Australia enjoys some of the best health standards in the world. To maintain these standards, most visa applicants must meet minimum health standards before we will grant them a visa. We call this ‘meeting the health requirement’. We might assess your health as part of the visa application process.
Who needs health examinations
You and family members who apply for a visa with you might need to have health examinations to prove you meet the health requirement.
You might need to have more health examinations if you come from a country where there are public health concerns such as polio or Ebola Virus Disease (EVD).
Permanent and provisional visa applicants
You and any family members applying for the visa with you must have health examinations.
In some circumstances, family members who are not coming to Australia with you might also need to have health examinations.
Temporary visa applicants
You and any family members applying for a visa with you might need to have health examinations.
Whether you need them, and what examinations you need, depends on:
- the visa you are applying for
- how long you plan to stay in Australia
- what you plan to do in Australia
- the country you apply from
- any special circumstances that might apply to you
- whether you have any significant medical conditions
Check if you need to have health examinations
Online visa applications
To check whether you need to have health examinations:
- Log in to ImmiAccount.
- Go to your application.
- Click on the ‘View health assessment’ link in the Applications Status section.
- If we need you to have health examinations, you will find a link there called ‘Organise health examinations’. There will be no link if we don’t need you to have health examinations.
- Click on the link and complete your medical history.
When you complete your medical history you will be given a referral letter containing an identifier we call a HAP ID. You need the HAP ID to arrange your health examinations.
Paper visa applications
Your case officer will contact you if you need to have health examinations. You will be given a referral letter containing an identifier we call a HAP ID. You need the HAP ID to arrange your health examinations.
You had health examinations in the last 12 months
You might not need to have all the health examinations again if you had any in the last 12 months. Your referral letter will tell you what examinations you need to take.
When to have health examinations
Depending on the visa you apply for, it might be best to wait until after you apply for a visa to have your health examinations. See the After you apply section to learn which visas this applies to.
Before you apply for a visa (My Health Declarations)
It can take several weeks to assess your health. We might ask you to have more health examinations depending on our assessment.
You might avoid delay by completing your health examinations before you apply for a visa through My Health Declarations (MHD).
MHD is a free service, but you must pay for any health examinations you have. You can include any family members you will include in your visa application when you use MHD.
Don’t use MHD if:
- the visa you want to apply for is not listed there. This means you must apply for your visa before you have health examinations
- you have already lodged a visa application. Wait until your case officer asks you to have health examinations and gives you your unique health assessment identifier, or HAP ID. If you don’t, you might delay processing of your visa application
- the visa that you are intending to apply for can take more than 6 months to process
Your health examination results are generally only valid for a maximum of 12 months. If you have your health examinations before you apply for a visa that takes more than 6 months to process and there is a delay in processing your application, you might need to have more health examinations. You will have to pay to have the examinations again.
What health examinations you need
Generally, permanent and provisional visa applicants need to have these health examinations.
| Age | Tests required |
|---|---|
| Under 2 years | medical examination |
| 2 – 11 years | medical examinationTB Screening test – either Tuberculin Skin Test (TST) or Interferon-Gamma Release Assay (IGRA) if you are from a higher risk country for tuberculosis or are applying for a refugee or humanitarian type visa |
| 11 – 15 years | medical examinationchest x-ray |
| 15 or more years | medical examinationchest x-rayHIV test |
Why you must meet the health requirement
Making sure visa applicants meet the health requirement:
- protects the Australian community from public health and safety risks, especially active tuberculosis
- helps us control how much we spend on services like social security benefits, allowances and pensions
- ensures Australian citizens and permanent residents can access health and community services that are in short supply
Most visa applicants must meet the health requirement.
Your family members might also have to meet our health requirement even if they are not migrating to Australia. This will depend on what visa you apply for.
To meet the health requirement you must be free from any disease or condition that is:
- a significant healthcare and community service cost to the Australian community
- likely to limit the access of Australian citizens and permanent residents to healthcare and community services that are in short supply by placing demand on those services. We call this prejudicing access
You might have to have health examinations to prove you meet the health requirement. The results of your examinations will be assessed by a Medical Officer of the Commonwealth (MOC). If you have a significant medical condition, the MOC will advise us whether the condition is likely to:
- threaten public health
- result in significant healthcare and community service costs
- place a demand on healthcare or community services that are in short supply
The MOC will consider what kind of services a hypothetical person with the same kind and severity of condition would need and advise us on that basis.
When the MOC gives us advice they can only consider your medical situation, not your other personal circumstances. For example, the MOC cannot take into account whether you will use available public services because you have private health insurance or enough money to pay for treatment.