Students who has applied for 485 graduates in Australia would know that there is a lot of information to prepare, and one of the essential documents is Health insurance documents. Today we summarise a few 485 visa insurance strategies for you, consider the following points so you can make an informed decision.
1. is my health cover recognised by the Immigration?
First of all, the insurance you buy must be an insurance company approved by the Immigration, the insurance required for the 485 visa is very different from the student's health insurance OSHC, so you cannot continue to use student insurance to apply for 485, instead you will need to change to the corresponding type of insurance.
Different insurance companies have different names for 485 insurance. Here are some of the commonly accredited insurance companies by the Immigration and their 485 categories:
• Bupa - 485 Visa Health Cover
• Medibank - Overseas Workers Health Cover
• Allianz - 485 Visa Overseas Visitor Health Cover
• iMan - Working Visitor Health Cover
2. covered items
Generally, the most basic 485 includes the main items of accidental hospitalisation and ambulance, but if additional cover is required, such as dental, optical, outpatient or GP consultations, prescription drugs, etc the premiums will also be increased accordingly.
3 price comparison
Unlike student insurance you will need to pay until the end of the course, 485 insurance can be paid by instalments, such as the option to make payments in fortnightly, monthly, quarterly, yearly manner. Due to differences between insurance companies and covering items, there are certain differences in the costs. Here we take the most basic single-person package as an example, for everyone to compare the price of a few companies.
Note: The follow chart price goes from price per month, price per quarter, and price per year
It can be seen that there are still some differences in the cost of different insurance companies. The main reason we take Bupa as an example. Although the price of Bupa may seem to be more expensive per month, it also covers more items, such as it includes a certain amount per year. Reimbursement for consultation fees and prescription drugs, while the other three basic packages were not included. If students have a regular need to see or take medication, do consider increasing premiums to get more coverage.
4 continuous insurance
Upon approval, the visa clause 8501-Maintain adequate health insurance, i.e. the person is required to hold insurance on a continuous basis while in Australia. Students who has chosen automatic deductions in instalments need to make sure there are sufficient funds in your account. Sometimes insufficient fund can cause the deductions to fail, thus causing the insurance to be cancelled. At this time, if you are still in Australia, you will be violating visa conditions!
The above is some introduction about 485 insurance. If you need to apply for with 485 insurance, please do not hesitate to contact AC&T!
