Visa Medical Exam With a 4-Year-Old: Our Cost, Timing and Day

The health examination was the part of our 491 application I was most nervous about, mainly because I was taking our young son with me. In the end it was one of the easiest days of the whole process. It took less time than I expected, my son enjoyed the trip, and nothing needed to be posted or uploaded by me afterwards.

Here is exactly how it went for us: how we booked, what we brought, what it cost for three people, how long each step took, and what I would tell another parent. I have left out any health details on purpose. This is about the process, not the results.

I am not a migration agent or a lawyer, and fees and procedures can change. Treat this as one family’s experience and follow the instructions on your own visa application.

When We Did It

We lodged our visa application on 11 May. After lodging, we were told to have our health examinations done, so I booked straight away. My son and I went the next day, on 12 May. It happened to be my day off, which made it easy.

My husband could not get away from work that day, so he went on 21 May. If your family is like ours, you do not have to go together. Each person has their own appointment, and it is fine to split them up.

You can see where this sits in the bigger picture in our month-by-month timeline.

How We Booked

We used a clinic on the list of doctors approved by the Australian immigration department. These are called panel physicians, and the department only accepts examinations done by them. I searched for an approved clinic myself and booked by phone. The clinic did not give me a special number. I went with the paperwork from the immigration department.

If you are not sure which clinic to use, check the department’s list of approved doctors for your country, and ask your migration agent if you have one.

The referral letter lists exactly which exams are required. For an adult on our application it listed a medical examination, a chest X-ray, a blood test for kidney function (creatinine and eGFR), an HIV test and a hepatitis B test, with “Required” next to each.

The exam list from one of our referral letters. I cropped out the personal details.

What We Brought

For the appointment, I brought:

• Our passports
• The health examination paperwork from the immigration department, which became available after we lodged the visa application. I printed all of it and took it with me

I recommend printing everything in advance, so it is all in your hand when you arrive.

What It Cost

The fees were in Canadian dollars, and they depended on age:

• 400 dollars for each person aged 15 and over, before tax
• 150 dollars for each child under 11, before tax

With tax, an adult’s fee came to about 440 dollars each. I do not remember the exact amount we were charged for our son, but if the same tax applies to his 150 dollars, that is about 165, which would make about 1,045 dollars for the three of us. That last total is my own calculation, not a receipt. As far as I remember, the payment method also changed the total: there was no extra fee for cash, a fee of 1 dollar per transaction for debit, and a 3 percent surcharge for credit cards.

I am telling you the numbers as I remember them, so please confirm the current fees with the clinic when you book. If you have a choice, use cash or debit.

How the Day Went, Step by Step

Everything happened close together, which kept the day short.

1. Waiting room, about 30 minutes. We arrived and waited for about half an hour.

2. The doctor, about 10 to 15 minutes. A doctor called us in and asked questions about our health backgrounds, mine and my son’s. That took around ten minutes. The doctor then told us where to go for the next step.

3. The X-ray, about 10 to 15 minutes. The X-ray was done downstairs, in the same building as the clinic, so we did not have to travel anywhere.

4. The blood test, about 30 minutes. The blood test was at a separate place across the street from the clinic. It was not far, and it was easy to find. The whole stop took about half an hour.

Which tests each person needs depends on their age and circumstances, so follow the instructions on your own referral and ask the clinic if you are not sure.

Add it all up, and the stops at the clinic, the X-ray and the blood test came to roughly an hour and a half, not counting travel.

Doing This With a 4-Year-Old

I expected the hardest part to be my son. It was not. He had a good time, and I think the reason was the trip itself.

We usually drive everywhere. This clinic was in a central area where parking was hard to find, so we took public transit instead. It took us roughly 40 minutes to an hour to get there. For my son, riding a train and changing to a different type of transit was an adventure, and he was excited the whole way.

I did bring an iPad, just in case, but I did not need it very much. If your child gets anxious in waiting rooms, I would still bring something.

A few things that helped:

• We went on a day I did not have to work, so I was not rushing.
• The different stops were close together, so the day never felt rushed.

After the Exam

The clinic told me it would send the results directly to the immigration department. I did not have to submit anything myself, so once the exam was finished, we were done. That was one less thing to keep track of.

What I Would Do Differently

Nothing much. We had been told to get the exams done after lodging, so we booked them straight away. If I did it again, I would do the same, and I would follow the same approach:

• Book by phone as soon as you are told to.
• Print every document that came with your application.
• Ask about payment methods when you book, since cash or debit is cheaper than credit.
• Plan the route in advance. If parking is hard where the clinic is, use transit.

Before You Book the Health Exam

• Confirm when the department wants your health examination done, and check whether you must lodge first.
• Find an approved clinic yourself and book by phone.
• Bring your passport and the printed paperwork from the immigration department.
• Ask what the fee is for each person and which payment methods are accepted.
• Plan the day, with the X-ray and blood test locations in mind.
• Bring something to keep a child comfortable.
• Do not submit results yourself unless the clinic tells you to.

Where to Go Next

Health exams are one of the last steps before the long wait. I wrote about what that wait is like in our waiting update, and about everything else we had to collect in our document checklist.

I am a Japanese-born applicant living in Canada, applying with my husband for the Australian subclass 491 visa. I am not a registered migration agent, and this is my own experience, not legal advice.