What is Overseas Visitors Health Cover (OVHC)?
Overseas Visitors Health Cover is health insurance for people in Australia on visitor, work, or temporary visas. Some visas require it, and even if yours doesn’t, it’s smart to have. Medical costs can be high, especially if your country lacks a Reciprocal Health Care Agreement (RHCA).
HBF offers flexible cover options for hospital and medical services, and extras cover for things like dental, optical, and physiotherapy. All plans include emergency ambulance cover for transport by road to hospital emergency departments (ED).
Why HBF Overseas Visitor Health Cover?
Select covers meet Australian visa requirements (8501)
Unlimited urgent road ambulance to any Australian hospital Emergency Department
Covers fees charged by Australian public hospital Emergency Departments
Covers hospital doctors’ fees for many high-cost treatments¹
What you need to know while you’re in Australia
What is hospital insurance?
Hospital insurance helps cover some of the costs when you’re admitted to hospital - things like doctors’ fees, accommodation and theatre fees. These are known as ‘inpatient’ services. Without hospital insurance, these costs can be very high leaving you significantly out of pocket.
HBF Overseas Visitor Health Cover (OVHC) provides hospital insurance to people visiting Australia. The good news is, some of our OVHC products also include cover for outpatient services such as visits to the doctor (also known as a general practitioner or GP), scans and diagnostic tests (such as ultrasounds, x-rays and blood tests).
In addition to having peace of mind from being covered, getting OVHC may be a condition of your visa. It’s why you should consider getting OVHC from HBF - one of Australia’s most-awarded* health insurance providers - before you arrive in Australia.
What we can cover
- Hospital admissions for medically necessary surgery and hospital stays
- Medical expenses like doctor’s fees, hospital accommodation, operating theatre and surgically implanted medical device fees for covered services
- Outpatient services such as visits to the doctor, and diagnostic tests such as ultrasounds and x-rays
- Unlimited emergency ambulance*
What is extras cover?
Extras insurance helps cover the cost of everyday healthcare services including things like dental check-ups, physio appointments and glasses or contacts.
With HBF, the great thing about extras cover is that most services have annual limits which reset on the 1st of January every year. This means that if you find you’ve used up all of your annual limits, when January 1st comes around your limits will be reset and you can start claiming again.
Choosing the right level of cover
HBF offers different levels of extras cover to choose from. These range from basic cover for a few services to comprehensive cover for a wide range of services. Annual limits and benefits you can claim for a service will vary depending on your level of cover.
Choosing the right level of extras cover comes down to who you need cover for and what services you think you’ll use throughout the year. If you typically only go to the dentist for an annual check-up and get a new pair of glasses every year, Basic Extras might be perfect for you. But if you’re getting cover for the whole family and need cover for things like Orthodontics, Natural Therapies or Psychology, you’ll benefit from getting a higher level of cover.
What we can cover
- Dental
- Physiotherapy
- Chiropractic
- Optical
Overseas Visitors Health cover explained
FAQs for Overseas Visitor Health cover
What is a reciprocal health care agreement, and does it apply to me?
Do I need to serve waiting periods before I can claim on hospital cover?
The waiting periods that apply to your cover are listed in your product sheet. It’s important that you’ve served any relevant waiting periods before you receive any treatment.
What is a waiting period?
A waiting period is a period of time during which you must hold continuous membership under a particular health cover before you are entitled to receive a benefit at the level payable on that cover. You can claim benefits applicable on your level of cover for services or treatment you receive after you have served your waiting periods.
What is an annual limit?
Can I get health insurance if I have a pre-existing condition?
Yes. Even if you have a pre-existing condition, you will be able to buy health insurance for your stay in Australia. However, you will need to serve a 12-month waiting period before you can claim on any pre-existing conditions.
I’m moving to Australia soon, when should I start my hospital cover?
When you apply for hospital cover, you will be asked to choose a start date for your policy - this should be the date you intend to arrive in Australia.
Do I need health insurance when I visit Australia?
Having health insurance will help pay some of the cost of your treatment if you require medical services while in Australia. If you don’t have private health insurance while in Australia and aren’t eligible for Medicare, you will need to pay 100% of the bill for any medical expenses you incur during your stay, including things like visiting a doctor or being admitted to hospital. If your country has a reciprocal health care agreement with Australia, you will be covered for certain health care costs while you’re in Australia.
Note: Some Australian visas require you to maintain an appropriate level of private health insurance cover for the duration of your whole stay in Australia.
What if I’m unsure where I’ll be staying in Australia?
What is Lifetime Health Cover loading (LHC) and does it apply to me?
In short, Lifetime Health Cover loading (LHC) doesn’t apply to Overseas Visitor Health Cover policies.
LHC generally applies to Australian residents who choose to take out hospital cover later in life. Australian residents who choose to take out hospital cover before they turn 31 don’t have to pay LHC.
If you decide to move to Australia and you’re over the age of 31, LHC may apply if you don’t take out an appropriate level of Australian resident health cover within 12 months of being granted Australian resident Medicare entitlements.
What is the Medicare Levy Surcharge (MLS)?
Visitors to Australia for work may need to pay the Medicare Levy Surcharge (MLS), which equates to 1-1.5% of your income, depending on how much you earn. You will need to pay the MLS if you’re visiting from a Reciprocal Healthcare Agreement country, and earn over $101,000 per year (or $202,000 per year for couples and families). We recommend you speak to a tax advisor if you’re unsure about the MLS.
Taking care of your health in Australia
Why choose HBF health insurance?
We put our members first
We’re not-for-profit
We’re flexible
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