TandT

Yes I'm aware different levels of insurance cover exist and I'm aware our insurance has always met the criteria, otherwise we'd have never been given a visa to start off with. I think we were getting our wires crossed. I was trying to just point out that the previous advice given - i.e. that private health insurance simply does not cover GP visits or prescriptions, and that this applies to 457 visa holders - isn't always the case. It might just be helpful to others who are on 457 visas (and maybe others more generally, I can only speak for the 457) to know. I know that this was confusing for me reading this thread.

I know who the insurer is! I just don't know what the policy would be branded as - you asked 'what kind' of policy it was previously and I said I thought it was an expat policy. I checked as that was a guess, and it doesn't say anything about it being an expat policy. I just wanted to update that I don't know what kind of policy it would be classed as, incase it's useful for others to know, rather than being misleading and telling people it was an expat policy. We are on 457 visas. Having adequate health insurance was a requirement for the visa and ours was obviously accepted. I can't see anything anywhere saying that 457 visa holders have to have any exclusions on their insurance - i.e. that GP visits and prescriptions cannot be covered by the insurance. It just says that certain things have to be included, which they obviously are with our insurance. Maybe others on 457s have taken out different insurance which just isn't as comprehensive, and this has led people to believe that no insurance covers GP visits etc? The health insurance isn't part of a salary package, so wouldn't save us any money to ask the company to downgrade it. I guess it depends who you work for as to what they're prepared to offer.

I've just checked the policy and it doesn't actually give a brand name/title to the policy, so I am none the wiser! As I said previously, we had no direct contact with the insurers as the company did everything. At least we know that the health insurance rules posted previously don't necessarily apply to everyone/all health insurance, I presume it's only those who have citizenship (and residency? not sure).

I’m not sure - it’s my partner’s work who arranged it and are paying for it. I believe it’s just some kind of Expat policy (though it’s specifically for Oz) so maybe that’s why it’s not the same a standard Australian policy?

Sorry I didn't come back to this thread sooner! Just wanted to provide some clarification to the above incase it helps anyone else now that I have submitted claims and received the money. I paid for everything up front and then went back to my insurer with a claim, and received full reimbursement. My health insurance covers all GP visits and I have had the money reimbursed in full. I am not sure exactly what investigative/preventative work would include, hopefully I won't have to test that one out! I could arrange to see a GP and other specialists without paying up front at all, if I use GPs and other medical professionals provided by my insurer. I didn't know that at the time. I also got reimbursed the full ongoing cost of five different medications, some of them new. It didn't make any difference to the insurer that I didn't have a Medicare card and I didn't have to pay that portion. So it all worked out fine.

Thank you both. So we need to get Medicare cards, thanks for clarifying. I'm a little confused about the Medicare levy but I'll do some more reading around that. It seems a bit old fashioned that you have to go and wait in a centre to apply for a Medicare card during office hours (here in Adelaide, not sure if it's how it works state-wide) - not a problem for me but a pain for my partner and anyone else who works 9-5. I'll try and contact the insurance company too. As it was all arranged for us and we had no direct contact with the insurers (we just had to complete some questionnaires for partner's employer who dealt with insurer) I feel we're a bit in the dark about what exactly is covered and so on so I'll need to look in to it anyway. Good point about the ID - we are finding I need something more than what I have ID-wise for applying to rent a property.

Hi everyone We've just moved to Australia with my partner's work on 457 visas. His work arranged private health insurance for both of us before we came, and we've got a copy of this policy but it doesn't go in to any detail of how the process works and I haven't been able to find out. I take regular medication so at some point will need to register with a GP here and start getting more medication. The insurers are aware of all the medication and told us it would be covered. As we already have health insurance does anyone know: 1. Do we need to get Medicare cards as well? (I don't think we do but could be wrong) 2. When I go to the GP and get medication, how do the appointment fees and prescription fees work - do I pay them upfront and then claim back from the insurance provider? Or is there some other system for paying through health insurance? Do I need to take a copy of the health insurance with me to register with a GP? If anyone could enlighten me I'd be really grateful. I have tried googling for this information but just seem to get bogged down in information about Medicare.

@Marisawright Yes, it must be difficult if people have a fixed idea of a permanent place to live but don't yet have the permanent visa. I know a lot of people see it as all or nothing. I think we're quite used to moving around and exploring new opportunities, so we'll see what happens! It's a useful tip if we do decide we want to stay though so thank you.

@Marisawright Thanks for the tip! We will bear it in mind. I think we'll have to see how things go and what our circumstances are like further down the line.

We are in the process of arranging shipping from the UK to Oz at the moment (we haven't decided on a company yet). I wouldn't panic about the timescales too much, all the companies we have spoken to have said we have plenty of time to arrange it and we only have four weeks left until we leave the UK. So you should be fine time wise. I don't know if this will help but this is what we've found in our limited experience so far... You will find there are tons of companies out there (just do a search) and unfortunately they all seem to have mixed reviews. I think I've read terrible reviews for all of them having lost items, damaged items, and being a nightmare to deal with afterwards. We haven't found any company that has stood out as being better to be honest. I think it's pretty much a blind gamble as damage etc could happen to anyone, so just take out insurance. Be aware that they mostly (all?) contract out the moving, so you could have any removal firm turning up to move your stuff at either end. I'm not sure you have any control over this, so even if you read all the reviews about the shipping company it is likely to be an entirely different company that turn up to actually handle your belongings. Most of them seem to offer a packing service. Also consider whether you want to have a shared shipment or sole. Shared takes longer and from what I've read can potentially lead to more hassle, but again I only have knowledge of stuff read online and a few people I know who have shipped overseas. Shared is cheaper of course. In an ideal world you would send goods far ahead of time, but it's not always feasible for everyone. For example we don't have the luxury of UK storage, people we can move in with or a spare bed/mattress so there is no way we will be shipping it and sleeping on the floor in the UK for four weeks. Ditto with things like dining table, sofa, TV, and so on. If you're happy to live in an empty house, aren't shipping all your stuff and can manage with just some and then somehow get rid of it just before you leave, or have somewhere else to live before you leave, I guess it could work ok. None of that applies to us. We are well aware that this means our stuff might turn up weeks after we arrive, and we'll just have to deal with that and buy a bed etc in Oz if that's the situation. For us this is a better solution than having a very unpleasant four weeks in the UK - we have enough to do in the next four weeks without putting up with sleeping and sitting on the floor, not having a TV, etc! I did that once when I moved house (stuff was in storage and we decided to save money and just try and wait for it) and honestly made me really miserable - I got no sleep and hated being in the house. Other things to think about: - Additional fees at the Oz side which aren't included in your shipping quote, usually listed at the end and marked as excluded. - Restrictions on stuff that may be carrying soil - such as garden equipment - you'll face extra charges when it arrives if this isn't all thoroughly cleaned off before shipping. - Most will give you a quote based on some estimations you give them, and then come round to assess the amount of stuff you're moving to get a more precise measurement for space. So you'll get a final quote then. As I said, not sure how helpful this is seeing as we haven't actually shipped yet but maybe it'll give you a few tips.

@Aussiepom Yes, it is a bit of good luck really - though obviously this would change in future if we were changing to residency. I hadn't realised visa type would have had an impact otherwise would have mentioned it earlier on! We have medical insurance provided by the employer thank you - one thing that is sorted!

@Aussiepom Thanks for being so helpful. We actually contacted Alan via his website, just waiting to hear back. However we have since managed to establish some really good news by more googling - we're exempt from the Australian tax on foreign property rental. This is because we are on 457 visas (they've been phased out as you'll know but we got in on the last batch). Though we may apply for Australian residency at some point - partner's work have already mentioned doing this in future - at the moment we don't have to worry about it. Until we reach the point of knowing we'll want to outstay the visa (we have 4 years but have to make a decision by year 3) I think we'll just see it as a bridge to cross in future by which point circumstances could have changed wildly. I suppose you are on a permanent visa @Aussiepom so don't get this same benefit? We will however be in the same boat regarding remortgaging. Partner's had the Australian salary and contract agreed and I don't think we can ask for more at this point. But we'll look in to other options if we can!

Thank you for your replies. I am disappointed about this, it's just not something we realised and will leave us in a bad financial position. Renting out our house is going to lose us money via the Australian tax system ? We thought we had been covering our bases by speaking to two UK tax advisors but obviously not - they didn't say anything about paying Australian tax on UK rent even when we asked them about what else to consider. Our fault for making assumptions and now it's too late to do anything about it! To explain a little, my partner is being transferred via work and we haven't had the luxury of months of being able to research all the implications. They've simply said they want him there ASAP, and we've gone along with it believing we'd considered everything - I think we have, apart from this stupid rental tax scenario! Our flights to leave the UK are in four weeks. Of course if I find out any helpful tips I shall pass them on @Aussiepom though it doesn't look like there is any way around it. Thank you also for the heads up about the remortgaging. This is going to be another shocker (after reading the other thread) and I fear it will mean we actually have to come home. We're not going to meet the HSBC criteria that you very helpfully posted about on the other thread. @Marisawright Thank you for the tips about the potential rent-related tax deductions. They seem similar to the UK rules (again something we DID look at!) but the depreciation report is interesting. I have found nothing online about such experts but found mention of this on here. I am unable to send messages to users at present - I guess I am still too new to the forum - but will try and find some way before we leave. Thanks again all.

Oh and thanks for the information about the NRL form. We were aware of this already but I hadn't written it in my original post, so thanks for confirming anyway!

Thank you for your reply Aussiepom. We finally managed to see a tax advisor over here, who confirmed that our UK tax-free allowance would still apply. Rent charged won't go over this threshold so that is what we wanted to hear (especially as the rent charged is not actually income for us to use - 90% of it will be paying our UK mortgage repayments and estate agents management fees, so we will see very little of it and won't be making any money). He couldn't advise us about the Australian system, understandably. We do need to fill out a self assessment form at both ends, so one for the UK and one for Oz, which was expected. We'll declare everything on both forms (all incomes in UK and Oz) which was expected too. I am a little concerned that you mention that we will be taxed on the rental in Australia though as we had assumed, from what the tax advisor said, that it would come under the UK tax-free allowance and therefore we would not be paying tax on it. We will obviously have to get advice from the Australian end once we are there, but in the meantime do you know any more about this? It would quickly become infeasible if we were paying 20-30% tax on the incoming rent, when 90% of the rent is covering our mortgage repayments (I understand mortgage repayments are not considered when it comes to rental income). Of course my partner will be paying Australian tax on his salary as per a normal Australian resident, and I will be too once I secure a job.