Overseas Visitors Health Cover (OVHC) is health insurance for international visitors and workers.

OVHC can help you pay for medical and hospital services while you’re in Australia.

Paying for medical treatment in Australia can be expensive

You may not be eligible for Medicare (the public health insurance system for Australian residents). Without access to Medicare, paying for medical treatment can be expensive.

When you’re away from home, it’s important to know medical treatment is available and affordable if something was to happen to you.

Visa requirements
OVHC may be a requirement of your visa (e.g. if your visa is subject to visa condition 8501).

Find health cover by your visa type

The following visa types are eligible for Overseas Visitors Health Cover:

Bridging Visas

010 Bridging Visa A (BVA)

020 Bridging Visa B (BVB)

030 Bridging Visa C (BVC)

Visitor Visas

580 Guardian Visa

590 Student Guardian Visa

600 Visitor

601 Electronic Travel Authority

651 eVisitor

Working and Holiday Visas

417 Working Holiday

462 Work and Holiday

Working Visas

188 Business Innovation & Investment (Provisional)

400 Temporary Work (Short Stay Activity)

401 Temporary Work (Long Stay Activity)

402 Training and Research

403 Temporary Work (International Relations)

407 Training

408 Temporary Activity

416 Seasonal Worker Program

457 Skilled Temporary Work

476 Skilled Recognised Graduate

485 Temporary Graduate

489 Skilled Regional (Provisional)

This will depend on the type of policy you have. Your Certificate of Insurance will show which policy you have purchased.

• Singles – covering only the overseas student
• Dual family – covering the overseas student, and either:
  • One adult spouse or de facto partner
  • One or more children under the age of 18 years old
• Multi-family – covering the overseas student and more than one dependant, which can include:
  • Only one adult spouse or de facto partner
  • One or more dependent children

A waiting period is the amount of time you need to wait before you can make a claim through your OVHC policy.

Waiting periods apply to your policy if you’re claiming medical costs related to pregnancy or pre-existing conditions.

Learn more about waiting periods

If you have a non-urgent injury or illness that needs to be treated, you may want to consider visiting a local doctor at a medical centre – also known as a General Practitioner (GP).

You can access many services at your GP, including:

• General medicine and simple diagnostic testing to find out what the problem is
• Assessment and treatment of health problems and injuries
• First aid services
• Women’s and men’s health
• Referrals to specialist services (e.g. to visit a radiologist to get an x-ray)

All public hospitals in Australia have a 24-hour emergency and casualty department where you can get help after hours and on the weekend.

People waiting in emergency are assessed and treated based on the seriousness of their medical condition. The patients with the most urgent problems are seen and treated first. If you attend the emergency department with a less serious medical condition, you may need to wait a long time to be treated. 

In Australia, health care is made up of a mixture of services funded by the Australian Government and private health insurance. Australian residents are automatically covered for many hospital and medical costs under the Government’s Medicare scheme, but many Australians choose to take out additional cover through the private health care system.

Medicare covers areas of medical, hospital and pharmaceutical costs, but doesn’t cover medical services like private hospital costs, dental, physiotherapy and similar services, emergency ambulance assistance or other transport to hospital.

You’ll have to pay a gap fee if the amount the medical provider charges is more than the benefit you’re entitled to under your cover. You’ll need to pay the gap fee yourself – you won’t be able to claim that amount. 

We recommend you call your doctor before your appointment to ask what it will cost you.

Your cover starts the day you arrive in Australia or the day your visa is granted (whichever is later) and ends on the expiry date of your visa, as long as you continue to pay your regular OVHC premium instalments.

Is it an emergency?

If you have a life-threatening medical emergency, call 000 immediately for help.

Need non-urgent help?

If you have a non-urgent injury or illness that needs to be treated, you may want to consider visiting a local doctor at a medical centre – also known as a General Practitioner (GP).

Find a doctor near you

Need to see a specialist?

Medical specialists are doctors with additional education and training in a specific area of medicine. For example, if you have a medical condition related to your skin, you may want to visit a Dermatologist.

To see a specialist, you’ll need a referral from your GP.  

Using our network of providers makes it easier for you to claim when you visit a doctor. All you need to do is provide your valid membership card on the day of your appointment and the medical provider will bill us directly for the covered amount of your bill.

With direct billing, the doctor bills us directly.

Make sure you select a doctor from our providers list that specifies they can direct bill.

1. Download the Claim form
2. Print and complete the form
3. Scan your completed form and any relevant attachments (e.g. receipts) and email them to ovhcclaims@allianz-assistance.com.au with your claim reference in the subject line

Alternatively, you can post your claim and receipts to:

Allianz Global Assistance OVHC
Locked Bag 3004
Toowong QLD 4066

A pre-existing condition is a medical condition (e.g. ailment, illness or symptom) that started before you purchased your health insurance policy from us.

You’ll need to have had your policy for 12 months before making a claim related to any pre-existing condition.

If you have a pre-existing psychiatric condition, you’ll only need to wait 2 months.

Learn more about pre-existing conditions

We have a network of medical centres and doctors that offer direct billing services. All you need to do is provide your valid membership card and the provider will bill us directly for the covered amount of your bill. With direct billing, the doctor bills us directly.

Find a direct billing doctor near you