# 461 Sub-class visa - NZ Citizen query



## Marriedtheenglish (Apr 13, 2011)

Hi
I'm a NZ citizen and am emigrating to Aus... My husband and son are English and therefore applying for a 461 sub-class visa which is about $200 and lasts 5 years before they reapply again.
The form is quite straight forward but it asks if you have medical insurance in Aus, which obviously we don't yet, but will have it when we go... but I think they want us to have it before we go.
Does anyone have any experience of this visa, and have any tips at all? 
I'm also trying to find out how long it will be before it is granted.
I'm also not sure who to go with for medical insurance... any help would be welcome!
Thx in advance!


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## rainbowchaser71 (May 3, 2010)

Marriedtheenglish said:


> Hi
> I'm a NZ citizen and am emigrating to Aus... My husband and son are English and therefore applying for a 461 sub-class visa which is about $200 and lasts 5 years before they reapply again.
> The form is quite straight forward but it asks if you have medical insurance in Aus, which obviously we don't yet, but will have it when we go... but I think they want us to have it before we go.
> Does anyone have any experience of this visa, and have any tips at all?
> ...


Hi I just completed the process myself in Apr 2011. My best advice regarding health insurance is to shop around and purchase overseas visitors insurance because as you will find most OZ health insurance is based on being eligible for Medicare which your spouse and child are not. If you do an online search you will see many companies that cover this type of situtation and is allowed by Immi. We went through AHM insurance for myself and 2 daughters was the cheapest i could find. You don't need proof of insurance until they arrive in Australia.

this is copied from an email from my case officer
In very general terms, if you are planning to obtain private medical insurance through an Australian provider it is likely it will meet the requirements for maintaining health cover. Most Australian insurers will have a product, or range of products, that are suitable for visa holders. When you are making your inquires let the insurer know your visa subclass and they should be able to provide an appropriate policy.

Any policy you obtain should, at a minimum, provide the following cover:

-	that covers at least 85% of the costs associated with professional medical services
-	outpatient medical practitioner expenses (including general practitioners and specialists)
-	including provision for pharmaceuticals ( prescription medication as an in-patient and an outpatient)
-	including provision for hospital treatment and accommodation as a private patient during the applicants stay in Australia.

In my case I arrived in Oz on a visitors visa - then applied for the 461 and was issued a bridging visa until my 461 was approved. In the meantime my kids were allowed to start school but I was unable to work. Hope this helped.


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## Marriedtheenglish (Apr 13, 2011)

Thanks for your email - that definitely helps - I will look into the insurance asap.
Did you have to get police clearance also? I have no idea what that really means?
Thanks in advance!


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## Spoon (Nov 24, 2010)

Hi there,
I agree with rainbowchaser71 with regards to the insurance issue, my wife (Russian citizen) applied for the 461 subclass visa on 3rd May in Moscow. The Australian Embassy approved it today, so processing time was exactly 1 month. Of course it will depend on where you apply for it, as each Consulate will vary, but their service charter for the 461 states it takes 2 - 3 months for approval.
My wife supplied a police clearance check from the Russian Police, which had to be translated, she also supplied a check from the FBI as she had lived in the states for 3 years. The Police check should be from the Country your husband is coming from plus any other Country he has lived in for more than 12 months in the last 10 years.
You are correct in that it is reasonably straight forward, quite cheap and is renewable after the initial 5 years. I asked AU Immigration if there is a limit as to the number of times you can renew and they said 'at this stage, no'
Good luck!
ps. I do know of another case where it was applied for in NZ and was approved in two weeks.


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## Marriedtheenglish (Apr 13, 2011)

Spoon said:


> Hi there,
> I agree with rainbowchaser71 with regards to the insurance issue, my wife (Russian citizen) applied for the 461 subclass visa on 3rd May in Moscow. The Australian Embassy approved it today, so processing time was exactly 1 month. Of course it will depend on where you apply for it, as each Consulate will vary, but their service charter for the 461 states it takes 2 - 3 months for approval.
> My wife supplied a police clearance check from the Russian Police, which had to be translated, she also supplied a check from the FBI as she had lived in the states for 3 years. The Police check should be from the Country your husband is coming from plus any other Country he has lived in for more than 12 months in the last 10 years.
> You are correct in that it is reasonably straight forward, quite cheap and is renewable after the initial 5 years. I asked AU Immigration if there is a limit as to the number of times you can renew and they said 'at this stage, no'
> ...


Great, thanks for your info... still haven't lodged it but hopefully will do it next week!


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## rainbowchaser71 (May 3, 2010)

Hi I am not covered by Medicare because I am from Canada - my husband applied for insurance through his employer here in OZ but we were told that it wasn't sufficient because it was based on someone qualifying for Medicare - Centrelink told us the same thing. Here is what i found on a OZ website 

Medicare and Overseas Visitors
Medicare

Eligibility to Medicare by overseas visitors is dependent on the persons county of origin and their Visa. Even those with limited access to Medicare should take overseas visitors health insurance.

Overseas Visitors ineligible for Medicare

In the majority of cases, visitors to Australia do not have full access to the Australian National Health Scheme, Medicare, and are therefore responsible for all costs associated with private hospital, medical and para-medical health care rendered in Australia.

The Australian private health care sector provides very high quality services at costs comparable to many other developed countries.

Overseas Visitors Health Cover (OVHC) is a type of health insurance designed specifically for those people who are not entitled to full Medicare cover. Various forms of this insurance are available from a range of Australian Health Funds and insurance companies. OVHC generally covers services associated with episodes of hospitalisation and doctors fees.

If you are planning to stay in Australia you should make sure that you are covered by adequate health insurance. HICA (website) can provide health insurance options to Overseas Visitors including a comprehensive personal assessment and advice to ensure you have appropriate cover from the date of arrival in Australia. Contact us for further details. 

Hope this helps... as for Police Clearance I had to get one from Canada. I believe it is required for any country you have lived in prior to OZ from age 16 and older


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## Marriedtheenglish (Apr 13, 2011)

rainbowchaser71 said:


> Hi I am not covered by Medicare because I am from Canada - my husband applied for insurance through his employer here in OZ but we were told that it wasn't sufficient because it was based on someone qualifying for Medicare - Centrelink told us the same thing. Here is what i found on a OZ website
> 
> Medicare and Overseas Visitors
> Medicare
> ...


Great, thanks for your help - I better get on with everything I think!!


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## f1dinesh (Jun 7, 2011)

Marriedtheenglish said:


> Great, thanks for your info... still haven't lodged it but hopefully will do it next week!


Thanks for your update Marriedtheenglish. Let us know how you go with the processing of the 461 visa. cheers


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## ryanb1471 (Jun 18, 2011)

hi everyone, im also applying for 461 visa in nz, im from the uk and according to the immigration website it says that we have reciprocal health care agreements with austrailia,
on the 147 application form under"health insurance requirements"it says that you may not appy to holding health insurance if you enroll with medicare,

will they approve a visa without proof of having insurance?

will they let me into the country if i advise them i will enroll with medicare?

if not how do i know when start the insurance policy from as some cases take months before approved?

do i have to buy insurance for 5 years for this visa?

hope someone can help me with this


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## saratoga (Dec 9, 2011)

I am a NZ citizen and my partner is English. We've been together over 10 years and are mortgaged with a child. We submitted my partner's visa application to the Australian Embassy and it took 2 days to process! Mailed it in on Monday and had the visa grant number on Friday. Visa's are electronic. No health check was required. We included a cover letter explaining we had travel insurance on our credit card that would cover us for the first 3 months and that we were in the process of setting up private insurance. Hope this helps anyone else applying for a the same type of visa.


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## flamemzo (Oct 28, 2012)

@saratoga: WOW 2 days??? AWESOME! Hey did you have to supply evidence that you have been in a relationship for the visa? If you are married, did you only have to supply your marriage certificate as proof? would really appreciate some answers! My soon to be husband will be applying for his SC 461 next month after we get married so we can move to OZ but we havent lived together (and dont plan to until we're married) over the 3 years we have been in a relationship because we were doing long distance.


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## saratoga (Dec 9, 2011)

Hi, I'm so sorry, I thought I'd replied. Did you get your visa already?

What we did was provide a one page summary sheet with all the evidence of our relationship. The summary sheet contained a very short overview statement of our relationship (e.g. We have been together since 2000, lived together since 2003 and a joint mortgage since 2005. Our daughter was born in 2006 etc). 

Below the statement we then listed all the documents used in support of our relationship (e.g. mortgage statements (, bank accounts, photos, daughter's birth certificate, personal statement of our relationship from a friend etc) as well as additional documents required as part of the application (e.g. birth certificate, police check, passport) in a table. We referenced each item in the table with a number and entered that number on the corresponding document. That way the person reviewing the visa can very quickly check that you have the evidence they require and all documents. 

In our case it was very easy to establish the relationship. The requirement I think is actually only 1 year, but it is important to show that you have been together for the whole time. So we included a mortgage statements from a few years ago plus a recent one, same for bank statements, photos etc. It is definitely worthwhile obtaining a statement confirming your relationship from a respectable person e.g. priest, lawyer, colleague etc. 

We were told heath check/medical certificate as we were from UK. 

Hope this information is now not required and you have the visa.

Cheers, 

S


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## esme_daniella (Jan 12, 2013)

ryanb1471 said:


> hi everyone, im also applying for 461 visa in nz, im from the uk and according to the immigration website it says that we have reciprocal health care agreements with austrailia,
> on the 147 application form under"health insurance requirements"it says that you may not appy to holding health insurance if you enroll with medicare,
> 
> will they approve a visa without proof of having insurance?
> ...


Hey Ryan, I applied for the same 461 subclass visa, but i'm an offshore applicant. I asked my CO before if I an apply for insurance later on when I got the visa approved/ before I go to Oz but she insisted that I need to get a private insurance unless she cant process my application further (i'm not entitled for medicare), and she did keep asking me for the insurance certificate/letter the week after. So, I did apply and keep paying even my visa is just granted today (its 4.5 months). I guess, its really important to keep my self in insurance cover if in the future I want to renew this visa. I'm sure they'll look after all of my track record including my insurance. By the way, i'm with IMAN Australian Health Plans for Overseas Visitor Health Cover from NIB Australian Health Insurance - IMAN Australian Health Plans
I found it the only one who actually listed 461 subclass in their website without me should ring/email them and its cheaper too, i guess its because the claiming process needs to be done manually, but I dont mind


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## saratoga (Dec 9, 2011)

My partner is from UK. He is entitled to a modified Medicare card, but in practice it seems to provide the same cover as full Medicare. We had credit cards that provide travel insurance for up to 3 months. So we wrote on the application form that the travel insurance would cover us for the first 3 months and we would organise private health cover when we arrived. We provided evidence of the travel insurance cover in our application. This was fine. S


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## archrao14 (May 14, 2013)

Hi there
I have applied for a subclass 461 visa on the 28th March 2013 at Auckland. DIAC use TTS to lodge their applications here. I have been following up about who my case officer is, however they say they do not have visibility of this and if the CO requires further information they will get in touch with me. Does anyone know how long it takes to process this visa in Auckland, and also do they notify you who the CO is once assigned? Help is much appreciated!


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## leah04 (Jun 25, 2013)

*processing time*

I also have applied for the 461 visa on June 20th and am concerned about processing times. The Immigration website says 2 months however in the e-mail I just received from the NZ Family Relationship Visa Centre it says:

"Contrary to the information contained in our website, the average processing time for a NZ Citizen Family Relationship (Temporary) visa is currently 4 to 6 months however this should be treated as a guide only."

I'm pretty concerned as I can't work and was under the impression I'd only have to last 2 more months without an income. Any help is much appreciated!


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## CollegeGirl (Nov 10, 2012)

I know almost nothing about this visa, but generally when DIAC sends you updated timeframes via e-mail and says their website is incorrect, what you receive in the e-mail is generally more accurate. Hopefully someone will be along who recently applied for the same visa and can tell you with more certainty.


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## leah04 (Jun 25, 2013)

thanks for your quick response....just SO frustrating because I based my whole plan on waiting 2 more months and budgeted for this...didn't plan on not being able to work for another 6 months and I wish I had this information before I applied as I most likely would have applied from Canada


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## CollegeGirl (Nov 10, 2012)

Yeah, many of here know how you feel... processing times have gone up SO much in the last several months. I'm just grateful I'm not waiting for a partner visa from a high-risk country. Some wait 18-24 months away from their spouses... kind of puts it all in perspective. But I know - that doesn't help with your case!


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