Practitioner indemnity insurance
Frequently asked questions
Help with your one-time PIN, password and multi-factor authentication.
- Enter your User ID and password as usual.
- We'll send a 6-digit one-time PIN to your registered email address.
- Enter the PIN on the verification screen (you can copy and paste it in).
- Once we've verified your PIN, you'll be taken to your member portal home page.
Look for an email from noreply@avant.org.au with the subject "Avant member portal: your 6-digit one-time PIN".
If you can't find it:
- check your spam or junk folder
- wait a few minutes for the email to arrive
- confirm you're checking the email address registered with your Avant account.
You can request a new PIN after two minutes.
Security tip: never share your one-time PIN with anyone. Avant staff will never ask you for it.
One-time PINs expire after 15 minutes. Select Send a new PIN on the verification screen to receive another code
You can try entering the PIN again or request a new PIN straight away. After three unsuccessful attempts, we'll prompt you to reset your password or contact us for help.
Select Forgot user ID? or Forgot password? on the login screen and follow the prompts.
Select Reset password and provide your:
- last name
- date of birth
- email address
- CAPTCHA verification.
We'll send a temporary password to your registered email address. Once you receive it, log in with the temporary password and create a new one.
Steps to renew, what's new this year, and what happens if life changes during your policy year.
Log in to the member portal, update your payment details, and follow the prompts to complete your renewal.
Payment will be taken on or shortly after the first day of your new policy period. If it isn’t received, we’ll try again. We don’t need the full amount, but if we haven’t received a payment within 90 days, your policy will be cancelled from the start of the policy period.
Please check your payment details are up to date to keep your cover valid.
You can also spread the cost with instalments at no extra cost.
You need an active Avant Practitioner Indemnity Policy before you can purchase or renew Avant Travel Cover.
- Purchasing travel cover: log in to the member portal, go to Products & Services, then Insurance, then Travel Cover, and follow the prompts.
- Renewing travel cover: your Avant Travel Cover renews automatically if your payment details are current. Automatic payments process on or after 1 July or 1 January (depending on your renewal cycle). Contact us if you’d like to pay earlier.
You’ll still need to renew for the full year, as practitioner indemnity policies are annual. Once you’ve renewed, contact us to update your policy for your new circumstances. If the change affects your premium, we’ll issue a pro rata invoice with any adjustment.
See our retirement, parental leave and taking an extended break FAQs for more on each of these options.
Payment methods, receipts, rejected payments and how refunds work.
You can pay your premium at any time through the member portal by selecting ‘Pay now’. We’ll show a suggested amount based on what you owe; you can accept this or enter a different amount. You can pay by credit card, direct debit or PayPal, and your payment will be scheduled and processed the same day.
We accept credit card, direct debit, PayPal and BPAY (BPAY is for full payment only) for your practitioner policy and Avant Travel Cover.
There are no merchant or processing fees for any of these payment methods. You can manage or update your payment method in the member portal.
You can choose to pay annually, quarterly or monthly, at no extra instalment fee. Your current payment frequency is shown on your renewal documents.
To change your payment frequency, update your preference in the Member portal before your renewal due date, so your first instalment is paid on time.
We generate a receipt after every successful payment and aim to send it within five business days. You’ll find all your receipts in the member portal under Member documents. Direct debit payments automatically get a receipt too, though the payment can still fail within seven business days; if that happens, we’ll send you a rejected payment notification and schedule another payment.
If you haven’t received a receipt, check your notification preferences (email or post), confirm you haven’t opted out of receipts, and allow for occasional system delays. For anything urgent, call us on 1800 128 268.
If we've charged you more than once in error, contact Member Services and we'll refund the extra payment.
No. If your payment is pending, wait for it to clear or be rejected. Once you receive a rejected payment notification, you can make another payment.
Credit card payments can be rejected for a few reasons, including insufficient funds, a withdrawal amount that exceeds your card limit, or a withdrawal frequency limit set by your card provider. Direct debit payments can be rejected for reasons such as insufficient funds, an invalid BSB or account number, or a hold on your account.
If a payment is rejected, our system will try again every five days, up to three attempts within 15 days of the original rejection. Any receipt issued for a rejected payment is void, and no refunds or credit transfers are made until we've successfully drawn the payment. If the payment still isn't successful after 15 days, we'll reschedule it to combine with your next instalment.
See ‘How do I pay a missed or failed payment?’ below if you’d like to settle it sooner.
Log in to the Member portal and go to My details then Payment details. From there, you can:
- view the amount you owe
- pay by credit card, direct debit, BPAY or PayPal
- enter a different amount if needed
- update your payment details.
We process payments the same day, and your balance will update accordingly.
This can happen if:
- you chose to pay less than the full amount owing
- you had other outstanding amounts, and your payment was applied to these first
- there’s a short delay in updating your balance, even though we’ve processed your payment.
Your updated balance will appear under My payment details in the member portal.
If you hold more than one policy, or have an outstanding balance, we apply payments in this order: overdue balances first, then any previous policy that needs a payment to keep your cover active. If you hold both a practitioner indemnity policy and Avant Travel Cover, your payment goes to the indemnity policy first. This makes sure your indemnity cover stays valid.
When you select ‘Pay now’, we show a suggested amount based on what you owe. From My payment details, this includes any current and overdue balances; during renewal, it shows your current renewal amount only. You can change this and enter the amount you’d prefer to pay.
If a change to your policy means you've paid more than you needed to, we'll refund the difference. We usually refund the original payment method; where that's not possible, we can arrange an electronic funds transfer (EFT) once we've verified your details.
Once we approve a refund, a refund will be issued between three and five business days How long it takes to reach your account depends on your financial institution and your individual circumstances. If we need more information to process your refund, we'll contact you directly.
For any questions about a refund, contact Member Services.
What to declare, and how billing bands affect your premium
When you apply for or renew your medical indemnity policy, we ask you to confirm your gross annual billings for the upcoming policy period. This isn't your salary or income; it's a guide to the volume of healthcare services you provide, and it helps us make sure your cover is appropriate.
Your gross billings are the total amount charged for the healthcare services you provide over the 12-month period that aligns with your policy, before deductions of any expenses and/or tax. If you work in a bulk billing practice, include the full bulk billing claim, not just the portion you personally receive.
You can calculate your billings here.
Gross billings are the total amount billed for your healthcare services, before deductions of any expenses or and/or tax. Earnings are what you actually take home from your practice, such as salary or drawings, after tax, superannuation, practice fees and other deductions.
You can calculate your billings here.
Even if you're paid hourly or per consult (for example, as a GP in an urgent care clinic), declare the gross amount billed for the healthcare services you provide, not your income or earnings.
Report your billings before any deductions, including practice management fees, administration costs or commission.
Enter an amount that falls within the billing band you expect to be in, rather than right on the boundary. For example, if you expect to bill $50,000, enter $49,999; if you expect to bill $200,000, enter $199,999. Entering the exact band limit can automatically place you in the next band, which may affect your premium.*
Billing bands range from nil through to over $2 million, and the categories that apply (specialist/non-specialist, surgical assistance/defence forces, or non-clinical) vary by band.
If you are a staff specialist and also undertake private practice work outside of your role, you will need to provide your private practice billings by following the below steps:
- Access your practice questioner in your current policy.
- Add your private billing. Your staff specialist work is generally considered employer-indemnified public hospital work, but you should include any drawing rights and private billings when calculating your earnings.
- Select no for staff specialist.
You can calculate your billings here.
Gross billing band | Specialist / non-specialist categories | Surgical assistance / defence forces | Non-clinical^ |
Nil | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ |
| Less than $5,000 | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ |
| Less than $25,000 | ✔ | ||
| Less than $50,000 | ✔ | ||
| Less than $100,000 | ✔ | ✔ | ✔ |
| Greater than $100,000 | ✔ | ||
| Less than $150,000 | ✔ | ||
| Less than $200,000 | ✔ | ✔ | |
| Less than $250,000 | ✔ | ||
| Less than $300,000 | ✔ | ✔ | |
| Less than $400,000 | ✔ | ✔ | |
| Less than $500,000 | ✔ | ✔ | |
| Less than $600,000 | ✔ | ||
| Less than $700,000 | ✔ | ||
| Less than $900,000 | ✔ | ||
| Less than $1.2 million | ✔ | ||
| Less than $1.5 million | ✔ | ||
| Less than $2.0 million | ✔ | ||
| Greater than $2.0 million | ✔ |
^If you'd like to move to a non-clinical category, you'll need to contact our Member Services team for review.
Cover and declarations for doctors employed under a Staff Specialist agreement.
A staff specialist is a specialist doctor employed by a public hospital under a formal staff specialist agreement.
Check your employment contract. If your role is listed as staff specialist, you're considered a staff specialist for insurance purposes.
Drawing rights are your share of the fees a public hospital bills for the private patients you treat there. The hospital bills the patient and pays you a share of those fees; this income is called drawing rights.
Full-time equivalent (FTE) measures your workload against a full-time position. For example, 40 hours a week in a 40-hour workplace is 1.0 FTE, and 20 hours a week in the same workplace is 0.5 FTE.
If you don't do private practice outside your staff specialist role, just provide your FTE (and your staff specialist level, if you're in NSW).
If you do private practice outside your staff specialist role, base your policy on your private practice arrangement, you will need to provide your private billings, by following the below step:
- Access your practice questionnaire in your current policy.
- Select “no” for Staff Specialist
- Add your private billings. Your staff specialist work is generally considered employer-indemnified public hospital work, but you should include any drawing rights and private billings when calculating your earnings.
Cover for locums and visiting specialists in public hospitals.
As a doctor in Australia, you're required to have appropriate medical indemnity arrangements for the healthcare you provide, under the Health Practitioner Regulation National Law. In public hospitals, you're typically covered by the state's indemnity scheme as an employee; in private practice, your medical defence organisation generally covers you based on your scope of practice and billing profile.
When you work as a public doctor, particularly as a locum or visiting specialist, cover isn't always straightforward. In some states, including Tasmania and South Australia, locums or visiting specialists engaged as contractors (rather than direct hospital employees) may not automatically be covered by the state's indemnity scheme. Similar gaps can occur in other states too, depending on your specific arrangement. If you're in this situation, you may need a public patient endorsement.
Before undertaking a locum, ask yourself:
- Is my locum in Tasmania or South Australia?
- Does my contract confirm I'm indemnified?
- Am I billing privately, or working as a contractor?
If you're unsure about any of these, check with your employer (the hospital), as you may need a public patient endorsement.
Tell us about your locum arrangement, including any advice confirming you are not indemnified by your employer and provide the hospital name, your start date, and your expected or estimated income. You can call us on 1800 128 268 or email memberservices@avant.org.au.
Absentee cover for study leave, overseas work, illness, sabbaticals and more. Note: you’ll still need to renew your policy for the full year before this cover starts — see ‘Renewing your policy’.
If you're planning an extended break from medical practice for more than three months, absentee cover provides limited indemnity while you're away. If your break is for parental leave or retirement, see our parental leave or retirement FAQs instead; Absentee cover is for other reasons such as paternity leave, study leave, overseas work, illness, sabbaticals, or travel.
Absentee cover* includes gratuitous services limited to Good Samaritan acts worldwide, volunteer services, and writing a prescription or referral. It's only available for a period of 12 consecutive months. It also covers claims arising from your past practice, subject to the terms, conditions and exclusions in the Product Disclosure Statement.
Your options depend on your training status and how long you’ll be away:
- Still a doctor-in-training (DIT): you can stay in the DIT category for up to two years while overseas. You’ll remain covered for the healthcare you provide if your time away meets the ‘Cover outside Australia’ conditions in the Practitioner Indemnity Insurance Policy PDS. – in short, less than two years overseas as part of a healthcare training program. Cover doesn’t extend to healthcare provided in the US, or to proceedings brought in a US court or tribunal.
- Fellowed (no longer a DIT): you can stay in your current cover category with your gross billings set to $0 while you’re overseas, and you’ll remain covered for up to two years on the same ‘Cover outside Australia’ conditions.
- Short training placement of 12 months or less, in a practising category: Absentee cover may be more suitable instead — see “What does absentee cover include” above.
If you don’t meet the ‘Cover outside Australia’ conditions, you can still keep your doctor-in-training policy to maintain your Avant membership while you’re away, though you won’t be covered for healthcare you provide overseas.
Either way, you’ll keep access to our Medico-legal Advisory Service, available 24/7 in emergencies.
In Australia, you need a policy in place at the time a claim is made, not just when the work was done; this is called ‘claims made’ cover. If you’re ceasing practice in Australia, you may need run-off cover to protect your past work. There are two types:
- Practitioner Indemnity Run-off (PIRO): a paid policy from Avant can bridge the gap until you become eligible for ROCS. This suits practitioners temporarily leaving Australia, planning to return, or not yet eligible for ROCS. Once you meet the ROCS eligibility criteria, you can switch from PIRO to ROCS.
- Run-off Cover Scheme (ROCS): a government-funded scheme, paid through a levy on all practitioner policies, so you pay no premium. You may be eligible if you’ve permanently stopped private medical practice in Australia or were practising on a temporary visa and are leaving permanently or returning home. You become eligible for ROCS three years after you stop private practice in Australia; PIRO can cover you until then.
If you’re moving to the UK, Avant has a relationship with the Medical Defence Union (MDU) that may entitle you to free membership with them — contact us if you’d like more information.
Contact Member Services, with:
- your last date of practice in Australia
- the date you’ll leave, or left, Australia
- whether you plan to return, and your estimated return date
- whether you’re on a temporary visa or an Australian citizen
- details of the overseas healthcare training program, including its expected duration
- whether you’d like to keep your doctor- in- training policy and membership or move to a run-off policy.
If you’re on a temporary visa, you’ll also need to complete the Run-off Cover Indemnity Scheme Overseas medical practitioner form (MO035).
If you’ve permanently moved overseas, complete the Run-off Cover Indemnity Scheme form for practitioners who have ceased private or all remunerated medical practice (MO031).
Return the relevant form to us along with your policy preference.
Absentee cover won’t be suitable if you’re leaving Australia for longer than 12 months. If you’re on a training placement, see ‘I’m going overseas as part of a training program’ above; if you’re ceasing practice in Australia, see ‘Do I need run-off cover?’ above. Otherwise, contact us to discuss alternative cover options.
For overseas moves, see ‘How do I update my policy before I go overseas?’ above. For other extended breaks, let us know the circumstances of your break and the first day you’ll be undertaking it. You can email memberservices@avant.org.au or call 1800 128 268.
Cover options and next steps while you're on parental leave. Note: you’ll still need to renew your policy for the full year before this cover starts — see ‘Renewing your policy’.
While you're on parental leave and not doing paid medical work, you can choose between two non-practising categories:
- Good Samaritan: no medical work during your leave, with cover only for Good Samaritan acts going forward.
- Prescribing and referral: no active medical work, but you keep your Ahpra registration and can provide unpaid prescriptions or referrals for past patients only. This includes Good Samaritan cover.
Both options preserve your membership benefits, including the Loyalty Reward Program^, the Retirement Reward Plan#, our Medico-legal Advisory Service, and access to Avant Travel Cover~ . If you'd rather cancel your policy, you'll forfeit these benefits and need to apply for a new policy when you return to work.
You may be eligible for the Run-off Cover Scheme (ROCS) during your parental leave. This covers claims that arise from your past practice while you're on leave, funded by the Australian Government. Before we can make changes to your policy for parental leave, we'll need you to complete a Run-off Cover Medicare Certificate (form MO032) and return it to us with your preferred cover option.
Yes. We'll adjust your premium from the effective date of your parental leave, based on your cover category and chosen option.*
Contact us and we'll update your policy to reflect your return to practice.
Only limited activities under the non-practising options, such as unpaid prescriptions or referrals for past patients, which requires the Prescribing and referral category.*
No. There's no maximum duration for parental leave cover.*
Ideally before your leave starts, so we can arrange the right cover from your intended leave date. If you've already gone on leave, let us know and we can update your policy retroactively.
Yes. If your circumstances change, contact us and we can review and adjust your cover.
Cover options, refunds and the Retirement Reward Plan. Note: you’ll still need to renew your policy for the full year before this cover starts — see ‘Renewing your policy’.
If you’re retired, you may be eligible for the Run-off Cover Scheme (ROCS), which covers claims arising from your past practice. It’s maintained by your last medical defence organisation before retirement, and paid through a levy on all practitioner policies, so you pay no premium.
If you're fully retired and not practising, choose between two non-practising categories:
- Good Samaritan: no medical work during retirement, with cover only for Good Samaritan acts going forward.
- Prescribing and referral: no active medical work, but you keep your Ahpra registration and can provide unpaid prescriptions or referrals for past patients only. This includes Good Samaritan cover.
Both options preserve your membership benefits, including our Medico-legal Advisory Service and access to Avant Travel Cover (which covers you and your family for up to 12 months after your last Avant Practitioner Indemnity Insurance renewal)*. If you return to practice within two years of retiring, let us know and we'll reinstate your practising cover category.
If you'd rather cancel your policy, you'll forfeit these membership benefits and need to apply for a new policy if you return to work.
Yes. We'll adjust your premium from the effective date of your retirement, based on your cover category and chosen retirement option.
No. Avant Travel Cover is only available to Avant members who hold a medical indemnity policy.
Only limited activities permitted under the non-practising options, such as unpaid prescriptions or referrals for past patients, which requires the Prescribing and referral category.
You need to maintain your Ahpra registration for the Prescribing and referral category. Continuing professional development (CPD) isn't required for Good Samaritan, but it is for Prescribing and referral.
We recommend contacting us close to your intended retirement date so we can arrange the right cover. If you've already retired, we can update your policy retroactively.
You'll need to apply for a new policy.
The Retirement Reward Plan# (RRP) is one way we share our financial success with members, returning surplus capital to eligible members by way of a dividend when they permanently retire from paid medical practice If you're eligible and where the Board declares a Retirement Reward Dividend, payments are usually made in late October.
Eligibility is based on the financial year in which you retire: retire on or before 30 June and you're considered for that year's payment; retire after 30 June and you're considered for the following year's payment.
Key RRP dates can be found here.
Professional indemnity insurance products are issued by Avant Insurance Limited (ACN 003 707 471, AFSL 238 765) (‘AIL’). The information provided by AIL is general advice only and has been prepared without taking into account your objectives, financial situation and needs. You should consider these, having regard to the appropriateness of the advice, and the relevant Product Disclosure Statement or policy wording (available at www.avant.org.au), before deciding to purchase or continue to hold these products.
Not all members are eligible for a Loyalty Reward Plan (LRP) reward. Members not eligible include medical students, interns, RMOs and DITs and members who have their professional indemnity policy purchased on their behalf under a corporate group arrangement. However, membership years as an intern, RMO or DIT will be included in tenure calculations. See www.avant.org.au/Loyalty- Reward-Plan/ to find out more about the LRP eligibility, categories and rates. The provision of any future LRP reward is not guaranteed.
The Retirement Reward Plan (RRP) reflects the current policy of the Board for determining which members of Avant are eligible to participate in the RRP and any Retirement Reward Dividends declared by Avant. The RRP is entirely at the discretion of the Board and no member will be eligible to receive a Retirement Reward Dividend until such time as the Board declares a dividend in favour of that member. The RRP is subject to change, suspension or termination by the Board at any time. The current eligibility criteria and allocation rules are available at avant.org.au/arrp.
Avant Travel Cover is available under a Group Policy between QBE Insurance (Australia) Limited (ACN 003 191 035, AFSL 239545) (‘QBE’) and Avant Mutual Group Limited (ACN 123 154 898) (‘Avant’). Avant Travel Cover is underwritten by QBE. For full details including the restrictions, terms, conditions and exclusions that apply, please read and consider the Product Disclosure Statement, available at avant.org.au or by calling us on 1800 128 268. Please check the Target Market Determination (TMD) to make sure this product is right for you. An excess may apply, depending on policy and claim type. Avant does not provide financial product advice on Avant Travel Cover.