MEDICAL INADMISSIBILITY

All permanent residence applicants and some applicants for temporary status in Canada are required to undergo a medical examination. You can be inadmissible to immigrate to Canada if you have a medical condition. The inadmissibility may apply, if you or your dependent’s medical condition is estimated to likely be a danger to public health or public safety, or it is reasonable to expect that the condition could cause an excessive demand on health or social services in Canada.

A number of factors will influence the determination of medical inadmissibility. The medical officer will consider, among other things, the cost of annual supply of social and health services you might need in Canada (in comparing it to average Canadian annual medical costs), if your condition is transmissible, or if you have unpredictable behavior issues that can create a danger to public safety. The officer needs to consider all your medical documentation, the severity, and duration of your medical condition.

If your medical condition creates a basis for inadmissibility, you may receive a procedural fairness letter stating the reasons for the medical refusal and listing the required care and social services estimated under five or ten years’ period. You have 60 days in order to, either challenge the letter or accept it and present a detailed plan on how you will use the services and cover the costs. However, if you are applying for permanent residence under a spouse, a common-law partner, a conjugal partner or dependent children of the sponsor, the excessive demand requirement will be waived and the medical inadmissibility applies only if your condition is likely to be a danger to public health or public safety. Also, if the latter applies to you, the mitigation of the excessive demand on Canadian health and social services is not relevant, and the officer might finalize the application based on the existing information on file without sending you a procedural fairness letter.

Please contact our immigration lawyers for further determination if your medical condition can cause you difficulties during your immigration process to Canada.