Expatriate and Inpatriate Medical Insurance

International mobility adds a layer to people risk that domestic cover is not built to answer. An employee on an overseas assignment, an inbound employee working in Australia or an executive moving between locations needs continuity of medical care that travels with them, and that continuity has to work within the rules of the host country. The exposure sits with the employer that sends or hosts them.

Expatriate and inpatriate medical cover is designed to answer that exposure. In general terms it can support emergency medical cover, evacuation and continuity of care across borders, with attention to the local compliance and insurance-admission rules that vary from country to country. Because those rules differ and the right structure depends on where people are based and for how long, this is a specialist area that benefits from advice rather than an off-the-shelf product.

DKG is an advisory-led general insurance broker with specialist Life and People Risk capability. We offer expatriate and inpatriate medical cover as specialist support for employers with multiple overseas assignments, inbound staff or a mobile-executive population, rather than as a heavily promoted line. We review where your people are based, the local considerations that apply, and how the cover fits the rest of your travel and people-risk programme. Cover is always subject to policy wording and to local regulation.

What are the benefits?

• Support for continuity of medical care for employees who work across borders, whether outbound, inbound or mobile.
• Cover designed to respond to emergency medical needs and, where required, evacuation.
• Attention to the local compliance and insurance-admission considerations that apply in the host country.
• A specialist response for employers with multiple overseas assignments, inbound staff or mobile executives.
• A connection to the wider travel and people-risk programme, including business travel and personal accident cover.
• An adviser who reviews the arrangement as your international footprint changes and acts as your advocate if a claim is made.

What can it cover?

Expatriate and inpatriate medical arrangements are specialist and vary by host country. In general terms, and subject to underwriting, terms, conditions, exclusions, policy wording and local regulation, cover can be designed to provide:

• Emergency medical cover for employees based or working overseas, or inbound to Australia.
• Evacuation and, where needed, repatriation, depending on the wording.
• Continuity of care across borders for a mobile workforce.
• An arrangement structured with attention to local compliance and insurance-admission rules in the host country.

The right structure depends on where your people are based, for how long, and the rules of the host country. Because this is a specialist and unconfirmed area for promotion, we discuss whether it fits your circumstances before any cover is placed.

What usually isn’t covered?

Cover responds to the policy definitions and the events the policy is written to answer, and local rules also apply. In general terms, and subject to policy wording and local regulation, the following are usually not covered:

• Routine domestic cover that the local statutory or health system, or another policy, already provides.
• Territories that are excluded by the policy.
• Matters that fall outside the policy definitions.
• Arrangements that conflict with local insurance-admission or compliance rules in the host country.

What a policy covers and excludes is determined by the insurer, the policy wording and the rules of the host country. Local considerations vary, so we keep this general and review the specifics with you before cover is placed.

How DKG supports you

We start with your international footprint: who is based overseas, who is inbound, and who moves between locations. We review the local compliance and insurance-admission considerations that apply, and we structure cover that supports continuity of care for a mobile workforce. We offer this as specialist support rather than a promoted product, and we are honest about where it fits and where it does not. This page links to Business Travel and Personal Accident Insurance for the trip-based and accident side of a mobile workforce.

When a claim is made, cross-border medical claims can involve local providers, host-country rules and time pressure. We act as your advocate from notification through to resolution. We help prepare and present the claim, coordinate with local providers and assistance where relevant and manage insurer engagement. The insurer, the policy wording and the local rules determine the outcome, and we make no representation as to claim results.

DKG’s Life and People Risk practice is led by Marnie Maloney, Head of Life and People Risk. She brings more than 20 years of experience in life insurance and financial advice, with deep expertise across personal risk advice, business succession planning and corporate protection. To discuss medical cover for a workforce that moves across borders, contact Marnie via email or phone on 1800 252 926.

Related services

• Business Travel and Personal Accident Insurance
• Corporate Health Insurance
• Employee Assistance Programmes

Other cover may be considered and additional exclusions may apply.

Important note− The information provided is general advice only and has been prepared without taking into account your objectives, financial situation or needs. When making decisions about expatriate and inpatriate medical insurance, please consider the Product Disclosure Statement.