STI Test in Canberra
Online STI test referral · Canberra + ACT region
FREE with Medicare (bulk-billed)
A Specialist GP arranges your test over a quick phone call — they review your symptoms and risk, then send your pathology referral by SMS — a full STI screen covering chlamydia, gonorrhoea, syphilis, HIV and hepatitis B. No Medicare? Prefer no call? Order it online for $39 instead.
Book a bulk-billed phone consult — or order a $39 referral
Get tested at any pathology lab in Canberra or ACT region — simply walk in
Results by SMS in 2-3 days — free telehealth if positive
Book my STI test →
Founded by Dr Ed Skinner
Specialist GP · 10+ years sexual health · University of Melbourne
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STI Testing in Canberra
No symptoms? The online STI test suits routine screening. If you have any symptoms — discharge, sores, pain, unusual bleeding, or a rash — book a
Specialist GP phone consult instead, so they can take a history, choose the right tests, and arrange treatment if you need it.
Testing too soon after sex can miss an infection. Each test has a window period before it turns positive: chlamydia and gonorrhoea about 2 weeks, syphilis up to 6 weeks, HIV 4 to 6 weeks, and hepatitis B from 6 weeks.
The standard screen covers five infections. A routine screen tests for chlamydia, gonorrhoea, syphilis, HIV, and hepatitis B from one blood test and a urine sample. Optional add-ons: herpes, Mgen, trichomonas, BV, and thrush. If you have had oral or anal sex, add a throat or anal swab — a urine sample alone misses throat and rectal infections.
Pathology coverage across the ACT. Canberra is a planned city with collection centres well distributed across Civic, the Inner North (Braddon, Dickson), the Inner South (Kingston, Manuka), and the Woden Valley, Tuggeranong, Belconnen, Gungahlin, and Molonglo districts. The referral also works in Queanbeyan and across the NSW South-East — Snowy Mountains, Bega Valley, and Goulburn. The ACT recorded around 1,400 chlamydia and 380 gonorrhoea notifications in 2023; numbers are smaller than mainland states but rates in younger age groups are broadly comparable. The student population (ANU, University of Canberra) and a large public-service workforce shape demand. PrEP and DoxyPEP are available through Australia-wide telehealth pathways.
If a result is positive, treatment is arranged on the same call. A Specialist GP calls you to talk it through and arranges treatment — the treatment consult is included at no additional cost. Partner notification is supported via the Let Them Know SMS tool. Chlamydia, gonorrhoea, syphilis, and HIV are reported anonymously to ACT Health for surveillance; this is handled for you and does not appear on your personal records.
A possible HIV exposure is urgent. HIV post-exposure prevention (PEP) must start within 72 hours of exposure to work. Our Emergency PEP service can arrange same-day treatment and a pathology referral within hours; Canberra Hospital and Calvary Public Hospital emergency departments can also provide PEP outside business hours.
How often should you test? If you are sexually active, a yearly STI screen is a sensible baseline. Test more often — around every three months — if you have new or multiple partners, after a condom breaks, or if a partner tests positive. And test whenever symptoms appear, whatever your last result was.
Medicare and pathology costs. The pathology for a standard five-infection screen is covered by Medicare and most private health insurers, so there is usually nothing to pay at the collection centre. Without Medicare, additional lab fees may apply — check with the lab you attend.