule

The Ultra-Premium Collection (Day and Night) and the Figure Collection (Mew and Mewtwo) were announced in the official product showcase without Australian dates. They now have retailer dates, and both have slipped from the original Wave 4 date of November 6 (see the update above).

Wave 1: September 16, 2026

Seven products land on day one. This is the largest single wave.

Tech Sticker Collections (Alolan Exeggutor / Lucario) contain a foil promo card of either Alolan Exeggutor or Lucario, a tech sticker sheet featuring that Pokemon, and 3 booster packs.

2-Pack Blister includes an Eevee foil promo card, a plastic coin, and 2 booster packs. The smallest sealed product in the wave.

Knock Out Collection also features an Eevee foil promo, a plastic coin, and 2 booster packs.

Poster Collection comes with three foil promo cards (Articuno, Zapdos, and Moltres), a poster featuring images of over 160 cards from the expansion, and 3 booster packs.

Pokemon ex Box (Sylveon ex / Greninja ex) includes a foil promo card in both standard and oversize versions, plus 4 booster packs. Two variants available: Sylveon ex and Greninja ex.

Elite Trainer Box contains 9 booster packs, a full-art Nidorina promo, 65 card sleeves, 16 foil Basic Energy cards, damage-counter dice, a coin-flip die, a plastic coin, and a storage box with six dividers.

Pokemon Center Elite Trainer Box is the premium version. It contains 11 booster packs (two more than the standard ETB) and two full-art Nidorina promos, one stamped with the Pokemon Center logo.

Pokemon Center opened pre-orders in the US for select Wave 1 products approximately two months before launch, with purchase limits: Pokemon Center ETB (limit 2), Alolan Exeggutor Tech Sticker Collection (limit 1), Lucario Tech Sticker Collection (limit 1), and Knock Out Collection (limit 1). Pokemon Center AU's own online drops have been far less frequent, so do not assume the same pre-order window or limits apply locally.

Those US Pokemon Center limits are also tighter than what most Australian big-box retailers set for their own online pre-orders. Big W, Kmart, Target, and EB Games have generally run one-per-customer (sometimes one-per-household) limits on Wave 1 products rather than Pokemon Center's per-product tiered limits - though individual limits have shifted release to release as retailers respond to bot activity, so treat any specific number as a snapshot rather than a rule.

Wave 2: October 2, 2026

Two products arrive two weeks after launch. Notably, the Booster Bundle is not a day-one product.

Booster Bundle contains 6 booster packs. No promo, no accessories. If you want bulk packs without the ETB extras, this is the option, but you are waiting until October 2.

Mini Tins come in 10 different artworks split across a day and night theme. Each Mini Tin contains 2 booster packs, a sticker sheet, and an art card matching the tin design. Collecting all ten completes two full images.

For a breakdown of how the Booster Bundle compares to the ETB on cost per pack and pull expectations, see the ETB vs Booster Box vs Booster Bundle guide.

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Wave 3: October 30, 2026

A single product in this wave, but a distinctive one.

Battle Deck (Espeon ex / Umbreon ex) features all-foil 60-card decks led by either Espeon ex or Umbreon ex. Each includes a deck box, coin, and playmat. The Espeon deck features an illustration rare Victini, while the Umbreon deck includes an illustration rare Zeraora. These illustration rares are exclusive to the Battle Decks.

Wave 4: November 6, 13 and 20, 2026

Wave 4 was originally a single November 6 drop. As of October 15, 2026 it has split into three dates at Australian retailers.

5 Booster Tin remains on November 6, 2026 per EB Games. This is the 5-pack version of the Sylveon ex / Greninja ex tin sold by some retailers; other retailers sell the 4-pack version on December 4 (Wave 5).

Ditto Premium Collection and the Figure Collection (Mew and Mewtwo) have moved to November 20, 2026. Toymate told pre-order customers that its supplier had reported an unexpected delay with production and the supply of stock, and EB Games lists the same November 20 date for both products.

The Ultra-Premium Collection (Day and Night) has moved to November 13, 2026. Expected AU RRP is around $360, and Kmart has already sold its online allocation (to bots) at that price.

Wave 5: December 4, 2026

Wave 5 brings the Sylveon ex Tin and Greninja ex Tin to Australian retailers. These are separate products from the Sylveon ex Box / Greninja ex Box in Wave 1 - don't confuse the two.

The Binder Collection, a 9-pocket binder with a design commemorating 30 years of Pokemon bundled with 5 booster packs, was also originally slated for this December 4 wave (delayed from its original Wave 2 date). In Australia specifically, Big W started shipping the Binder Collection early alongside Wave 1 on September 16 - so unlike the rest of the world, AU collectors did not have to wait until December for it.

What Is in Every 30th Celebration Booster Pack

30th Celebration packs are structured differently from standard expansions. Every card is foil. Each pack contains five foil cards (including one of 30 unique Pikachu illustration cards) and one foil Basic Energy card. The set contains approximately 150 cards after secret rares.

Two of the 30 Pikachu cards are Pikachu ex. Pikachu ex 107 uses Pika-Pika Parade to search the deck for any number of basic Pokemon and fill the bench. Pikachu ex 109 uses Zip-Zap Frenzy to attach any number of basic energy cards from your hand to your Pokemon. Both carry a 200-damage attack at three energy cost.

New Rarities and Card Types

Futuristic Rare is a brand-new rarity debuting in this expansion. The first Futuristic rare cards feature Mewtwo and Mew, illustrated by Japanese artist YOSHIROTTEN.

Classic Collection brings back reprints of iconic cards from across the TCG's 30-year history. Each classic reprint gets a foil treatment and a "30" Pikachu stamp. These reprints are not legal for Standard format play, though they can be used in formats that allow the original prints.

Day and Night Theme runs across the set's artwork, visible in the Mini Tin designs and the Ultra-Premium Collection naming.

Product-by-Pack Quick Reference

For the full breakdown of 30th Celebration products, pricing, and Australian pre-order availability, see the 30th Anniversary pre-orders guide. We track live deal pricing on sealed products across Australian retailers on our deals pages, real-time availability on our stock tracker, and per-store breakdowns on our retailers page. For every other confirmed Pokemon TCG release, see the full release calendar.

Frequently asked questions

What time does the Pokemon 30th Anniversary set release in Australia?
The 30th Celebration launched worldwide simultaneously, with no staggered international release, so Australian collectors got the same day-one access as the US and Japan for Wave 1 on September 16, 2026.

Is the Australian release the same day as the US?
Yes. This is the first time in Pokemon TCG history that a set has launched simultaneously across Japan, North America, Europe, and Australia rather than staggered by region.

Why do some Australian stores get stock before the official wave date?
Individual retailers sometimes ship early or open pre-orders ahead of schedule - Big W shipped the Binder Collection alongside Wave 1 despite it officially being a Wave 5 product, and Kmart opened Ultra Premium Collection pre-orders well before its Wave 4 date. Treat official wave dates as the latest a product should appear, not a guarantee it will not arrive sooner at a specific retailer.