Compare Overseas Visitor Health Cover
You'll need health cover for your life down under! Get cover for a whole bunch starting from around $60 a month! (all rhymes intended)
Key takeaways
- It's likely you will be required to have health insurance when you come to Australia.
- If you want cover for more than hospital care, look for options with a tick below GP visits and dental.
- There are different levels of OVHC cover which affect the price you will pay - prices start from around $60 a month.
What is overseas visitors health cover?
Overseas visitors health cover (OVHC) is private health insurance designed specifically for people coming to Australia on a temporary visa. It's mandatory on some visas, but you may be exempt if you're a citizen of a country with a reciprocal health care agreement. If you're a student, you may need overseas student health cover.
OVHC can cover the following:
Hospital care
Cheaper policies will cover emergency ambulance rides and treatment in a hospital, plus accommodation fees. Other common services include cover for hernias, cancer and joint replacements.
Extras (out-of-hospital services)
Extras cover includes out-of-hospital care such as dental, optical, physiotherapy and chiropractic. Some more expensive OVHC policies will cover these treatments automatically. In other cases, you may need to take out a separate extras policy in addition to basic OVHC cover.
Doctor's appointments
This is when you need to make an appointment at a doctor's clinic, known as a General Practitioner (GP) in Australia, because you're feeling unwell or have some other health issue that may require medication.
Prescribed medicine
If you are on medication, it's likely worth getting a policy that will cover your prescriptions. Otherwise, medicine can be quite expensive in Australia.
Repatriation
If you become seriously unwell or suffer a life-altering disability, most overseas visitor policies will pay to fly you home under medical supervision.
Do you need overseas visitor health cover?
If you plan on working in Australia, your visa application will generally require you to have OVHC in place by the time you enter Australia, unless you're a citizen of a country that has a reciprocal health care agreement with Australia.
Visas that require OVHC
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