I have private health insurance (and have added the details to my return), and under this section of my tax return it states "Not liable for Medicare levy surcharge". However, once I calculate the tax estimate, the medicare levy shows up as an owing amount on my return. Why is this?
Hey @Babysitter12
This is a reasonable common misunderstanding. The vast majority of people need to pay the Medicare levy, whether or not you have private patient hospital cover doesn’t affect this. What private patient hospital cover effects is whether you need to pay the Medicare levy surcharge which is an additional amount of for people who earn higher amounts of income.
Hope this clears things up.
All replies
Hey @Babysitter12
This is a reasonable common misunderstanding. The vast majority of people need to pay the Medicare levy, whether or not you have private patient hospital cover doesn’t affect this. What private patient hospital cover effects is whether you need to pay the Medicare levy surcharge which is an additional amount of for people who earn higher amounts of income.
Hope this clears things up.
The standard Medicare levy is paid by most people, even if they have private health insurance. Having private health insurance can only help you avoid the Medicare levy surcharge, but not the standard levy.
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