Tax & rebates

To help you cover the cost of private health insurance, the Australian Government provides many Australians with a Rebate to help cover the cost of health insurance. The amount that the government provides is determined by your age and level of income. You can choose to provide us with these details when you join by nominating which tier you fall under. The rebate amount and tiers are re-assessed by the government each year.

Important things to know about the Australian Government Rebate:

• If you nominated the wrong income tier and have been claiming an incorrect rebate, the ATO will be able to determine the correct rebate and will simply adjust this upon lodging your tax return
• The Australian Government rebate does not apply to any Lifetime Health Cover (LHC) loading component of your hospital premium

To find out more about the Australian Government Rebate, click here. 

The LHC is a loading put in place by the Australian Government. It is designed to encourage people to purchase private hospital cover before the 1^st of July following their 31^st birthday. If you don’t, you will be paying a 2% loading on top of your hospital premiums for every year that you’re not covered and are aged over 30 years. This loading can go up to 70% - if you are aged over 31 and not covered for hospital yet, Get a Quote now to avoid paying any more.

To find out more about the LHC, click here. 

Medicare is the Federal Government’s public health care system.

Who is covered by Medicare?

Everyone who lives in Australia—excluding Norfolk Island residents—is eligible for a Medicare card if they:

• hold Australian citizenship
• hold New Zealand citizenship (documentation required). 
• have been issued with a permanent visa
• have applied for a permanent visa (excludes an application for a parent visa), have permission to work in Australia or can prove relationship to an Australian Citizen — other requirements may also apply.

Visitors to Australia from a country that has a Reciprocal Health Care Agreement with Australia are also eligible for medically necessary treatment.

People who are eligible for Medicare have access to the public hospital system and doctor services.

What types of things does Medicare cover?

Medicare covers you for treatment in a public hospital as a public patient. It also helps cover costs associated with doctor and specialist consultations and examinations.

What doesn’t Medicare cover?

Medicare does not cover you for any private patient hospital costs, ambulance or any extras such as dental, physio and optical.

How is Medicare paid for?

Medicare is partly funded by Australian taxpayers through the Medicare Levy. This levy is 2% of your taxable income.

There is also a Medicare Levy Surcharge (MLS).

You will be required to pay the MLS if your income for MLS purposes is above the base income threshold and you or your family do not have an appropriate level of private patient hospital cover. This applies unless you are exempt from paying the Medicare levy and your dependents are also exempt or have an appropriate level of private cover.

The base income threshold is $90,000 for singles and $180,000 for families. For singles, an appropriate level of cover must have an excess of $750 or less. Couples or families must have an excess of $1,500 or less.

How can I avoid the Medicare Levy Surcharge?

If you’re a high income earner, you can take out any of our Hospital Covers to avoid the Medicare Levy Surcharge. Get a Quote now  to avoid the Medicare Levy Surcharge. You can find out more about the MLS here.

At the end of every financial year, we will provide you with a Private Health Insurance Tax Statement. Each fund must do this in order for your tax to be calculated accurately by the ATO. It outlines your entitlements to the Australian Government Rebate as well as information about the payments you have made right up to the 30^th June.

We will issue your Tax Statement in July.