A summary of the main types of insurance worth knowing for foreigners (working holiday, study, migration) living in Australia. It covers the types of health, car, and travel/renters insurance and how to compare and sign up. The information below is general guidance, and actual premiums and cover depend on the insurer, product and your situation. Always check the latest terms in each insurer's Product Disclosure Statement (PDS) and official site before signing up.
Australia often requires foreigners to hold an adequate level of health insurance depending on their visa type. Students usually take OSHC, while working holiday, work and other temporary visa holders generally take OVHC. The requirements differ with your visa conditions, so check your visa guidance first.
Overseas Student Health Cover. The health insurance that student visa (subclass 500) holders generally take, usually required to cover the entire visa period. It covers GP visits, some hospital/emergency and part of prescription medicines.
Overseas Visitors Health Cover. Health insurance for temporary visa holders such as working holiday and work visas. Cover varies a lot by product, so check whether hospital, emergency, ambulance and prescription medicines are included.
The above are examples of well-known insurers, not a recommendation. Compare whether they meet your visa requirements, the cover, waiting periods and premiums before choosing. You can check the latest information on the government comparison site and each insurer's official page.
The covered items, amounts and waiting periods of health insurance differ by product and change often. Dental, optical and physiotherapy are often not included in basic products. Read the Product Disclosure Statement (PDS) before signing up, and always confirm via official guidance that it meets your visa requirements. This content is not medical advice.
To drive a vehicle in Australia, third-party personal injury insurance — CTP (Compulsory Third Party, called a 'Green Slip' in some states) — is legally required. Other insurance is optional, but it's usual to consider extra cover to be protected for the other party's and your own vehicle damage in an accident. How CTP runs and its price differ by state (NSW, VIC, QLD, etc.).
| Type | Main cover (general example) |
|---|---|
| CTP (Green Slip) | Legally required insurance. Covers compensation for others' injury or death (personal injury) from an accident. It generally does not cover vehicle or property damage. |
| Third Party Property | Third-party property. Covers the other party's vehicle and property damage when you're at fault. It doesn't cover your own vehicle damage. |
| Third Party Fire & Theft | A mid-tier product that, on top of third-party property, also covers some fire and theft damage to your own vehicle. |
| Comprehensive | Comprehensive insurance. Covers the other party's damage as well as broad cover for accident, fire and theft damage to your own vehicle. The premium is the highest, but the cover is the widest. |
How CTP runs and its rates, and comprehensive cover and Excess, differ by state and insurer. Premiums can vary greatly with driving history, an overseas licence, age and where you live. Compare quotes from several insurers and check the PDS before signing up.
Early after arriving in Australia or for a short trip, you might consider travel insurance covering medical costs, baggage and schedule changes. However, for long-term residents, residential health insurance like OVHC or OSHC is often more suitable than travel insurance.
When living in a share house or rental, you might consider tenant contents insurance to protect your own belongings (laptop, furniture, clothing, etc.). Note that the rental building itself is usually covered by the landlord's insurance, which does not cover the tenant's personal belongings.
Insurance should be compared not just on price but also cover, waiting periods, excess and exclusions. Using comparison sites run by government or independent bodies and each insurer's quote tool helps.
Online comparison sites may show only some affiliated insurers, so it's best to check several sources together. The suitability of insurance varies with your personal situation, so for important decisions consult a licensed insurance or financial professional or an official body. This content is not financial advice.
| Term | Meaning |
|---|---|
| Premium | Premium. The amount you pay regularly (monthly/yearly) to keep the insurance. |
| Excess | Excess. The amount the policyholder pays first when making a claim. The higher the Excess, the lower the premium tends to be. |
| Waiting Period | Waiting period. The period you must wait after signing up before you can receive certain cover (especially in health insurance). |
| Claim | Claim. The process of asking the insurer for compensation when a covered event such as an accident or illness occurs. |
| PDS (Product Disclosure Statement) | Product Disclosure Statement. The official document setting out cover, exclusions and terms, which you must read before signing up. |
Government-run private health insurance comparison site — compare cover items and insurers
Australian Department of Health — guidance on overseas visitor and student health insurance (OVHC·OSHC)
ASIC's MoneySmart — neutral consumer guidance on types of insurance and how to choose
Insurance Council of Australia — general insurance information and claims guidance after disasters
AFCA — a free external dispute resolution body for insurance and financial disputes
This guide goes beyond the basics of each insurance type to cover the situations you'll actually run into: how to read your visa conditions, how car insurance works in each state, making claims and handling disputes, and when to switch cover as your stay in Australia progresses. Specific conditions and prices change all the time, so always confirm the final details through each agency's and insurer's official information.
Many temporary visas can carry condition 8501, which requires you to 'maintain adequate health insurance'. Check the Conditions section of the Visa Grant Notice you receive when your visa is approved — if you've misplaced it, you can look it up for free through the Department of Home Affairs' VEVO (Visa Entitlement Verification Online). A gap in cover can amount to a breach of your visa conditions, so it's safest to put both your insurance expiry date and your visa expiry date in your calendar.
The usual pairing is OSHC for the student visa (subclass 500) and OVHC for other temporary visas — work, graduate, training and so on (482, 485, 407). In particular, when you move from a student visa to the graduate visa (485), your OSHC cover ends, so you'll often need to switch to OVHC, and proof of cover may be required when you lodge the visa application. To make sure cover doesn't drop out during any bridging visa period, check with your insurer in advance whether your existing policy can be extended.
Australia has Reciprocal Health Care Agreements (RHCA) with 11 countries including the UK, Ireland, New Zealand, Italy and the Netherlands, which may allow limited Medicare enrolment through Services Australia depending on your residency status in that country. RHCA cover is limited, though — mainly 'medically necessary treatment' — and whether it can stand in for the insurance requirement under condition 8501 can depend on your visa type, so confirm with the Department of Home Affairs. Even if you're from an agreement country, dental and extras aren't covered, so separate insurance may still be worth considering.
On employer-sponsored visas (such as the 482), your employer may take out OVHC on your behalf, but responsibility for meeting the visa condition ultimately sits with you, the visa holder. Get your own copy of the Certificate of Insurance naming you and any accompanying family members, keep it safe, and check the policy terms for whether cover ends immediately if you resign or change jobs. A common mistake is being left uninsured during the gap between jobs — which creates a visa condition breach and an uninsured medical cost risk at the same time.
If you're not eligible for Medicare, even public hospital treatment and admissions are billed to you in full, and in most states ambulance fees are charged separately from Medicare on top of that. There is guidance suggesting unpaid medical debts can count against you in future visa applications and renewals (it depends on the individual case), so the rule of thumb is simple: never let a coverage gap open up. Also note that cover begins from the cover start date shown on your certificate — not the date you paid.
In NSW you have to buy CTP (a Green Slip) separately from a private insurer before you can register your car (rego), while in VIC the TAC (Transport Accident Commission) premium is bundled into your rego payment. In QLD you pick one of the MAIC (Motor Accident Insurance Commission) approved insurers when applying for rego; in WA it's the ICWA (Insurance Commission of Western Australia) Motor Injury Insurance, and in SA your chosen approved insurer's portion is included in rego. If you move interstate, the whole CTP structure changes, so check it from scratch when re-registering your car.
In NSW you can compare quotes from each insurer using the Green Slip price comparison tool run by the regulator, SIRA (State Insurance Regulatory Authority), before you buy. For personal injury caused by uninsured or hit-and-run vehicles, the Nominal Defendant scheme is the avenue for compensation, and other states such as QLD have similar arrangements. A common mistake is only starting to look into a Green Slip right before rego renewal and letting the registration lapse — in NSW, buying CTP is a precondition for rego.
If you've bought a car whose registration has lapsed, or need to drive one to an inspection station, the state transport authority (Transport for NSW, VicRoads and so on) can issue a short-term Unregistered Vehicle Permit, and CTP cover for the permit period is generally included. The permitted days, routes and conditions vary by state. Drive an unregistered vehicle without a permit and, on top of fines, you could personally wear the cost of compensating anyone injured in an accident.
How long you can drive on an overseas licence and when you must convert to a local one depends on the state and your visa status (temporary vs permanent), so check with the relevant state transport authority. Comprehensive premiums tend to be priced higher if your Australian driving history is short, but some insurers will factor an English-language no-claims letter from your home-country insurer into their discount calculation, so it's worth asking when getting quotes. An accident while in breach of your licence conditions (for example, past the conversion deadline) may see cover declined.
Before a private hospital admission or major dental work, the standard process is to take the MBS item numbers and quote from your doctor to your insurer first and confirm what's covered and your expected out-of-pocket gap. You can also ask the hospital and doctor for a written Informed Financial Consent quote. A common mistake is going in without checking and then copping the full bill because a waiting period hadn't been served or the item was excluded.
For extras like dental, physio and glasses, the easiest route is on-the-spot claiming through the HICAPS terminal at participating providers; otherwise, uploading via the insurer's app or member portal, or submitting by email or post, is standard. The receipt must be an itemised receipt showing the amount and provider number for each item — a basic docket may be knocked back. Each product sets its own claim lodgement deadline, so don't put it off after your appointment.
The most common reasons claims get rejected are unserved waiting periods, a pre-existing condition finding, non-disclosure at sign-up, and policy exclusions. For Australian private health insurance, the maximum legislated waiting periods are 12 months for pre-existing conditions and pregnancy and 2 months for most other things, but OSHC and OVHC apply their own PDS conditions, so check those separately. A classic example is claiming wisdom teeth surgery six months into a policy and being declined under a '12-month wait for major dental' clause.
Health insurance disputes (including OSHC and OVHC) go to the Commonwealth Ombudsman's Private Health Insurance Ombudsman function, while general insurance disputes — car, contents, travel and the like — are handled by AFCA (the Australian Financial Complaints Authority). Either way, step one is the insurer's own Internal Dispute Resolution process, and insurers are generally required to respond within 30 days. If it isn't resolved, you can take it to the external body free of charge — but there are time limits for lodging, so record the date you received the rejection notice.
For health insurance, have itemised receipts, prescriptions, medical certificates and referrals ready as the basics; for car insurance, the other party's details, photos of the scene, and the police event number (for theft or hit-and-run). Note down anything you're told over the phone along with the date and the consultant's name, and if a claim is declined, always ask for written reasons. Those written reasons become the key evidence for any later Ombudsman or AFCA application.
In the Australian insurance market, existing customers' renewal premiums are sometimes priced higher than a new-customer quote for identical cover — something consumer bodies have warned about for years. When your renewal notice arrives, run a new-customer quote on the same insurer's website, and if there's a gap, ring them and ask for a price adjustment. Insurers will often come to the party to keep your business — and if they won't, switch.
Bundling car, contents and home insurance with one insurer often earns a multi-policy discount. But the bundled total can still work out dearer than taking each policy with its cheapest insurer separately, so always compare the bundle total against the sum of the individual cheapest options. If different renewal dates make comparing a hassle, lining all your renewals up in the same month makes an annual re-quote easy.
Plenty of insurers add an instalment charge to monthly payments, so the yearly total can end up higher than paying annually. On the quote screen, compare the annual total directly against the monthly amount multiplied by 12, and if the difference is significant, consider paying annually. Cover can also lapse if a monthly payment fails, so keep an eye on the direct debit account too.
Comprehensive car insurance typically works on a rating system where your premium drops the longer you stay claim-free. For minor damage, the sensible approach is to weigh the rating downgrade and future premium increases a claim would trigger against simply paying for the repair yourself, then decide whether to claim. Some products offer a protected no-claim bonus option for an extra cost — check the policy terms.
If your annual kilometres are low, low-usage products or pay-as-you-drive style options can sometimes trim your premium. Discounts for restricting the policy to drivers above a certain age are common too, but an accident in breach of the restriction can mean a declined claim or an extra excess. Keep your declared kilometres and driver list matching reality, and update your insurer straight away if circumstances change.
Obstetrics cover on health insurance conventionally carries a 12-month waiting period, so if you sign up after finding out you're pregnant, there's a real chance the birth costs won't be covered. If you're not eligible for Medicare, even a public hospital birth can be billed in full, so if a baby is on the cards, look at taking out a product with obstetrics cover more than a year in advance. Cover and waiting periods differ between OSHC and OVHC products — check the PDS.
Student visa holders bringing a partner or children are generally required to hold family OSHC, and the premium is considerably higher than singles cover. If your child is born in Australia, the newborn needs to be added to the policy — some products will cover the baby with no waiting periods if registered within a set window after birth, so check with your insurer before the birth.
Once you rent out a property, the usual move is landlord insurance — covering loss of rent, tenant damage and public liability — rather than standard home insurance. Short-stay letting may fall under separate terms or products. For apartments and other strata properties, the building itself sits under strata insurance, so check for both overlaps and gaps in cover.
Public liability covers injury or property damage to third parties in the course of your business, while professional indemnity covers losses caused by negligence or faulty advice in professional services — they're two different policies. Some industries and licences require insurance as a registration condition, so check with the relevant industry regulator. Sole traders generally aren't covered by workers compensation for themselves, which is why income protection insurance is often recommended (schemes vary by state).
Vet bills sit entirely outside Medicare and health insurance, and major treatment such as surgery can cost a serious amount. Pet insurance applies waiting periods and pre-existing condition exclusions in the same way human policies do, so the younger and healthier your pet is when you sign up, the fewer the exclusions. When comparing, check the annual benefit limit, the benefit percentage, and breed-specific excluded conditions.
OSHC should be set up so cover starts from the day you arrive in Australia — if you set the start date to your course start date, you're uninsured from arrival until classes begin. If your visa calls for OVHC, sign up online before departure so cover starts on arrival day, and if there's a processing lag, a short-term travel insurance policy can bridge the gap. Once you've landed, finish setting up the insurer's app and getting your member card (digital card) issued.
Once your housing is sorted, make a list of your valuables — laptop, bike, instruments — and design your contents insurance around it. High-value items above the standard cover limit need to be listed as specified items, and if you want cover for loss or theft away from home, most products require adding a portable contents option. Failing to accurately disclose your living arrangement (share house vs sole tenancy) can count against you at claim time.
With a used car, in many states the remaining rego and CTP transfer with the vehicle, but the transfer of ownership must be completed within each state's deadline. Comprehensive and third-party property cover do not transfer, so you need your own policy from the moment you take delivery and drive off — arrange it by phone or online before handing over the balance. The classic mistake is thinking 'I'll just drive it home' and having an accident uninsured.
Once permanent residency is granted — and for some visas, even at the application stage — you may become eligible to enrol in Medicare through Services Australia. With a Medicare card in hand, OVHC often becomes unnecessary, so ask your insurer about cancelling and whether the unused portion is refundable. Eligibility varies by visa type, so the accurate source is Services Australia's official guidance.
Under the Lifetime Health Cover (LHC) rules, taking out private hospital cover for the first time after the base date (currently the first 1 July after your 31st birthday) can attract a premium loading for the time you delayed — but new migrants get a grace period calculated from their Medicare registration date. On top of that, if your income is above a certain threshold and you don't hold hospital cover, the Medicare Levy Surcharge (an extra tax) can apply. Check the exact thresholds at privatehealth.gov.au and with the ATO (Australian Taxation Office).
Student visa (subclass 500) holders are generally required to hold OSHC (Overseas Student Health Cover) for the entire visa period. Sometimes the school recommends a specific insurer, so check the enrolment guidance and your visa conditions together. Exact requirements can vary with visa type and timing.
Working holiday visas often don't specify mandatory cover, but because foreigners' access to public healthcare (Medicare) is limited in Australia, we strongly recommend taking out health insurance like OVHC. Medical costs can be very high, so it's safer to be prepared for accidents and illness. Check your own visa conditions in official guidance.
CTP is only compulsory insurance for others' injury from an accident, and generally doesn't cover vehicle or property damage. To be covered for the other party's or your own vehicle damage, it's best to consider extra cover such as third-party property or comprehensive insurance. How it operates differs by state.
Comprehensive premiums vary a lot with your residential postcode (inner city vs outer suburbs), where the car sits overnight (garage vs street), the driver's age and experience, and the type of car. If you move and don't update your address, that's a breach of your duty of disclosure and a claim could be reduced or declined — tell your insurer the moment you move. Getting a re-quote on the new address before you move also gives you a feel for how the choice of suburb changes the cost.
With general insurance, cancelling within the cooling-off period shortly after purchase usually gets you a full refund, so if you spot a better deal, this window is your chance. Cancelling later in the term is typically refunded pro-rata for the remaining period, but a cancellation fee may apply. Check the exact period and fees in the PDS, and only cancel once the new policy's cover start date is lined up so there's no gap.
If you leave Australia for good before your visa ends, you may be able to apply for a pro-rata refund on the unused portion of your OSHC or OVHC, with flight bookings or departure evidence generally required. Travel insurance for the trip home is often built around a 'depart Australia, return to Australia' round trip, so check whether one-way cover is available. For your car, cancel CTP and comprehensive insurance alongside the sale or deregistration so you're not paying twice.
OSHC and OVHC cover treatment within Australia, so medical costs during a visit home or travel to a third country generally aren't covered. Medicare doesn't apply overseas either (with limited exceptions in RHCA countries), so whenever you leave Australia you need separate travel insurance regardless of your residency visa. Some products let you suspend your premium during a long absence — ask your insurer before you fly out.
For health insurance, the government-run comparison site (privatehealth.gov.au), and for general information, public resources like ASIC's MoneySmart are neutral. Private comparison sites may show only affiliated insurers, so check several sources together and cross-check against each insurer's official quote.
Excess is the amount the policyholder pays first when making a claim. Setting a higher Excess lowers the premium but increases your out-of-pocket in an accident. Choose based on the balance of premium and excess. The amount and terms differ by product.
Common methods include adjusting the excess, dropping unnecessary cover, re-comparing at each renewal, and comparing quotes from several insurers. However, if cover is cut too much, you may not be paid when you actually need it, so weigh price against cover carefully. This content is not financial advice.
First go through the insurer's internal complaints process, and if it isn't resolved, you can ask AFCA (Australian Financial Complaints Authority), a free external dispute resolution body, for help. To prepare for a dispute, keep your sign-up documents, call records and certificate.
