Canadian law provides that foreign nationals (including international students and foreign workers) coming to Canada for 6 months or more, who have resided in ‘designated countries’ for 6 or more consecutive months in the last 1 year, must undergo an ‘Immigration Medical Exam’ (IME). Designated countries are those identified as having a higher risk of medical concerns. (In addition, people involved in certain fields such as health care, child care, or food preparation would also need IMEs.)
Effective November 23, the list of designated countries has changed.
The following countries, previously not designated, are now designated (i.e. they now require an IME):
- Fiji
- Singapore
- Timor-Leste (previously not listed as a separate country)
- Tunisia
The following countries, previously designated, have now been removed from the list of designated countries (i.e. they now do not require an IME):
- Argentina
- Bahrain
- Belize
- Colombia
- French collectively of Wallis and Futuna
- Portugal
- Seychelles
- Surinam
- Venezuela
The full list of designated countries can be found at http://www.cic.gc.ca/english/information/medical/dcl.asp. The government has indicated that the next review will occur in 2021, and every three years thereafter.
In view of the above, and if you have commenced or are about to commence any type of Canadian immigration procedure, and are coming from a newly designated or newly undesignated country, you should check to ensure that you are following appropriate protocol for your case.
The information in this article is for general purposes only, and not intended as legal advice for any particular situation.