# Australia OSHC Health Cover for Indian Students > OSHC is a condition of the Australian Student visa (subclass 500). What Home Affairs requires, what to enter in the application, how cost fits your budget, and what comes after. _Published: 2026-11-03 · Reading time: 5 min · Words: 1055_ ## TL;DR Every Indian on an Australian Student visa (subclass 500) needs Overseas Student Health Cover from an approved Australian insurer for the whole stay, starting on arrival day. The application is refused if OSHC details are missing, and because insurers set premiums, Home Affairs publishes no OSHC price. ## Key takeaways - OSHC from an approved Australian insurer is a Student visa (subclass 500) requirement for the whole stay, starting on the day you arrive. - The visa application asks for the insurer's name and policy start and end dates, plus the policy number if you arranged the cover yourself. - OSHC is bought separately; the visa charge is AUD 2,500 for the main applicant from 1 July 2026. - Home Affairs publishes no OSHC amount because premiums are set by private insurers. - From 2 October 2026 most Student visa applicants can no longer include family members. **Overseas Student Health Cover (OSHC) is compulsory for Indians on an Australian Student visa (subclass 500). According to the Department of Home Affairs, you must hold OSHC from an approved Australian insurer for your whole stay, starting on arrival day, and an application without OSHC details is refused. Home Affairs publishes no premium; insurers set prices.** ## Article The rules here are as published on the official sources, checked on 15 October 2026. For other countries' student rules, start from our India visa hub; for every Australian visa, see the Australia page. ### Is OSHC compulsory for an Australian student visa? Yes. OSHC is written into the requirements of the Student visa (subclass 500) itself. Home Affairs lists three conditions: - The cover must come from an approved Australian insurer. - It must run for the whole stay, and the Student visa can last up to 6 years in line with your enrolment. - It must start on the day you arrive in Australia. The consequence is stated plainly: the application is refused if OSHC details are not given. OSHC is also not bundled into the visa charge. Home Affairs' fee notes say OSHC is bought separately from an approved insurer, on top of the AUD 2,500 Student visa charge. ### What OSHC details go into the visa application? The Student visa document list asks for: - The insurer's name. - The policy start and end dates. - The policy number, if you arranged the cover yourself. Line these dates up with the rest of the file. Your Confirmation of Enrolment (CoE) must cover every intended course, and the application is invalid without it, so the OSHC end date should cover the full stay that the CoE supports, not only the first semester. The start date should match your planned arrival. Home Affairs updates its Document Checklist Tool on 31 March and 30 September. Check it just before you lodge, because it decides whether you also need English results or evidence of funds. ### How much does OSHC cost compared with other student expenses? No official OSHC figure exists. Premiums are set by private insurers and Home Affairs publishes no amount, so compare quotes from approved insurers. What Home Affairs does publish is the rest of the budget: Item (official figure)AmountStudent visa charge, main applicant (from 1 July 2026)AUD 2,500Standalone ELICOS or Non-Award course visa chargeAUD 2,050Living costs for 12 months, student (if funds are requested)AUD 29,710Travel money, applying from outside Australia (guide amount)AUD 2,000Alternative: parents' or partner's annual incomeAUD 87,856 (AUD 102,500 if family members come)OSHC premiumSet by the insurer; not published by Home AffairsWhen funds are requested you also show the first 12 months' course fees, and Home Affairs wants genuine access to the money, such as transaction history or loan terms and disbursement. A single-day bank balance certificate does not show this. ### Can family members be covered, and what changed on 2 October 2026? From 2 October 2026, most Student visa applications must be lodged outside Australia and most applicants can no longer include family members. Exemptions include PhD students, DFAT- or Defence-sponsored students and holders of fully funded foreign-government scholarships. Applications lodged before that date are assessed under the old rules. If you fall in an exempt group, the official charges for an included family member are AUD 1,530 (18 or over) or AUD 500 (under 18), and the living-cost figures are AUD 10,394 for a partner and AUD 4,449 per child. Ask your insurer which OSHC policy type covers dependants before you lodge. ### What health cover do you need after your course, or on other visas? OSHC is specific to student visa holders. Other Australian visas word the requirement differently: VisaHealth cover rule (Home Affairs)Student (subclass 500)OSHC from an approved Australian insurer for the whole stay, from arrivalTemporary Graduate (subclass 485)Adequate health insurance when you apply, plus evidence of an Australian Federal Police check applicationSkills in Demand (subclass 482)Evidence of adequate health insurance for you and any family membersMATES (subclass 403)Adequate health insuranceVisitor (subclass 600)Not mandatory; strongly recommended, and Condition 8501 may be attachedIf you plan to move from study to the 485 visa, confirm that your policy meets the 'adequate health insurance' requirement on the day you apply. ### How do other study destinations handle student health insurance? Australia is unusual in naming a dedicated product. Our country records for other destinations show more general wording: - Austria (student residence permit): health insurance covering all risks, with its cost shown on top of the required funds. - Lithuania (national D visa, full-time study): health insurance with a minimum of EUR 30,000. - Iceland (student residence permit): insurance valid in Iceland for at least 3 months from domicile registration. - Slovenia (temporary residence for study): insurance covering at least emergency care. ### OSHC mistakes that can sink a student visa application - Leaving the OSHC fields blank or unfinished; Home Affairs refuses the application. - Buying from an insurer that is not an approved Australian OSHC provider. - A start date later than your arrival, or an end date that stops before your stay does. - Treating OSHC as optional because the visitor visa does not require insurance. The file is scrutinised closely. Home Affairs' student program report gives a grant rate (grants as a percentage of grants plus refusals) of 59.5% for Indian citizens applying outside Australia in October to December 2025, down from 79.9% in the same quarter of 2024. Complete, consistent paperwork is the part you control. Yatra For Fun's India office in Gurugram prepares flight reservations, hotel bookings, travel itineraries and cover letters for visa files, with packages from INR 1,000 (flight reservation) to INR 3,000 (reservation, hotel, itinerary and cover letter). WhatsApp +91 95230 91018 or use our contact page. ### Frequently asked questions #### Can I use my Indian health insurance policy instead of OSHC? Home Affairs requires OSHC from an approved Australian insurer for Student visa holders. A policy from an Indian insurer does not meet that wording, so buy OSHC from an approved provider. #### Does the Australian student visa fee include OSHC? No. The visa charge is AUD 2,500 for the main applicant from 1 July 2026, and OSHC is bought separately from an approved insurer. #### When should my OSHC policy start? On the day you arrive in Australia, according to Home Affairs. It must then continue for your whole stay. #### Is health insurance compulsory for an Australian tourist visa? No, but Home Affairs strongly recommends it because you are liable for all healthcare costs in Australia. Some visitor visas are granted with Condition 8501, which requires adequate health insurance. ## FAQ ### Can I use my Indian health insurance policy instead of OSHC? Home Affairs requires OSHC from an approved Australian insurer for Student visa holders. A policy from an Indian insurer does not meet that wording, so buy OSHC from an approved provider. ### Does the Australian student visa fee include OSHC? No. The visa charge is AUD 2,500 for the main applicant from 1 July 2026, and OSHC is bought separately from an approved insurer. ### When should my OSHC policy start? On the day you arrive in Australia, according to Home Affairs. It must then continue for your whole stay. ### Is health insurance compulsory for an Australian tourist visa? No, but Home Affairs strongly recommends it because you are liable for all healthcare costs in Australia. Some visitor visas are granted with Condition 8501, which requires adequate health insurance. ## Sources 1. [Department of Home Affairs - Student visa (subclass 500)](https://immi.homeaffairs.gov.au/visas/getting-a-visa/visa-listing/student-500) — Department of Home Affairs, Australia 2. [Department of Home Affairs - Visa fees and charges (current visa pricing table)](https://immi.homeaffairs.gov.au/visas/getting-a-visa/fees-and-charges/current-visa-pricing) — Department of Home Affairs, Australia 3. [Department of Home Affairs - Student and temporary graduate visa program report, 31 December 2025](https://www.homeaffairs.gov.au/research-and-stats/files/student-temporary-grad-program-report-dec-2025.pdf) — Department of Home Affairs, Australia