How does student health insurance work?

As an international student, the Australian Government requires you and any secondary visa holders to have adequate health insurance in the form of Overseas Student Health Cover (OSHC) for your entire stay in the country. Your Overseas Student Health Cover (OSHC) helps cover you for a range of different medical costs. These can include medical services (doctor consults & medical tests), ambulance services and your stay in hospital.^{^}

The Australian Government sets recommended fees for many medical services, such as doctor visits and pathology tests. This list of fees is called the Medicare Benefits Schedule (MBS).

At CBHS International Health, our Overseas Student Health Cover (OSHC) is designed to help cover these costs. If your doctor or pathology provider charges the standard MBS fee, we’ll pay the full amount.

However, if they charge more than the MBS fee, you’ll need to pay the difference. This is known as an ‘out-of-pocket expense’ or ‘gap’ payment. There may be waiting periods associated with some services. See your policy document or fund rules for more detailed information.

Who’s eligible for international student health insurance and what are the visa requirements?

If you’re an overseas student coming to study in Australia on a student visa (500 visa), you’ll be eligible for OSHC. This includes: 

• Student visa holders
• Some bridging visa holders
• Student visa applicants

Before you submit your student visa application you need to buy OSHC policy. It's important to understand your cover does not begin until your visa is granted, you're in Australia, and your cover is activated.

You need to ensure you buy the right policy that matches your circumstances to ensure you're fully meeting your visa condition 8501. For example, if you and your partner are coming to study in Australia, you'll need to buy one OSHC policy for couples.

Here are the different membership options you can choose from: 

• Single policies cover only you as the overseas student
• Couple policies cover you as an overseas student and your partner
• Family policies cover you as an overseas student, your partner, and your dependant children
• Sole parent policies cover you as the overseas student and your dependant children. 

Can I switch from another international student health insurance provider?

If you’ve arrived in Australia and you’re not satisfied with the price, level of cover, benefits, or services you receive from your current provider, you can easily switch to CBHS International Health.

Switching doesn’t impact your studies, work, or visa arrangements, provided you don’t have any periods without cover in between your existing policy and your new policy.

Does OSHC cover extras like dental, optical, and physiotherapy treatment?

Our Overseas Student Health Cover (OSHC) doesn't cover dental treatments, optical services, or physiotherapy. However, you can purchase additional Direct Extras with CBHS Corporate to help cover these costs and personalise your health insurance to suit your needs.