Temporary public policy to exempt certain in-Canada foreign nationals from the Immigration Medical Examination requirement

Background

In November 2020, Canada announced targets of 401,000 new permanent resident admissions in 2021 and 411,000 in 2022 as part of its 2021-2023 Immigration Levels Plan. However, border restrictions in response to the COVID-19 pandemic have created challenges in admitting new permanent residents from overseas. In order to help achieve admissions targets, Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada has put in place several measures to facilitate the process to obtain permanent residence for foreign nationals already in Canada.

As part of departmental efforts to streamline the application requirements for permanent residence applications for in-Canada foreign nationals in the context of border closures and travel restrictions, the Immigration Medical Examination process has been identified as an area where operational efficiencies can be gained without introducing significant public health or program integrity risks.

Under this temporary public policy, eligible in-Canada foreign nationals who have applied to become a permanent resident or for a permanent residence visa, and eligible in-Canada accompanying family members, would be exempt from the requirement to submit to a new Immigration Medical Examination required under paragraph 16(2)(b) of the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act (Act), paragraph 30(1)(a) of the Immigration and Refugee Protection Regulations (Regulations), and where applicable sub-paragraph 65.1(1)(d)(ii) and 72(1)(e)(iii) of the Regulations. These exemptions would apply where the foreign national or in-Canada family member meets the conditions below.

Public Policy Considerations

While applications for permanent residence have been accepted and processed throughout the pandemic, the global travel restrictions and capacity constraints resulted in a shortfall in admissions in 2020. The 401,000 and 411,000 new admissions announced for 2021 and 2022, respectively, are key to ensuring Canada has the workers it needs to meet labour market needs and remain competitive in attracting global talent. Various measures are underway at Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada to help meet the 2021 and 2022 targets by facilitating the process to obtain permanent residence status for in-Canada foreign nationals.

This temporary public policy seeks to streamline the health screening requirement for in-Canada foreign nationals who apply to become a permanent resident or for a permanent residence visa, and for in-Canada family members of a foreign national who applies to become a permanent resident or for a permanent residence visa, while limiting risk to Canadians or the Canadian health care system.

An identical temporary public policy was put in place from June 28, 2021 to December 28, 2021 to exempt eligible in-Canada foreign nationals who pose a low risk to public health from the requirement to submit to new Immigration Medical Examination as part of their application for permanent residence or a permanent resident visa. This new temporary public policy seeks to duplicate and continue these parameters from December 28, 2021 to March 31, 2022.

As such, I hereby establish that, pursuant to my authority under section 25.2 of the Act, there are sufficient public policy considerations that justify the granting of an exemption from certain requirements of the Act and the Regulations, to foreign nationals who meet the conditions (eligibility requirements) listed below.

Conditions (eligibility requirements) applicable to principal applicants:

Based on the public policy considerations, when processing an application to become a permanent resident or an application for a permanent residence visa, delegated officers may grant an exemption from the requirements of the Act and the Regulations identified below, when a foreign national (principal applicant) meets the following conditions:

A foreign national (principal applicant):

• Has submitted an application to become a permanent resident or for a permanent residence visa and is physically present in Canada;
• Has submitted to an Immigration Medical Examination within five years prior to the coming into effect of this temporary public policy;
• The Department has a record of that Immigration Medical Examination, and the most recent examination submitted to was assessed and coded as:
  1. M1: indicating they pose no danger to public health and public safety;
  2. M3 (except where they have been assessed and coded as “TR only” or “EDE only”): indicating they have a health condition present but are not expected to place an excessive demand on health or social services; or
  3. M2 or M2/3 (except where they have been assessed and coded as “TR only” or “EDE only”): indicating they are a potential risk to public health, but they have complied with their requirement to report to provincial/territorial health authorities for medical surveillance; and
• Has not resided or stayed for a total period in excess of six months in an area that the Minister determines has a higher incidence of serious communicable disease than Canada in application of subsection 30(2) of the Regulations (i.e., identified on IRCC’s tuberculosis designated country and territory list available on the IRCC Web site) within the year prior to the coming into effect of this temporary public policy.

Conditions (eligibility requirements) applicable to family members in Canada:

Based on the public policy considerations, when processing an application to become a permanent resident or an application for a permanent residence visa, delegated officers may grant an exemption from the requirements of the Act and Regulations identified below, when a foreign national is an in-Canada family member of a foreign national who has applied for permanent residence or for a permanent residence visa, when the foreign national (in-Canada family member) meets the following conditions:

The foreign national (in-Canada family member):

• Has been included as an accompanying family member in an application to become a permanent resident or an application for a permanent residence visa and is physically present in Canada;
• Meets the definition of a “family member” in subsection 1(3) of the Regulations;
• Has submitted to an Immigration Medical Examination within five years prior to the coming into effect of this temporary public policy;
• The Department has a record of that Immigration Medical Examination, and the most recent examination submitted to was assessed and coded as:
  1. M1: indicating they pose no danger to public health and public safety; or
  2. M3 (except where they have been assessed and coded as “TR only” or “EDE only”): indicating they have a health condition present but are not expected to place an excessive demand on health or social services; or
  3. M2 or M2/3 (except where they have been assessed and coded as “TR only” or “EDE only”): indicating they are a potential risk to public health, but they have complied with their requirement to report to provincial/territorial health authorities for medical surveillance; and
• Has not resided or stayed for a total period in excess of six months in an area that the Minister determines has a higher incidence of serious communicable disease than Canada in application of subsection 30(2) of the Regulations (i.e., identified on IRCC’s tuberculosis designated country and territory list available on the IRCC Web site) within the year prior to the coming into effect of this temporary public policy.

Provisions of the Act for which an exemption may be granted:

• Paragraph 16(2)(b) of the Act – the requirement for foreign nationals, subject to the Regulations, to submit to a medical examination.

Provisions of the Regulations for which an exemption may be granted:

• Paragraph 30(1)(a) of the Regulations – the requirement for all foreign nationals applying for a permanent residence visa or applying to remain in Canada as a permanent resident to submit to a medical examination.

Where an exemption from Paragraph 16(2)(b) of the Act and Paragraph 30(1)(a) of the Regulations is granted; the following are further requirements of the Regulations, if applicable, for which an exemption may be granted:

• Sub-paragraph 65.1(1)(d)(ii) of the Regulations – the requirement to hold a medical certificate based on the most recent medical examination to which an applicant was required to submit and which took place within the previous 12 months.
• Sub-paragraph 72(1)(e)(iii) of the Regulations – the requirement to hold a medical certificate based on the most recent medical examination to which an applicant was required to submit and which took place within the previous 12 months.

Start date and End date

This temporary public policy will take effect on December 28, 2021 and will end on March 31, 2022. This temporary public policy may be revoked at any time, without prior notice. Applications for permanent residence or for a permanent residence visa pending or submitted on or after the day this temporary public policy takes effect until the day it is revoked or ends will be processed under the temporary public policy.