HIF Provides Good Value Top Singles 457 Visa Health Cover

Individuals who want top-level health cover that meet Department of Immigration and Border Protection 457 visa requirements should consider HIF Comprehensive Working Visa.

A recent comparison in April 2016 of each major Australian health fund found that HIF has:

• A well-priced policy
• Full cover for accommodation - private room in private hospital
• 100% ambulance cover
• Extras including dental, optical and physio
• Repatriation cover (max. $8000)
• Visits to your local doctor of choice

HIF is a Western Australian health provider that offers national coverage across Australia.
The health fund has some of the strongest customer satisfaction rankings and is one of Australia’s fastest growing health funds.
The fund’s business model is ‘not for profit’ so revenue made goes back to keep policy prices low and improve existing cover products.

If you’re looking for more affordable budget cover, you should view our budget 457 health insurance table with our recommendation to consider IMAN at this level of cover.

Understanding 457 Visa Hospital Cover vs Extras Cover

All the covers above have both hospital and extras cover. The hospital cover is the element that is compulsory for 457 visa holders to meet the ‘health insurance’ portion of their 457 visa application. While the budget 457 visa health insurance policy options cover this requirement, the top cover options above have superior benefits such as more comprehensive private hospital cover for a wider variety of procedures. It also includes pregnancy cover which is critical to consider if you’re considering having a baby in the near future.

It should be noted that almost all hospital cover benefits have a 12-month waiting period. This means that if you have a pre-existing injury you will need to wait 12 months before you can make a claim. For pregnancy this means that you won’t have cover if you are already pregnant. Rather, if you want to be covered you should conceive at least 3 months after you take out the policy that includes pregnancy cover (assuming this means you will have the baby in the next 12 months after first taking out the policy. Hospital cover is also the element that is requested most even by Australian citizens to avoid the Medicare surcharge if your yearly taxable income is above a certain threshold.

Extras cover is not compulsory for 457 visa holders and offers no tax incentive when you take out an extras-only policy. However, this is the element that most people file claims for on a more regular basis as it includes services such as seeing a dentist, getting a new pair of glasses, physiotherapist sessions, etc. There are also waiting periods for this cover, but many will be less then 12 months (e.g. as short as 2 months for general dental).

It’s important to note that some Australian health funds provide incentives to visit their preferred providers (for example a dental clinic that’s part of their network) by giving a larger percentage back on claims. Overall, its important to consider the extra healthcare services you may require, that are not covered by hospital cover or Medicare, and how much it costs each year when considering your options for your 457 visa health insurance.

About this evaluation of 457 visa health cover

The author made this evaluation of 457 visa health cover policies on the 4th of April 2016 by checking each health fund’s website individually and making a manual comparison based on price and benefits. Individual policy prices are subject to change over time, as can the benefits that a health fund provides. Based on these fluctuations, the author of 457VisaCompared strongly recommends that individuals double check all details provided on this site prior to making your 457 visa health cover decision. Please view this site’s couples and family comparison tables for a comprehensive review of other 457 visa health covers. You should also consider the overall cost of migrating to Australia (versus other countries) by checking our 457 visa infographic which was created in August. The information featured here is indicative and provided as a general information guide only. Please refer to the relevant policy brochure for full details including waiting periods.