peter5678

Thanks, yes, that's the position I'm in. My 457 and Medicare expire on the same day, and it's just bad luck that this is just before I return to Australia (with the 457 renewed), rather than just after.

I have Medicare cover under a RHCA, as a UK permanent resident. My Medicare card indicates that its validity ends on 7/10/15. The government webpage on card expiry and renewal http://www.humanservices.gov.au/customer/enablers/medicare/medicare-card/expired-medicare-cards seems self-contradictory. Does anyone know if I should expect a new card to be issued and sent by mail to my Australian address automatically, or whether I have to take some action? The webpage seems to say that action involves attending a Medicare office in person, but I know that the online functionality at my.gov.au is better than it used to be.

All right, thank you both for the information, which I will pass to the migration agent and my employer. In fact I think the rule you are referring to is that you cannot have another employment _at the same time_ - and I don't, the UK and Australian jobs are in different parts of the year. At https://www.border.gov.au/Trav/Visa-1/457- you can read that: This visa allows you to: •work in Australia for up to four years •bring your family to work or study in Australia •travel in and out of Australia as often as you want. which does not imply that the Australian employment has to be continuous. However, whatever the outcome of this issue, the question still stands - my 457 visa expires on the same day as my Medicare enrolment, shortly before my next visit to Australia. You cannot renew Medicare from overseas, it seems, so our migration agent getting our 457 renewal application together tells us we need overseas visitor health insurance. Anyone know a way round this? Or if not, can we take out insurance and immediately cancel it once our Medicare is renewed after arrival in Oz? Do the providers differ in this respect?

OK, well, we have both learned something! But do you have an answer to my question?

Well, that's what happened when I started this 4 years ago! I have an ongoing part-time appointment in Sydney, and the same in the UK (where I am permanently resident). My employers in Sydney organised my original 457 visa application, via a migration agent (and now it needs to be renewed). No one - the employer, the agent, or the Dept of Immigration has ever questioned that this is the right kind of visa. The only complications from my residency status has been things like banks misunderstanding. Are you saying a different kind of visa would be more appropriate?

We are based in the UK, and spend a month working in Sydney two times a year, and have done so for the last 4 years. We are currently in UK, and our 457 visas and Medicare both expire before our next visit. You cannot renew Medicare from overseas, it seems, so our migration agent getting our 457 renewal application together tells us we need overseas visitor health insurance. Anyone know a way round this? Or if not, can we take out insurance and immediately cancel it once our Medicare is renewed after arrival in Oz? Do the providers differ in this respect?