Australia Travel Insurance for Kiwis: Why Medicare Is Not Enough
The reciprocal agreement is not travel insurance
New Zealanders visiting Australia can get medically necessary care as a public patient in a public hospital under the Reciprocal Health Care Agreement (RHCA). That is useful, but it is narrow: it does not cover out-of-hospital doctor visits, there can be charges for services such as ambulance transport, and it does nothing for cancelled flights, lost luggage or getting you home. SafeTravel says New Zealanders travelling or living in Australia should have a comprehensive travel insurance policy in place.
Source: New Zealand Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade, "Health" (Australia) (accessed 30 September 2026)
Source: SafeTravel (MFAT), "Australia" travel advice, page updated 13 May 2026 (accessed 30 September 2026)
What the Reciprocal Health Care Agreement covers
Services Australia administers the agreement. For New Zealanders temporarily visiting Australia, it describes the cover like this:
Covered
- • Medically necessary care as a public patient, including public hospital inpatient and outpatient services.
- • Some Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme (PBS) prescription medicines at the general rate.
- • Treatment if you are travelling to, leaving from or diverted to Australia and the need for treatment arose during the voyage or flight (Services Australia says you “may be able to” get this).
Not covered
- • Visits to medical practitioners out of hospital — there is no Medicare benefit for out-of-hospital services under the agreement.
- • Treatment if you travel to Australia in order to get medical treatment.
- • Anything outside public hospital care: Services Australia says the cover is for public inpatient and outpatient hospital care only, so private hospital treatment is not included.
MFAT adds that under the agreement some medication may be subsidised, but there can be charges for some services, such as ambulance transport, and it advises New Zealanders to get medical insurance before travelling to Australia.
Source: New Zealand Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade, "Health" (Australia) (accessed 30 September 2026)
Who is eligible and how to use it
- • You must have been a New Zealand citizen or resident of New Zealand before arriving in Australia, and be temporarily visiting.
- • You do not need to enrol in Medicare and will not get a Medicare card.
- • At a public hospital or pharmacy, ask staff to treat you under the reciprocal health care agreement. New Zealand citizens show a current New Zealand passport; residents who are not citizens need their passport and visa evidence.
- • Cover starts the day you arrive in Australia and ends the day you leave.
Where travel insurance fills the gaps
A travel insurance policy is a contract with its own limits, excesses and exclusions, so what it pays depends on the wording you buy. These are the areas where the reciprocal agreement leaves you exposed and where a policy may help:
Ambulance transport
MFAT notes there can be charges for services such as ambulance transport. Check whether a policy covers emergency ambulance and air ambulance.
Doctor visits outside hospital
The agreement does not include out-of-hospital medical practitioner visits. Check how a policy treats GP and specialist costs.
Private hospital treatment
The agreement covers public hospital care only. Some policies cover private treatment in some circumstances — read the medical section of the wording.
Getting home to New Zealand
The agreement is about treatment in Australia. Check whether a policy covers medical evacuation or an early return home, and whether the insurer must approve it first.
Cancellation, delays and belongings
The agreement is health cover only. Cancelled trips, delays, lost luggage and rental vehicle excess are travel insurance matters.
Pre-existing medical conditions
Travel insurers set their own rules for existing conditions. Declare them when you buy and check what the policy says.
Source: New Zealand Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade, "Health" (Australia) (accessed 30 September 2026)
See also our pre-existing conditions guide.
Risks SafeTravel highlights for Australia
SafeTravel’s current advice for Australia is to exercise normal safety and security precautions. It notes that New Zealanders should be aware of extreme weather events such as wildfires and cyclones, and of wildlife including crocodiles, snakes and spiders. Weather events can disrupt travel, so check how a policy deals with cancellation or delay caused by natural disasters, and when cover for a known event stops being available.
Source: SafeTravel (MFAT), "Australia" travel advice, page updated 13 May 2026 (accessed 30 September 2026)
SafeTravel also advises choosing a policy that covers any activities you have planned — for example diving, skiing or hiring a scooter — and notes that many policies will not cover travel to countries or regions it advises against visiting.
Source: SafeTravel (MFAT), "Travel insurance" (accessed 30 September 2026)
What to check in an Australia policy
- □ The overseas medical limit, and whether ambulance and air ambulance are included
- □ Whether medical evacuation or an early return to New Zealand is covered
- □ How your declared pre-existing conditions are treated
- □ Cover for activities you plan, such as diving, skiing or riding a motorbike or scooter
- □ Cancellation cover, and how the policy treats natural disasters and extreme weather
- □ Rental vehicle excess cover if you are hiring a car or campervan
- □ The excess you would pay on each claim
- □ Your insurer’s 24-hour emergency assistance number, saved in your phone
Frequently asked questions
Do New Zealanders need travel insurance for Australia?
The New Zealand Government’s SafeTravel service says New Zealanders travelling or living in Australia should have a comprehensive travel insurance policy in place. The Reciprocal Health Care Agreement covers medically necessary care as a public patient in a public hospital and some PBS medicines — not out-of-hospital doctor visits, and there can be charges for services such as ambulance transport.
Does Medicare cover New Zealanders visiting Australia?
Visitors do not enrol in Medicare or get a Medicare card. Instead, under the Reciprocal Health Care Agreement, New Zealand citizens and residents temporarily visiting Australia are covered for medically necessary inpatient and outpatient care as a public patient in a public hospital, and some Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme (PBS) prescription medicines at the general rate. You do not get a Medicare benefit for out-of-hospital services.
What does the reciprocal agreement not cover?
According to Services Australia, cover is for public hospital inpatient and outpatient care only: it does not include visits to medical practitioners out of hospital, and it does not apply if you travel to Australia for medical treatment. MFAT notes there can be charges for some services, such as ambulance transport. Private hospital treatment is outside the agreement.
What do I need to show to be treated under the agreement?
At a public hospital or pharmacy, ask staff to treat you under the Reciprocal Health Care Agreement. New Zealand citizens need to show a current New Zealand passport. Cover starts the day you arrive in Australia and ends the day you leave.
Source: New Zealand Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade, "Health" (Australia) (accessed 30 September 2026)
Source: SafeTravel (MFAT), "Australia" travel advice, page updated 13 May 2026 (accessed 30 September 2026)
Comparing cover for an Australia trip?
Read each policy wording against the checklist above before you buy.
Request a quoteGeneral information only. Reciprocal Health Care Agreement details are summarised from Services Australia and MFAT and were checked on 30 September 2026; check the linked pages before you travel, as the rules can change. This page is not financial advice, and your policy wording decides what a travel insurance policy covers.