Eligibility for the private health insurance offset
You must have private health insurance (PHI) to claim the private health insurance offset. The offset is sometimes called the private health insurance rebate.
The offset is an amount the government contributes towards your private health insurance. You may take it as a reduced premium or a refundable offset when you lodge your tax return.
Your entitlement depends on:
- the age of the oldest person your policy covers
- your single or family income thresholds and rates for the Medicare levy surcharge, depending on your family status.
If you have a higher income, the amount you can receive is:
- reduced
- not available if your income is more than a certain amount.
For more information on the income threshold, see Income tests for the private health insurance offset.
Calculating your PHI offset
We calculate the amount of private health insurance offset when you lodge your tax return. We will test your income against the income thresholds to work out the percentage of offset you can receive for the income year.
Use the calculator below to work out your:
- private health reduction percentage
- income for Medicare levy surcharge purposes.
How to claim the offset
You can claim your private health insurance offset as either a:
- premium reduction which lowers the policy price your health insurer charges
- refundable private health insurance offset when you lodge your tax return.
How you claim your offset may result in you receiving a private health insurance tax offset or having to repay some of your premium reduction. This depends on:
- how you choose to claim your offset
- the level of offset you claim for your policy
- your income threshold for the Medicare levy surcharge.