Snowbird travel insurance for Canadians: covered from the day you leave to the day you're back

It is emergency medical travel insurance written for long stays outside Canada, usually 3 to 7 months, for people who spend the winter in places like Florida, Arizona or Texas.

It pays the hospital, doctor, ambulance and medicine bills your provincial plan does not, and it brings you home if you need care in Canada. Most snowbirds buy one policy for the whole winter, or an annual plan with a top-up for the long trip.

In the seven provinces Pankaj serves, about 7 months: 212 days in Ontario, Alberta and New Brunswick, and 7 months in British Columbia, Saskatchewan, Manitoba and Nova Scotia.

Each province counts differently (a 12-month period or a calendar year) and some want you to tell them before you go. Check the province table, and remember travel insurance is only sold for the days your health card stays valid.

A little. OHIP pays up to $400 a day for intensive care or an operating room, $200 a day for other hospital care and $50 a day for emergency outpatient visits.

A US hospital day is often more than US$1,000 and can reach US$10,000 in intensive care, according to the BC government. The rest of the bill is yours unless you have travel insurance.

Usually yes, from age 60 and up, and sometimes from 55. Your answers decide whether you qualify and which rate category you pay.

Answer with your medication list and recent test results in front of you. A wrong answer, even an honest mistake, can lead to a denied claim.

You can go, but that condition may not be covered until it has been stable for the plan's stability period, often 90 to 180 days for snowbird plans.

A new pill, a dose change, new symptoms, a hospital visit or a test still pending all restart the count. Tell Pankaj the date of the change; some plans cover it sooner than others, and some sell an option for shorter stability.

Sometimes. If you also take short trips during the year, an annual plan plus a top-up for the winter can cost less than buying each trip separately.

If the winter is your only trip, one policy for the exact dates is usually simpler. Compare both on the quote form or ask Pankaj to price them side by side.

Usually, if you ask before the policy ends, your health has not changed and you have not made a claim. Some insurers ask new medical questions for an extension.

Your total days away still cannot go past your province's limit. Call before the end date, not after it.

It depends on the plan. Many snowbird policies allow a short visit home without ending cover, but the rules on how many days, and whether those days count, differ.

Tell Pankaj about any trip home when you buy, so the plan fits the way you really travel.

If you drive in, are not given an I-94 record and stay 30 days or more, yes. You register online with Form G-325R, or get an I-94 from US Customs and Border Protection before you go.

Flying in gives you an I-94 automatically, and USCIS treats travellers last admitted through NEXUS as already registered. Rules can change, so check USCIS before each winter.

Canadian visitors can usually stay up to 182 days in a 12-month period. The proposed Canadian Snowbird Visa Act would raise that to 240 days for people 50 and over, but it has not become law.

Separately, about 4 months a year for three years in a row can make you meet the IRS substantial presence test. Most snowbirds then file Form 8840 by June 15 to show a closer connection to Canada.