Medicare card Australia. Can I still get it?

[InMyShadow]

I've been away from oz for 4 years

Am I still eligible for free Medicare?

[BEVUP]

Do you still submit Tax Returns ? If yes can't see why not - I would also say your card may have expired (good for 5 yrs I think)

[steven100]

If your away from Australia for 4 years I doubt your entitled to the card....they will know you left & your in Thailand

[gusincebu]

I returned after 4 yrs and under the impression that 5 yrs was the cutoff point.
At Medicare I was required to fill in an application form, and also provide current proof of address.
( I had renewed my drivers licence the previous day, using my sons address, so that sufficed.)
I also had to provide a Statuary Declaration signed by a JP / CoD, that I intended to remain living in Australia.. Which I did provide regardless of my future plans.

I was provided with a temporary card on the day, and the replacement card was mailed out a week later.
The services were immediately available.

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[steven100]

5 minutes ago, gusincebu said:

I returned after 4 yrs and under the impression that 5 yrs was the cutoff point.
At Medicare I was required to fill in an application form, and also provide current proof of address.
( I had renewed my drivers licence the previous day, using my sons address, so that sufficed.)
I also had to provide a Statuary Declaration signed by a JP / CoD, that I intended to remain living in Australia.. Which I did provide regardless of my future plans.

I was provided with a temporary card on the day, and the replacement card was mailed out a week later.
The services were immediately available.

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it appears you have acquired the new card fraudulently ?

[gusincebu]

it appears you have acquired the new card fraudulently ?

Oh wow.... Gonna dob me in ?

I was fully employed and paid tax in Australia for 45 years, my medical needs are small even minute, by many people's standards. Just a regular health check up.

Get a life!

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[sirmud63]

2 years living out of the country is the cut off point . 

i know it cause iv just been thu it .

after 2 years you have to re-apply .

[InMyShadow]

What is the waiting period if cut off? Or do you just need to show a new address and a stat dec

[steven100]

8 minutes ago, gusincebu said:

Oh wow.... Gonna dob me in ?

I was fully employed and paid tax in Australia for 45 years, my medical needs are small even minute, by many people's standards. Just a regular health check up.

Get a life!

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just joking with ya ...  relax ...

[gusincebu]

just joking with ya ...  relax ...

Hahaha.. Just shows maybe I felt just a little guilty :)

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[InMyShadow]

Hahaha.. Just shows maybe I felt just a little guilty :)

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You did well. Screw the government they are alway going after the tax payer. Arrive by boat and your treated to a full medical.

[1337markus]

Mine expired while I was in country, the day i was due to fly out. Medicare will not issue a new card if they know you live overseas. I asked why do you think I will try and use it in a foreign hospital??? When I return I need coverage! No if you dont have a bonafide Aussie address they cant help you. I asked then will you stop taking the medicare levy out of my defence pension If I cant have a card? "Computer says no"  cant help you talk to the ATO on that one!

[ELVIS123456]

It looks like the period living overseas is 5 years, but after 2 years you can lose residency and then if your card runs out you cannot renew it.

https://www.humanservices.gov.au/individuals/enablers/how-enrol-or-re-enrol-medicare#a5

 

 

Definitely get a MyGov account setup - easiest way to get many things organised.

https://www.humanservices.gov.au/individuals/services/medicare/medicare-card

 

 

[Pungdo]

I have been in Thailand for over 10 years and I am a self declared Non-Resident, which means I no longer have to pay the medicare levy, even though I still do an annual tax return, but I still get medicare, I was home a few weeks ago and got some new spectacles made and the receptionist looked me up on medicare and said I was still in the system.

[InMyShadow]

From the information on the web and here it appears that proof of residance via a property lease and a bank account etc should do the trick and of course a compassionate person behind the keyboard would work wonders

[aboctok]

4 hours ago, InMyShadow said:

4 hours ago, gusincebu said:

Hahaha.. Just shows maybe I felt just a little guilty :)

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You did well. Screw the government they are alway going after the tax payer. Arrive by boat and your treated to a full medical.

Haven't you heard? Tony Abbott stopped the boats.

[InMyShadow]

Haven't you heard? Tony Abbott stopped the boats.

I don't believe it. Building a raft as we speak

[MadMuhammad]

55 minutes ago, InMyShadow said:

From the information on the web and here it appears that proof of residance via a property lease and a bank account etc should do the trick and of course a compassionate person behind the keyboard would work wonders

I’m leaving ‘permanently’ (quotation marks for the pedants that dispute the trem permantly in Thailand) but I have a trust fund and company structure that generates an income each year. To avoid being taxed as a non-resident for taxation purposes I’m keeping an oz bank account, changing my mother’s utility bills (including mobile account) into my name to be paid by me from my oz bank account. 

I’m hoping with a maybe once annual, at most, return to oz this will be enough to keep the hounds at bay. 

I have my accountant investigating further but any TV advice will be welcome.

[lindlake]

1 hour ago, Pungdo said:

I have been in Thailand for over 10 years and I am a self declared Non-Resident, which means I no longer have to pay the medicare levy, even though I still do an annual tax return, but I still get medicare, I was home a few weeks ago and got some new spectacles made and the receptionist looked me up on medicare and said I was still in the system.

Hi we are the same but I was told can,t use my Medicare card because I am a non resident we arrive in Aus today will have to check

[stropper]

when you go back, what for i do not know, if  on a old age pension, instant medicare, several mates have done after many years away, major heart repairs, just go to the nearest centerlink and  sign in, after all you are still an aussie

[bazza73]

1 hour ago, MadMuhammad said:

I’m leaving ‘permanently’ (quotation marks for the pedants that dispute the trem permantly in Thailand) but I have a trust fund and company structure that generates an income each year. To avoid being taxed as a non-resident for taxation purposes I’m keeping an oz bank account, changing my mother’s utility bills (including mobile account) into my name to be paid by me from my oz bank account. 

I’m hoping with a maybe once annual, at most, return to oz this will be enough to keep the hounds at bay. 

I have my accountant investigating further but any TV advice will be welcome.

You can probably put your mother's address as your place of residence in Australia. I believe you can stay away for up to 5 years; however, Immigration and Medicare are linked through myGov so they know if you have not returned. As usual, it's a fairly fuzzy area when you are dealing with a government bureaucracy. It's what keeps them in a job.

[bazza73]

6 hours ago, gusincebu said:

Hahaha.. Just shows maybe I felt just a little guilty :)

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No-one should ever feel guilty when they are dealing with government bureaucracy.

[4MyEgo]

8 hours ago, steven100 said:

If your away from Australia for 4 years I doubt your entitled to the card....they will know you left & your in Thailand

From my research, it has lead me to believe that if you have not activated your card for 5 years, it is cancelled, i.e. you have 5 years to use it when you exited Australia, after the 5 years is up, your toast, i.e. its cancelled and you have to reapply when you go back, although some people have posted on other posts that they have had their cards reissued after being away for 8 years, but no confirmation that they have used it, so not sure it would be working after 8 years, why the reissue of the card after an 8 year absence is anybodies guess.

 

I had an absence of 18 months, went back and good as gold.

 

If you are on MyGov website you should be able to access Medicare through that and see when the expiry of your card is, but then again, if you have been out of the country for 4 years, and you know your expiry date is not for another year, you should be fine.

 

This site below suggests you have 5 years as a non resident as I mentioned above, if your a Australian resident living overseas and paying tax, you are still entitled to it as you would be back in Oz.

 

Worth a read, but it is not from a government website or part of legislation, so always take care to confirm with both.

 

http://www.austexpatinvestor.com/medicare-implications-for-australian-expats/

[oxo1947]

10 hours ago, InMyShadow said:

I've been away from oz for 4 years

Am I still eligible for free Medicare?

IMS.... the sure way to reactivate your card is to pay some tax.... I have not lived there for 19 years now. still get sent card when expires,  if you have a friend who is in business..(no matter how small) & if he will put you down for some consulting work or book work---whatever, for say 2 weeks-- you give him whatever he has to send to the tax dept...

[4MyEgo]

3 hours ago, Pungdo said:

I have been in Thailand for over 10 years and I am a self declared Non-Resident, which means I no longer have to pay the medicare levy, even though I still do an annual tax return, but I still get medicare, I was home a few weeks ago and got some new spectacles made and the receptionist looked me up on medicare and said I was still in the system.

Now that has confused the crap out of me

[Laza 45]

..keep your head down.. if you are lucky they will send a new card to your Australian address if you still have one... Centerlink is hooked up to Immigration and knows everything they do... Medicare is NOT... I asked a question and got cut off..  be careful.. 

 

[4MyEgo]

3 hours ago, MadMuhammad said:

I’m leaving ‘permanently’ (quotation marks for the pedants that dispute the trem permantly in Thailand) but I have a trust fund and company structure that generates an income each year. To avoid being taxed as a non-resident for taxation purposes I’m keeping an oz bank account, changing my mother’s utility bills (including mobile account) into my name to be paid by me from my oz bank account. 

I’m hoping with a maybe once annual, at most, return to oz this will be enough to keep the hounds at bay. 

I have my accountant investigating further but any TV advice will be welcome.

As I had a company prior to leaving for Thailand on a permanent basis, I ran the question by my accountant, i.e. do you think its worth while keeping the company going to try and retain my residency status, with his reply being, its very complicated mate, with a director having to be in country they, etc etc, and have closed all loops but one as far as he was concerned.

 

He went on to say, just tell the banks to withhold 10% on your bank term deposit accounts, flick the property and invest in the stock market because that's the only loop that they haven't closed yet, so its been tax free $'s for the past two years for me and remain until such a time until they close that one down.

 

Also for any Aussie's who owns a property back home, watch out after 30 June 2018 if your a non resident, because they are about to remove that finger and replace it with a hand.

 

You can see what I am talking about under the Home Country Forum sub heading Australian Property-Capital Gains Tax with the links, in other words, if you don't keep up with these C..ts, they will pull the rug from beneath your feet.

Edited October 23, 2017 by 4MyEgo

[4MyEgo]

16 minutes ago, oxo1947 said:

IMS.... the sure way to reactivate your card is to pay some tax.... I have not lived there for 19 years now. still get sent card when expires,  if you have a friend who is in business..(no matter how small) & if he will put you down for some consulting work or book work---whatever, for say 2 weeks-- you give him whatever he has to send to the tax dept...

I think you will find that your card won't work and you will have to reapply, if you ever returned, i.e. if people are still getting cards, it doesn't mean they have been tested that you are on the system with a go, red flag for certain, tax or no tax, its the residency thing, 183 days.

 

I still do consultancy work from here, but make sure money is transferred into accounts that have nothing to do with me, if they think they are going to charge me tax at a non resident rates and take Medicare away from me, they have failed in making the bacon from me as a non resident.

[MareeHH]

It appears that there is a clear delineation between whether your are an Australian Citizen as opposed to an Australian Resident.  Be aware that there is also a difference of being a resident for tax purposes, which does NOT apply in this situation....rather a resident in this particular situation is someone who is not a citizen....so look at your citizenship in this situation. 

Took this from the Human Services website. 

Hope it’s helpful. Cheers Maree. 

Why you aren't eligible for Medicare

You aren’t eligible for Medicare if you:

• are a permanent resident of Australia and:
  • have been living outside Australia for 12 months or more, or,
  • haven’t come back to live in Australia permanently
• are an Australian citizen and overseas for 5 years or more
• are a New Zealand citizen who spends less than 6 months in a 12 month period in Australia
• haven't applied for permanent residency
• had your permanent residency application
  • withdrawn, or
  • refused and you haven't lodged an appeal

Edited October 23, 2017 by MareeHH
Additional info.

[oxo1947]

1 hour ago, 4MyEgo said:

I think you will find that your card won't work and you will have to reapply, if you ever returned, i.e. if people are still getting cards, it doesn't mean they have been tested that you are on the system with a go, red flag for certain, tax or no tax, its the residency thing, 183 days.

Sorry 4MyEgo.... I did not make myself clear (my fault)... I have not lived there but I do visit sometimes every 2nd year---sometimes sooner if weddings etc come up. Yes I used the card 10 months ago, for inoculations & stocking up on medications etc.

The card did laps 5 years ago --a new one wasn't sent until once again I done some "Consulting" work over the phone  for as friends company, paid $310 tax. Card arrived 2 months latter, without me applying for it. My accountant tells me that any person paying tax must have a Health care card as that is what part of the tax is for. I do still have a permanent address there (friends house.

 

Maybe he has this wrong.

 

I am 70 but do not receive an age pension, so maybe I am not tracked as much as pensioners, I have looked at paying also for a Medicare private...its about $1,000 a year. & does allow you more (quicker) access if you did need to return there for non emergency treatment.

Edited October 23, 2017 by oxo1947