Private ruling: Medicare levy surcharge
Date of advice: 22 March 2016
Published: May 2016
Ruling period: Year ended 30 June 2015
Date scheme commenced: 1 July 2014

Ruling: Q1: Does your international health insurance policy qualify as a complying health insurance policy for Medicare levy surcharge (MLS) purposes? | A1: No.

Relevant facts and circumstances: You have private health insurance with an overseas firm. The policy provides health care services for medical treatment while you are in Australia.

Relevant legislative provisions: Medicare Levy Act 1986 Subsection 3(5).

Reasons for decision: Summary: The MLS is in addition to the Medicare levy. The MLS is payable if you or your dependants did not have an appropriate level of private patient hospital cover for the whole of the 2014-15 income year and your taxable income was above the surcharge threshold amount. An appropriate level of private patient hospital cover is cover provided by an insurance policy issued by a registered health insurer for hospital treatment in Australia. Subsection 3(5) of the Medicare Levy Act 1986 (MLA 1986) states that a person is covered by an insurance policy that provides private patient hospital cover if the policy is a complying health insurance policy (within the meaning of the Private Health Insurance Act 2007 (PHIA 2007)) that covers hospital treatment. The Private Health Insurance Ombudsman maintains on its website an up to date record of all private health insurers providing complying policies. The overseas fund does not appear on the list of registered health funds for Medicare levy surcharge purposes. Therefore their policy is not a complying health insurance policy within the meaning of the PHIA 2007 and does not satisfy the requirement of subsection 3(5) of the MLA 1986.