Student Health, Medical, Home & Contents Insurance in Australia

Protect yourself and your family with insurance

You should think carefully about insurance cover to help protect your health, your home and your belongings.

Health insurance

As a visa condition, the Department of Immigration and Border Protection requires all students holding temporary student visas to maintain Overseas Student Health Cover (OSHC) for the full duration of their studies in Australia. OSHC, which students are encouraged to purchase before they leave their home country, is specifically designed to cover the medical costs and hospital care for international students studying in Australia.

You must have Overseas Student Health Cover (OSHC) for yourself and any dependents (for example, a spouse or child) while studying in Australia.

OSHC helps you pay for common health services including visits to doctors, some hospital treatments, ambulance services, and some medicines.

The benefits you receive will depend on the type of insurance cover you choose, so make sure you read the policy carefully so you know what’s covered and what’s not.

You might also want to consider taking out private health insurance cover for you or your family.  Benefits, membership costs and eligibility can be very different depending on which insurance fund or policy you choose, so it pays to do your research.

Home and contents insurance

Home and contents insurance covers the building you live in and your belongings, such as your furniture, clothes and appliances.

You won’t need to worry about building insurance if you’re renting, but contents insurance can be helpful if you have valuable items that would be difficult to replace if lost or stolen.