Australia’s vaccination schedule is different from many countries, and immunisation records don’t always come with people who move here. The good news, eligible new arrivals can receive a complete catch-up program under the National Immunisation Program (NIP), free, regardless of Medicare status.
Who is eligible
- Anyone aged under 20, free catch-up for most NIP childhood and adolescent vaccines.
- HPV catch-up, free up to and including age 25.
- Refugees and humanitarian entrants of any age, additional state and Commonwealth funding covers a broader catch-up, including hepatitis A, hepatitis B (serology + vaccine if needed), MMR, varicella, and others.
- Asylum seekers and people on bridging visas, generally eligible through specialist refugee health services or state programs.
What we look at
Your immuniser, in coordination with a GP or refugee health service, reviews:
- Records from your country of origin (translation provided where needed).
- Serology where records are missing or unclear, for hepatitis B, measles, varicella in particular.
- Your age now versus the Australian schedule, to figure out what doses are due.
- Any priority diseases for your country of origin or community.
The most common catch-ups
- Hepatitis B, often a full three-dose course followed by serology.
- MMR, the most common gap, two doses needed for full protection.
- Varicella, two doses or evidence of immunity.
- dTpa, single dose if not had within 10 years.
- Polio (IPV) where the source country used oral polio vaccine without IPV.
- Meningococcal ACWY for adolescents.
- HPV catch-up.
Where to start
Refugee health nurses, your local GP, and specialist refugee health services are the best starting point because they coordinate the broader health check that should accompany catch-up vaccination. From age 5 onwards we can deliver the catch-up vaccinations themselves at the pharmacy, often in fewer visits than people expect, and we accept walk-ins.
For Victoria-wide refugee health services, search the Victorian Department of Health refugee health pages.
Sources & further reading
General information only. This article is educational and is not a substitute for personal medical advice. Your immuniser will confirm eligibility and contraindications on the day.
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