Everything You Need to Know About Insurance for Working Holiday and Other Adventures Abroad

When to buy travel insurance and when proof of insurance is requested

When do you have to show proof of insurance?

For Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, France, South Korea, Hong Kong, Mexico, Russia, and Taiwan, proof of insurance is part of your Working Holiday permit application, so you will have to purchase it early, before your trip.

For Canada, Uruguay and New Zealand proof of insurance is requested upon arrival, so you will have to purchase it before boarding the plane. Note that New Zealand rarely asks to see proof of insurance.

Australia and Japan won’t ask for proof of insurance since both made it optional. However, if you choose to purchase insurance coverage (and you should!), you should do it before departure. Read on to find out why.

When is the best time to buy insurance coverage?

Always buy insurance coverage before departure. This is not a Working Holiday rule, it’s an insurance rule. Exploring another country before going to your Working Holiday destination? The same rule applies, buy coverage before leaving home, or else you may be excluded from coverage (which kind of defeats the purpose of travel insurance…).

A few insurance companies may be still willing to offer coverage after you left home but few provide post-departure “already travelling” coverage, so be warned. Contact customer service before making any purchase—you may discover later on in the fine print that you’re excluded from coverage because you were already at the destination.

If you’re combining short-term credit card travel insurance with another policy from an insurance company, start the coverage on the last day of your credit card insurance coverage.

When proof of insurance doesn’t have to be included with your application, it’s best to wait until your application is approved (for instance, when Canada sends you your port of entry [POE] letter) to purchase insurance coverage. This way, you won’t waste money if your application isn’t successful. However, don’t forget to buy insurance coverage before your day of departure and print proof of insurance to show it if requested upon arrival.  

The proper way to renew insurance coverage

Since travel insurance isn’t mandatory for Australia and Japan, travellers sometimes buy coverage for a short period and renew it during their trip.

It’s okay to do so but make sure there’s no gap in your coverage, otherwise, you won’t be able to renew (i.e. you will have to buy a new policy)—or worse, the renewal might get through but your claims could be denied later on. For instance, if you buy travel insurance for February 1 to March 1, renew it before or on March 1, not on March 2, 3, 4, etc.

If you forgot to renew your insurance, reach out to customer service first to see if you can get maintain coverage with a renewal or if you need to buy a new insurance policy.