Having a medical condition that puts public safety at risk or will put excessive demand on the health and social services will make you Medically Inadmissible to Canada. Certain applicants to the Parents and Grandparents Sponsorship program face this issue of being medically admissible.
If you are coming to Canada for more than 6 months, you are required to take a medical examination. This helps the Immigration, Refugees, and Citizenship (IRCC) to determine if you are medically admissible. This examination is conducted by a panel physician.
Who Is Medically Inadmissible to Canada?
As mentioned above, being a danger to public health and safety will make you medically inadmissible. This can happen if you have an infectious disease such as tuberculosis or you have been in close contact with people who have an infectious disease.
The immigration officer decides on your admissibility based on how your medical condition will affect those residing in Canada. You could also be determined as a danger to public safety if you have the risk of sudden physical or mental disability. It could also apply if you are prone to unpredictable or violent behavior due to a mental illness.
You will also be determined as medically inadmissible if your health condition will put excessive demand on health and social services. Your health condition will be considered to be excessive if:
- Your health and social services treatment will affect the waiting period for services in Canada, or
- The treatment of your condition will cost more than the excessive demand threshold
The excessive demand threshold is updated by the IRCC every year based on the latest Canadian average. It is calculated as thrice the average cost for health and social services of a Canadian. In 2021, the excessive demand threshold was at $21, 798 per year. If the treatment of your health condition will cost more than this threshold annually, then you will be determined as Medically Inadmissible to Canada.
