Student Dependants
What is a student dependant?
A dependant aged between 21 and 25, who is single and completing an apprenticeship, traineeship or studying full time. A student dependant can continue to be covered on their family or single parent membership until they turn 25 or are no longer studying full-time.
Registering a student dependant
You'll need to submit a student declaration to ensure they remain covered by your membership. This declaration needs to be completed prior to April 1 each year to confirm your child’s status as a student.
What if your child is no longer a student or they turn 25?
If your child is over 21 and no longer a student, or they are over 25 regardless of their student status, they will need to take out their own membership to maintain health insurance coverage.
Under 30? You'll be eligible for a discount on hospital cover.
From 1 April 2023, an age-based discount will be available on all GMHBA hospital covers for anyone under 30.
FAQs for student dependants
Your child can remain on your policy if they are aged between 21 and 25, unmarried and completing a full-time apprenticeship, traineeship or studying.
We understand that life changes, that's why you will need to complete a student dependant declaration each year before 1 April, to ensure we have the most up to date information.
If you do not complete a student declaration by this deadline, your child will be removed from the policy.
If your child is over 21 and not studying, or when they turn 25, they will need to take out their own private health insurance policy to stay covered.
Your child can join GMHBA online or by calling our team on 1300 382 407. They will need to join prior to 1 April to avoid any gaps in cover.
Information for joining via the GMHBA website
They can join prior to coming off your policy, simply select for the cover to begin on 1 April.
Information for joining via phone
To join via phone, your child will need to be present to sign up, so have them call themselves, or sitting with you for the call. You can call anytime before 1 April and our team will be able to assist.
Don't worry, we will support them to find an equivalent cover, or one more suitable to their needs. Parents can be set up with authority to enquire about their child’s cover, however they won’t be able to make changes.
Our team can adjust the cover start date to begin on 1 April so there is no gap in cover.
Yes, provided there is an offer available to new joins and they meet the terms and conditions of the offer.
If they are no longer a student dependant or 25, they will be removed from the family policy on 1 April.
We understand that sometimes life gets in the way, you have 30 days after this date to backdate a new policy to avoid any gaps in coverage and ensure continutiy of cover.
To take out cover after 1 April, please call our customer service team on 1300 446 422.
Any waiting periods already served by the dependant on your policy can be transferred across to their new policy membership, provided;
- The cover is taken out before 31 May, you can organise for it to begin on 1 April.
- The level of cover is equal or lower to the cover held by your family, meaning the waiting periods have already been served against that item and level of cover.