Pregnancy and newborn care on a visa in Australia

If you're on a visa, you can get care for yourself and your baby during and after pregnancy and birth. However, the costs will depend on the type of visa and health insurance you have.

In Australia, care during pregnancy is provided by midwives, doctors and obstetricians. You can use the public or private health system.

Medicare is the government program that helps with the cost of healthcare. It's available for Australian residents (people living in Australia) and some visitors to Australia.

Medicare covers many pregnancy and newborn healthcare costs, including:

• doctor and midwife appointments
• ultrasounds (scans)
• blood tests
• birth in a public hospital
• hospital care for your baby
• vaccinations for your baby

You can enrol in Medicare if you are:

• a New Zealand citizen
• an Australian citizen or permanent resident
• in the process of applying for Australian permanent residency
• on some types of temporary visas — see this list to find out if your visa is included

You may be able to enrol in Medicare if you are from a country that has an agreement with Australia. However, this cover is more limited.

Find out how to enrol in Medicare. After you enrol, you'll be sent a Medicare card.

The following countries have a reciprocal healthcare agreement with Australia:

• Belgium
• Finland
• the Republic of Ireland
• Italy
• Malta
• the Netherlands
• New Zealand
• Norway
• Slovenia
• Sweden
• the United Kingdom

If you come from one of these countries, you should be able to get free urgent medical treatment. You can also apply for limited Medicare cover.

Each agreement is a bit different — find out how it applies to you. For example, people on student visas from Finland, Malta, Norway or the Republic of Ireland are not included.

Urgent treatment means emergencies and health conditions that must be treated now, before you can return to your home country.

You will need to buy private health insurance to cover other things such as:

• non-urgent treatment
• ambulance services
• treatment in the private health system

If you are on a visa and can't get a Medicare card you may need to pay the full cost of any medical treatment. For this reason, you should take out private health insurance cover while you are visiting.

This is called Overseas Visitors Health Cover (OVHC).

For some types of visas, you must have OVHC before you can get the visa. You should get OVHC even if your visa doesn't say you must.

Private health insurance can cover the costs of your pregnancy care and birth. You may need to wait up to 12 months for parts of the cover to start. This is called the 'waiting period'.

Some insurance policies may not cover pregnancy and birth. Check what your health insurance covers before you become pregnant.

A hospital stay can be very expensive, so think about getting hospital cover. Even with private health insurance you might need to pay for some of your care. This is the patient contribution or 'gap' payment.

To find out more about how private health cover works, go to the Australian Government's private health insurance information website.

What type of health insurance do I need if I'm a student?

Overseas students in Australia need Overseas Student Health Cover (OSHC). If you are on a temporary student visa, you must have OSHC for the whole time you are in Australia.

If you have dependants on your student visa, make sure they are included in your OSHC policy.

OSHC can cover you for pregnancy care and birth, however there is usually a waiting period of 12 months. This means that you will not be covered for pregnancy care or birth for the first 12 months you are insured.

However, you will be covered for emergency treatment. Be sure to check the details with your insurance provider as not all OSHC policies are the same.

There are a few insurance providers that offer OSHC.

Find out more on OSHC insurance, including a list of providers.

If you have no insurance, you can still get healthcare during pregnancy, birth and afterwards. However, you'll have to pay the full cost of your care and care for your baby. Call your local hospital to find out about their fees.

If your baby is born in Australia, and at least one parent is an Australian citizen or permanent resident, they will automatically be an Australian citizen.

If neither parent is an Australian citizen or permanent resident, your baby will not be an Australian citizen.

What kind of visa will my baby have?

If your baby is born in Australia when you and their other parent are on a visa, the baby will automatically have the same visas as you and their other parent.

If you're on a visa and the other parent is not an Australian resident or on a visa, your baby will have the same visa as you.

If when your baby is born you're applying for a visa for yourself in Australia, your baby will be added to your own visa application.

You will need to tell the Australian Government Department of Home Affairs about your baby's birth. Then your baby can be added to your visa or visa application.

You can enrol your baby in Medicare if your baby is:

• an Australian citizen
• eligible to become an Australian citizen
• has a certain type of visa, such as a humanitarian visa

You might also be able to enrol your baby in Medicare if you come from a country that has a reciprocal healthcare agreement with Australia.

Find out more about how to enrol your baby in Medicare.

If your baby can't get Medicare, add them to your private health insurance. If your baby needs any treatment after they're born, it could cost a lot of money if you don't have health insurance.

Talk to your insurance provider about healthcare cover for your baby as soon as you can.

The Australian Government provides free interpreters and a free translation service to help you talk to Services Australia. You can use an interpreter if you have questions about Medicare.

If you need an interpreter for healthcare appointments, you can call the Australian Government's Translating and Interpreting Service, TIS National, on 131 450. This is usually free of charge.

More information and support are available from these services and organisations:

• Services Australia can give you information about healthcare in Australia, including Medicare.
• Find out what help is available for migrants and refugees in Australia.
• The Department of Home Affairs can give you information about Australian visas and citizenship, including links to resources and support.