Health Waiver PIC 4007 – 4005

 

Health Waiver – PIC 4007 criteria (refer to the Department letter):

A waiver of meeting the health requirement (a health waiver) can be obtained for applicants of most visas. The visa health waiver means you can get the visa granted even if you have a significant health condition picked up in the medical check. A visa health waiver can help you get the visa when the Department may have decided there may be high costs or prejudices to access to medical services by Australians.

These are referred to as a PIC 4007 health waiver.

 Without a health waiver your visa will be refused if you do not meet the health check.

 When is a health waiver done?     

A visa health waiver may only be asked for after a Medical Officer of the Commonwealth (MoC) has assessed that the applicant does not meet the health requirement and where the Department is satisfied that the visa approval would be unlikely to result in:
• undue costs or
• undue pressure on health care and community services.

Can you ask for a Health Waiver?

If your letter says PIC 4007, YES you can. Even if you are refused the visa and you are in Australia, you can appeal and attempt a health waiver. In some circumstances, if you are overseas, you may be able to appeal.If the letter says PIC 4005, you are not able to get a health waiver but there may be other avenues for you to still succeed with your visa.

Check out our career background.

You will see our long work history in the medical/health/pharmaceutical fields as well as the current Migration Agent role. A perfect blend of experience. So not only are you getting a Registered Migration Agent, you are also getting a qualified Medical Scientist and a person with long term experience in the medical and pharmaceutical fields. This experience may prevent your visa being refused.

Career Experience:

• Currently Principal – immigration law practice
• Principal Board Support Manager -Australian Health Practitioner Regulation Agency (AHPRA)
• Director – Australian Taxation Office
• Secretary – Tax Agents Board of Queensland
• Regional Manager – Health Insurance Commission – Medicare Australia
• Senior business roles in international pharmaceutical and scientific industries
• Medical Scientist – New Zealand
• TESOL English teaching internationally.

 Visa Health waiver process.   

You do not apply for a visa health waiver until a medical condition has been found. If you are eligible to be considered for a visa health waiver you will get a letter advising that you (or one of your dependents) have not met the health requirement and that a visa health waiver will be considered. It is called a Natural Justice Letter.

The letter will ask you to provide information to support a health waiver. You must follow a formal process in a short time, usually 28 days. This is not a process for an amateur. When your information has been received, the Department will assess yours and your sponsor or family or others ability to mitigate the probable costs and use of health care and health services, and compassionate and compelling circumstances that might apply in your case.

You can avoid a visa refusal by managing this properly.

Is there a list of health conditions I can see?   

No, each condition and visa health waiver is decided individually and should be prepared very carefully. You need a sound understanding of health and immigration issues to succeed in a submission. Often, if one person fails the health check, all are refused the visa.

This is known as “one fails, all fails”. If the estimated health care and community service costs of the health issue are AUD50,000 or greater, and/or prejudice to access has been identified, the matter is escalated in the Department for further assessment.

In the more serious health issues we will assist with reports from suitable health professionals. These are a great investment to avoid a visa refusal.

Some conditions that cause problems with a visa that we have had overcome:

1. Hepatitis
2. HIV
3. Previous Surgery
4. Cochlear Ear Implants
5. Cancer
6. Severe Depression

There are many others, we can assess the condition and your prospects of success.

Examples of Health Waiver successes:  

1. An 89-year-old, refused a visa to live with family in Australia for the rest of her life. She had no family remaining in her home country. She could afford to fully support herself and cover any and all health and aged care facility costs but the immigration law did not allow a visa to be granted. We succeeded with Ministerial Intervention, getting her a 10 year temporary visa – she will be 98 when it will be due to to dealt with again. No permanent visa but a probable lifetime in Australia. The family were happy. The visa was not refused in the end.
2. Hepatitis B. This can be a very expensive condition. In this case the lifetime estimated costs were $350,000, mostly medication. We succeeded by showing the impact on Australian citizen family members, the fact the applicant and family could help reduce the costs and some other important factor. It was complicated but successful.
3. HIV. This condition is no longer a death sentence, there have been fantastic successes with pharmaceuticals and the costs have come down enormously.
4. Cochlear Ear Implant. For profoundly deaf applicants, usually children, these can cost up to $250,000 for a lifetime of support.
5. Growth problems with a child – sometimes called Failure to Thrive.
6. Brain Cancer/Tumor. In one case, the applicant had a 10 year marriage, was given 5 years to live and was outside Australia.

PIC 4005?      Click here.       

We have access to case histories that help us understand how other applicants have succeeded. This is called researching precedents, a very important process.