Compare gap year travel insurance

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What you need to know

Travel insurance can cover you for at least 12 months if you are going on a gap year.
It can cover medical expenses, cancellations, luggage and more.
Most travel insurers let extend your policy while you are away.

What travel insurance brands provide cover for a year abroad?

Maximum Trip Length	*Conditions of Extension	Enquire
12 months	If You are travelling and wish to be insured for longer than the original period shown on Your original Certificate of Insurance, You need to purchase a new policy. Restrictions on the duration of the new policy may apply. For example, the maximum overall period for Worldwide cover is 12 months in total.	Bonus Get quote
12 months	You can purchase the new cover subject to approval and duration of cover cannot exceed the total of 12 months.	Get quote
24 months	The period of insurance on your original Certificate of Insurance and your new Certificate of Insurance cannot exceed a maximum combined period of 24 months.	Finder AwardBonus Get quote
12 months	You can normally extend your policy whilst you are overseas up to a maximum period of 12 months in total from the date cover first started.	Get quote
12 months	You can normally extend your policy whilst you are overseas up to a maximum period of 12 months in total from the date cover first started.	Get quote
18 months	Policies can be extended only once and only up to the maximum trip length of the travel plan you select One trip, Cruise and Domestic: 365 days if you are aged 64 or under 90 days if you are aged 65 or over (unless you are aged 80 or over, and select a Worldwide Including travel plan) 35 days if you are aged 80 or over, and select a Worldwide Including travel plan Backpackers: 18 months	Finder AwardBonus Get quote
12 months	Policies can be extended only once and only up to the maximum trip length of the travel plan you select One trip, Cruise and Domestic: 365 days if you are aged 64 or under 90 days if you are aged 65 or over (unless you are aged 80 or over, and select a Worldwide Including travel plan) 35 days if you are aged 80 or over, and select a Worldwide Including travel plan	Bonus Get quote
12 months	The Period of Insurance on Your new Certificate of Insurance, when added to the period of Your original Certificate of Insurance, cannot exceed a combined maximum period of 12 months.	Get quote
12 months	If You are travelling and wish to be insured for longer than the original period shown on Your original Certificate of Insurance, You need to purchase a new policy. The maximum overall period for Worldwide cover is 12 months in total.	Bonus Get quote
12 months	Your length of cover (including the extension) shouldn't be more than 12 months.	Finder Award Get quote
12 months	Travel with Kit will not grant an extension to a policy where the total Trip duration will exceed 12 months.	More info
12 months	Travel with Jane will not grant an extension to a policy where the total Trip duration will exceed 12 months.	More info
12 months	You can only extend a policy up to a maximum of 12 months from the original departure date shown on your Certificate of Insurance.	Get quote
12 months	If You are travelling and wish to be insured for longer than the original period shown on Your original Certificate of Insurance, You need to purchase a new policy. The maximum overall period for Worldwide cover is 12 months in total.	Get quote
12 months	You can purchase the new cover subject to approval and duration of cover cannot exceed the total of 12 months.	Bonus Get quote
15 months	Your period of Overseas travel does not exceed 15 consecutive months in total from the date You originally departed Australia.	More info
24 months	If You are travelling and would like to be insured for longer than the original period of cover, you will need to apply for cover prior to the expiry of your original policy. The period of cover on your new Certificate of Insurance cannot exceed 12 months from the start date shown on your new Certificate of Insurance.	More info

Note: This information was last updated August 2023

What should my travel insurance for a gap year cover?

Annual travel insurance covers all the same things as a single-trip policy. This includes:

Medical expenses including evacuation
Family emergencies
Cancellation fees and lost deposits.
Luggage and personal belongings, including luggage delays
Travel delay.
Rental vehicle excess insurance
Cruise and ski cover
Personal liability (legal fees and penalties)

Finder survey: What types of holidays have people taken?

Response	Male	Female
Honeymoon	52.22%	41.69%
None	28.32%	34.07%
Working holiday	20.04%	18.31%
Round-the-world	12.14%	10.85%
Other	9.63%	10.51%
Gap year	5.59%	8.64%
Baby-moon	3.28%	7.29%
Volunteer abroad	3.66%	4.24%

Source: Finder survey by Pure Profile of 1112 Australians, December 2023

Extra cover that you may need in your gap year

Rental vehicle excess cover. If your rental vehicle is involved in an accident or stolen, you could be liable for the rental company's expensive insurance excess, which could be several thousand dollars. Luckily, most comprehensive travel insurance policies cover this expense.
Snow sports cover. Snow sports cover protects you from costs such as stolen or damaged equipment, equipment hire, and ski resort closure due to inclement weather. Seek snow cover if you are planning on going skiing or snowboarding during your gap year.
Adventure activities cover. Many high-risk adventure activities you might want to indulge in during your gap year such as rock climbing or hang gliding, are not automatically covered on many policies. Adding optional adventure activities cover to your policy ensures that claims resulting from your participation in such sports will be covered.
Valuable items cover. Although a travel insurance policy may have a high amount of cover for your personal possessions should they be lost or stolen, be aware that sub-limits may apply to individual items. As a result, you may not have sufficient cover in place to repair or replace an expensive laptop or camera, so taking out extra valuables cover can be a good idea.

What are some common general exclusions?

Though no two long term insurance policies are the same, you will generally not have your claim paid if:

Your claim results from a pre-existing medical condition for which you are not covered
Your claim relates to any elective medical, dental, cosmetic or surgical procedure
You fail to take reasonable care to minimise your loss or injury
Your claim relates to you committing an unlawful act
Your claim relates to psychiatric, nervous, mental or behavioural disorders
Your claim relates to physical, mental or emotional exhaustion
Your claim is a result of an intentional self-inflicted injury
Your claim is a result of the use of alcohol or drugs, except drugs prescribed by a medical practitioner
Your claim relates to a sexually transmitted disease
Your claim arises as a result of pregnancy or childbirth
Your claim relates to riding a motorcycle (certain exceptions may apply depending on your policy)
You participate in professional sport or adventure activities
You participate in paid work that is not for your usual employer and was not arranged beforehand
Your claim relates to an act of war.

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Frequently asked questions

Yes, many insurers will allow you to extend your cover if needed, as long as you meet the conditions of a policy extension. Common conditions include providing:
- A reason for extending your travel insurance
- Disclosure of any new health conditions
Note: Some insurers require you to request your extension a certain amount of time before your policy's original end date, such as 1 week in advance.

Thank you for your feedback!

To make sure you get accurate and helpful information, this guide has been edited by Joelle Grubb as part of our fact-checking process.

Written by

Jessica Prasida

Publisher

Jessica Prasida is a travel insurance expert for Finder. She lives and breathes travel, having worked as a travel agent and branch manager at STA Travel for over 4 years, then writing about travel insurance with Finder for another 5 years. Jess has a Bachelor of Business from the University of Technology, Sydney and a Tier 1 General Insurance qualification. See full bio

Co-written by

Gary Ross Hunter

Editor, Insurance & Innovations

Gary Ross Hunter was an editor at Finder, specialising in insurance. He’s been writing about life, travel, home, car, pet and health insurance for over 6 years and regularly appears as an insurance expert in publications including The Sydney Morning Herald, The Guardian and news.com.au. Gary holds a Kaplan Tier 2 General Advice General Insurance certification which meets the requirements of ASIC Regulatory Guide 146 (RG146). See full bio

Gary Ross's expertise

Gary Ross has written 725 Finder guides across topics including:

Health, home, life, car, pet and travel insurance
Managing the cost of living

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