Australia Unity Offers The Best Top Overseas Health Cover

457 Visa Compared recommends Australia Unity because:

• It has the lowest price within this premium health cover segment
• The policy private strong private hospital cover (it also has public hospital cover if required)
• There are a wide range of extra’s including popular items such as seeing the dentist or physio
• It covers many doctors expenses such as seeing a GP
• There is no excess on the workers cover policy

Australian Unity is rated 1.9 out of 5 from 31 reviews on the 01 April 2015 on the popular website Product Review. While this average is not very positive almost all complaints were relevant to the permanent resident cover and based on feedback, policy prices and benefits payable the author still believes that this cover is ideal for those families looking for top cover. Many families looking for top cover may have specific requirements (hence why they are looking for top cover). Its critical that these families do a full comparison of the policies as some are strong in areas compared to others. It’s also critical to understand the waiting periods on the policies especially in areas such as pregnancy and extra’s cover for the family overseas health insurance.

The authors of 457 visa compared made their best attempt to make a full comparison based on the information provided on each family overseas health insurance website and through downloading the individual policies. Policy information including prices can change without notice and while this individual comparison was updated in October 2013 the author can’t guarantee the site’s accuracy when it comes to prices and policy details. If errors are found the authors appreciate if individuals use the contact form to identify the issue(s) and changes will be made ASAP. Therefore, this overseas health insurance information (including comparison) is indicative and should be used for general information purposes only. Please refer to the relevant policy brochure for full details including waiting periods.

Family Overseas Visitor Health Insurance - What you need to know!

Under the rules for working visa’s such as the subclass 485 and 457 visa, its compulsory to have a suitable level of health insurance during your stay in Australia. It’s also compulsory to have overseas visitor health insurance proof when submitting an application (eg a policy acceptance letter). There is one exception to this requirement which is Medicare which you can apply for if you come from an eligible country such as the UK. Residents from these countries can apply for this entitlement once they move to Australia and complete the relevant papers. Once the Medicare card is received the overseas visitor can cancel their overseas visitor health insurance without risk of their visa been cancelled.

While cancelling your overseas health insurance may save a large sum of money each month, it’s important to understand that Medicare only provides basic cover across only some services. For example, if you want to see a dentist Medicare will not cover you. Also if you visit most GP’s, Medicare will give you some money back but you will be out-of-pocket for the remaining balance. This increases depending on the type of doctor, specialist or surgeon. There can also be out-of-pocket expenses if you need hospital treatment (even if it’s within a public hospital). Waiting lists may also apply for certain treatments.

Almost half of Australian’s have health insurance for the reasons above. The ability to get more back when using a health service and the option to get treated in either a public or private hospital is a key draw-card. There are also tax benefits for holding overseas visitor health insurance which can be be larger then the policy itself. Talking to your accountant and understanding the Australian tax system is strongly recommended prior to making any decision to cancel your overseas health insurance.