-Martina

Hi all,
This might have been covered before - but I couldn't really find
anything in the archives.

My partner and I are permanent residents in Australia. His parents are
UK citizens and are living in the UK at the moment (both over 70). They
are planning to visit us for six months later in the year and will need
to apply for a visitor visa.

According to the DIMA website, over 70s visitors on a visitor will need
to provide evidence of private health insurance for the duration of
their stay in Australia. UK residents, however, are covered by Medicare
under the reciprocal agreement. Do they still need to get a private
health insurance to cover the whole trip? Or will they be okay just
with the Medicare cover? There's no info on the London website, so we
are a bit confused!!

Thanks for your help!
Martina

-Gill Palmer

Martina wrote:
> Hi all,
> This might have been covered before - but I couldn't really find
> anything in the archives.
>
> My partner and I are permanent residents in Australia. His parents are
> UK citizens and are living in the UK at the moment (both over 70). They
> are planning to visit us for six months later in the year and will need
> to apply for a visitor visa.
>
> According to the DIMA website, over 70s visitors on a visitor will need
> to provide evidence of private health insurance for the duration of
> their stay in Australia. UK residents, however, are covered by Medicare
> under the reciprocal agreement. Do they still need to get a private
> health insurance to cover the whole trip? Or will they be okay just
> with the Medicare cover? There's no info on the London website, so we
> are a bit confused!!
>
> Thanks for your help!
> Martina

Hi Martina

My own mother is British, well over 70, has several long stary visitor
visas for Oz and has never had private medical insurance in Oz. The
reciprocal health care agreement between the UK and Oz counts as
medical insurance for the purpose of this visa. Mum was out there on
just such a visa as recently as six months ago. A friend's parents,
allso over 70, are in Oz at present. They went out at the end of
November on a six-month subclass 676 visa and they were not required to
obtain private medical insurance. They are British.

They will have to get their own GP to complete a simple medical form
for each of them, which is here:

http://www.australia.org.uk/lhlh/health.html

>From their GP's point of view, this is not NHS work, Basically the GP
can charge what he likes for completing the form. I've heard of some
charging £10. My Mum's GP charged her £60, the greedy so and so.
£30 seems to be about the norm - per parent.

Cheers

Gill

PS - I've left my reading glasses at home today & can't see the screen
properly so please forgive any typos.

Jaj

> Hi all,
> This might have been covered before - but I couldn't really find
> anything in the archives.
>
> My partner and I are permanent residents in Australia. His parents are
> UK citizens and are living in the UK at the moment (both over 70).
> They
> are planning to visit us for six months later in the year and will
> need
> to apply for a visitor visa.
>
> According to the DIMA website, over 70s visitors on a visitor will
> need
> to provide evidence of private health insurance for the duration of
> their stay in Australia. UK residents, however, are covered by
> Medicare
> under the reciprocal agreement. Do they still need to get a private
> health insurance to cover the whole trip? Or will they be okay just
> with the Medicare cover? There's no info on the London website, so we
> are a bit confused!!
>
> Thanks for your help!
> Martina

Regardless of what DIMA says, they would be very foolish not to have
comprehensive health insurance cover. Either travel health insurance,
or see if their UK health insurer provides overseas cover:

The Foreign Office (in its travel advice bulletins) makes it very clear
that British nationals travelling overseas should have full health
insurance.

-Gill Palmer

JAJ wrote:
> > Hi all,
> > This might have been covered before - but I couldn't really find
> > anything in the archives.
> >
> > My partner and I are permanent residents in Australia. His parents are
> > UK citizens and are living in the UK at the moment (both over 70).
> > They
> > are planning to visit us for six months later in the year and will
> > need
> > to apply for a visitor visa.
> >
> > According to the DIMA website, over 70s visitors on a visitor will
> > need
> > to provide evidence of private health insurance for the duration of
> > their stay in Australia. UK residents, however, are covered by
> > Medicare
> > under the reciprocal agreement. Do they still need to get a private
> > health insurance to cover the whole trip? Or will they be okay just
> > with the Medicare cover? There's no info on the London website, so we
> > are a bit confused!!
> >
> > Thanks for your help!
> > Martina
>
> Regardless of what DIMA says, they would be very foolish not to have
> comprehensive health insurance cover. Either travel health insurance,
> or see if their UK health insurer provides overseas cover:
>
> The Foreign Office (in its travel advice bulletins) makes it very clear
> that British nationals travelling overseas should have full health
> insurance.
>
> --


Martina

This is Talking Terrapin 'advice', bluntly. The FCO does NOT say,
"Ignore the presence of a Reciprocal Health Care Agreement between the
UK and the country you plan to visit." Ring them up and they will
confirm that.

Gill