Identify the type of cover that matches your visa circumstances
Grace services · OSHC / OVHC
Cover that stays
current, and correct.
Overseas Student Health Cover, and the equivalent cover for other temporary visa holders. Grace helps you compare suitable options, arrange your policy, and keep your cover current for the whole of your visa period.Tell us what you need covered.
Four quick answers let your branch compare the right products before you come in.
Complete all four selectionsYour branch picks it up from here.
Send to your branch →What it is
The service,
in plain terms.
OSHC is Overseas Student Health Cover: health insurance required for international students in Australia. It helps satisfy visa condition 8501, which requires student visa holders to maintain adequate health insurance for the entire duration of their visa. A lapse is therefore a visa compliance issue that may put the visa itself at risk, not simply a gap in health cover.
Only Australian Government-approved insurers can provide OSHC. Coverage, exclusions, waiting periods and pricing vary between policies and between insurers, so two policies at a similar price can behave quite differently when you need to use them.
OVHC is Overseas Visitor Health Cover, the equivalent product for people on certain other temporary visas. That includes graduates moving off a student visa after completing their studies, and people on a bridging visa whose most recent substantive visa was a student visa.
What sits inside a policy
Six things to
compare properly.
Two policies at a similar price can behave very differently when you need to use them. These are the parts worth reading before you buy.- GP visits
- Specialists
- Hospital
- Ambulance
- Allied health
- Waiting periods
What Grace does
Support that is
actually hands-on.
Prices, available providers and policy inclusions change. Confirm current options and costs with your Grace branch before choosing cover.Calculate the cover period you need from your course dates and expected visa dates
Compare coverage, exclusions, waiting periods and pricing across available policies
Review cover for a spouse or children, and weigh a family policy against separate single ones
Arrange a change of provider, with the new policy in place before the old one is cancelled
How it works
From first question
to finished process.
Confirm what you need
We review your visa circumstances, course dates, the cover period you are expected to hold, and whether you need single, couple or family cover.
↗Compare policies
We set out coverage, exclusions, waiting periods and pricing across approved insurers. Benefits differ, including whether allied health is included.
↗Arrange cover
We complete the purchase with you and pass on the documentation your visa application or enrolment needs.
↗Keep it current
We track your dates so any extension starts the day the previous policy ends, and handle changes when your visa or course dates move.
↗Before you buy
Ask these
first.
Cover is a visa condition as well as a health one, so the dates matter as much as the price. Settle these before you commit.Talk it through →What a policy usually includes
Typical
OSHC coverage.
Benefits differ between insurers and between policies, so treat this as the general shape rather than a guarantee. Non-emergency ambulance callouts are generally not covered.- GP consultations
- Specialist visits, with a partial rebate against the Medicare Benefits Schedule fee
- Hospital treatment for accidents and emergencies
- Emergency ambulance transport
- Allied health such as physiotherapy and optical care, depending on the policy
How long your cover must run
Cover spans
the whole visa.
Expected visa duration is generally worked out from your course length and end date. Confirm your own dates with your branch before you buy.- Course of 10 months or less finishing between January and December — from your date of entry until one month after the course end date
- Course of more than 10 months finishing between January and October — from your date of entry until two months after the course end date
- Course of more than 10 months finishing in November or December — from your date of entry until 15 March the following year
- Extending an existing policy — the new period begins the day after the previous policy expires and runs to the visa end date
Key details
The specifics,
checked not guessed.
Requirements for this service are set outside Grace and change from time to time.
Visa condition8501 — student visa holders must maintain adequate health insurance for the entire duration of the visa.
Who can provide OSHCAustralian Government-approved insurers only.
Certificate of insuranceTypically issued electronically within minutes to hours of payment.
Physical membership cardWhere one is provided, generally 7 to 10 business days after registration.
DependantsA spouse and children can usually be added. Couple and family policies are typically priced higher than two separate single policies.
Switching providerGenerally possible at any time. Buy the new policy before cancelling the old one; the outgoing insurer typically refunds the unused premium pro rata.
Possible refundsMay be available for visa refusal, duplicate cover, or a move to permanent residency or another non-student visa — subject to the insurer's terms.
Last verified 18 August 2026.
Insurance requirements and policy terms are set by insurers, while visa conditions are set by the Australian Department of Home Affairs. Both change over time. This page is general guidance only: it is not insurance, financial or migration advice. Confirm current policy details with the insurer, and visa requirements with the Department of Home Affairs or an appropriately qualified adviser, before you act on it.
Cover lapsing soon?
Sort it
before it does.
A lapse in cover is a visa problem as well as a health one. Your branch will check your dates and compare approved providers with you.
Talk to your nearest office →