Private Health Insurance
Australian Healthcare & Private Health Insurance
– What’s the difference?
For all emigrants who are applying for a permanent residence visa or already have one, it is not a condition of your visa to have private health insurance or private hospital cover as you will be eligible for the Australian government funded health scheme (called Medicare) when you arrive to settle in Australia. Many migrants and Australian permanent residents choose to take out private health insurance as the Australian government has incentives for Australian permanent residents to take out private hospital cover.
These include:
- a government funded rebate to help cover the cost of insurance premiums.
- a medicare levy surcharge of 1-1.5% of your income (in addition to the 2% Medicare levy paid by most tax payers) for individuals and families who do not have private hospital cover and earn over a threshold income.
- a Lifetime Health Cover loading whereby a permanent resident pays a 2% loading on top of their insurance premium for every year they are over the age of 30 up to a maximum of 70% loading.
As a new migrant living in Australia (and holder of a permanent residence visa) you have until the later of 1 July following your 31st birthday or the first anniversary of your full Medicare registration to take out a hospital cover policy without incurring the Lifetime Health Cover loading. More information on Lifetime Health Cover loading, medicare levy surcharges and private health insurance rebates can be found on the PrivateHealth Australian Government website
REMEMBER: If you hold a permanent residence visa, there is no rush to take out private health insurance and you can delay the decision and choice of fund until you arrive in Australia.
For people who are applying for or coming to Australia on a temporary residence visa (subclasses 457 or subclass 485), it is a requirement of your visa that you have a private health insurance policy in place before your visa is granted and to maintain a valid policy for the duration of your stay in Australia. Visit the PrivateHealth 457 Visa Web Page or PrivateHealth 485 Visa Web Page for more information on health insurance requirements
International Students also need to have private health insurance and Overseas Student Health Cover is sufficient, please click This Link for more information.
There are many companies in Australia that provide complying private hospital insurance and health insurance, the Private Health website has a List of Health Funds (Link) that are registered under the Australian Government’s Health Insurance Act 2007.
Private Health Insurance Companies
The main funds who have dedicated services for new migrants and temporary residence visas are:
Bupa Australia:
Part of the BUPA Group that was founded in the UK in 1947, Bupa Australia and New Zealand has 4.7 million customers and provides private hospital insurance, private extras insurance as well as cover for holders of subclass 457 and 485 visas; working holiday, work and holiday (subclass 417 & 462) and cover for overseas visitors to Australia.
Please visit the Bupa Overseas Visitor Web Page for more information on cover types for temporary visa categories as well as their contact details.
Medibank Private:
Australian owned Medibank Private was established by the Australian Government as a not for profit private health insurance company in 1976. In 2014 the government announced the privatisation of Medibank Private and the company was listed on the Australian Securities Exchange in November 2014. Medibank currently has over 90 retail stores and 35 clinics across Australia and services the health insurance needs for over 3 million Australians.
Visit the Medibank Working Visa Insurance web page for their different options of cover for holders of 457 and other temporary residence visa types and how to get in touch with them.
NIB Health Funds Limited (NIB):
NIB was established by workers at BHP Steelworks in Mayfield in 1952 and has grown to serve the private health insurance needs of over 1 million Australians and 40,000 overseas customers including skilled migrant workers and international students. They have a range of health insurance cover options for temporary and provisional visa holders through their subsidiary business IMAN. For more information on cover types and policies, visit the Overseas Visitor Health Insurance section of the NIB Website.
Health Insurance Fund (HIF):
HIF was founded in Western Australia in 1954 and are Australia’s first and only certified carbon neutral health fund. They have a number of different policies that are visa compliant for provisional (temporary) residence visa categories. For details on policy types and to get a quote, visit the HIF Working Visa Web Page of their website.
