Canada waives medical exam requirement for 180,000 immigration applicants

Canada is waiving the requirement for medical exams for around 180,000 applicants for temporary and permanent residence who are already in Canada, provided they meet certain criteria.

The policy exempts certain low-risk, in-Canada, foreign nationals from submitting an immigration medical examination (IME) as part of their application when their previous IME has expired, the Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) announced.

This exemption applies to foreign nationals who have

• a new or pending application for permanent or temporary residence or a permanent resident visa, made from within Canada
• completed an immigration medical exam within the last 5 years and posed no risk to public health or safety, or reported to public health authorities for monitoring, as required

The temporary public policy exemption will remain in effect until October 6, 2024.

When submitting an application, applicants must provide the unique medical identifier number from their previous medical exam.

Applicants who are not eligible under this temporary public policy are required to undergo an IME as per usual health screening procedures.

The announcement comes at a time when Canada has been grappling with a growing immigration backlog, made worse by the pandemic. As per latest data, over 2.6 million applicants were still waiting for a review.