Medical Insurance

Student must always have some form of medical insurance when in Canada. For the first three months international students are in Canada, they can purchase private medical insurance. This can be obtained in their home country before they travel to Canada, or can be purchased at the International Student Centre (BR 339). It costs $138 CAD for 90 days of coverage (the waiting period for MSP).

All residents of British Columbia are required by law to enrol with the Medical Services Plan (MSP) health insurance. 'Resident' is defined as a person who stays in BC longer than six months. Therefore, all international students who stay in BC for longer than six months must enrol in MSP. There is a waiting period of three months before students can be enrolled, but we advise students to apply as soon as they arrive in British Columbia to ensure their application will be processed in a timely fashion. Applications can be obtained from the International Student Centre, and must be mailed with a copy of a Study Permit to support the application.