The Super Visa medical exam: who does it, when to do it, and what it means for the insurance
Every Super Visa applicant needs one, from an IRCC panel physician. The results are valid for 12 months.
Families often mix up two medical checks. The immigration medical exam is for IRCC: it decides whether your parent can be admitted to Canada. The medical questions on the insurance application are for the insurer: they decide which conditions a claim will pay for. They are separate, but what the exam finds can change how you answer the insurance questions.
In short
Every Super Visa applicant must have an immigration medical exam with an IRCC panel physician; your parent's own doctor can't do it. It can be done upfront, before applying, or after IRCC sends instructions. It includes a medical history, a physical exam, a chest x-ray from age 11 and blood tests from age 15. Results are valid for 12 months. Fees are paid at the clinic, vary by clinic, and are not refunded if the visa is refused. The insurer does not see the results, but a new diagnosis, medicine or follow-up test from the exam can restart a stability period for the insurance.
Upfront or after IRCC asks
Both routes use the same panel physicians and the same exam. Only the timing changes.
| Upfront exam | Exam after instructions | |
|---|---|---|
| When | Before the application is submitted | After IRCC reviews the application and sends instructions |
| How to book | Contact a panel physician directly | Follow IRCC's letter; bring the form it sends |
| What you upload | The physician's confirmation document, with the application | Nothing; the physician sends the results to IRCC |
| Good for | Families ready to travel soon after approval | Families who expect the application to take a while |
| Watch for | The 12-month validity running out before arrival | An extra step after applying |
What happens at the exam
IRCC's guide for panel physicians describes the routine exam as a medical history, a physical examination, age-specific laboratory tests and an age-specific chest x-ray. For a parent or grandparent that means all of them: a chest x-ray (from age 11) and blood tests for syphilis, HIV and serum creatinine (from age 15).
Bring: the passport, glasses or contact lenses if used, medical reports or test results for any existing condition, and a list of current medicines. Bring IRCC's form if the exam is not upfront. Some clinics that don't use IRCC's eMedical system ask for four recent photos, so check when you book.
After the exam, the physician sends the results to IRCC. The panel physician does not make the final decision; IRCC does, and it writes to your parent if there is a problem. Conditions that weren't disclosed, or a delay in seeing a specialist the physician referred to, can slow the application.
Medical refusal is possible on three grounds: danger to public health, danger to public safety, or excessive demand on health or social services. IRCC's 2026 excessive-demand threshold is $144,390 over 5 years, or $28,878 a year. Inactive tuberculosis found at the exam can mean medical surveillance after arrival in Canada.
The exam at a glance
- Who
- Every Super Visa applicant
- Doctor
- IRCC panel physician only
- Chest x-ray
- Age 11 and older
- Blood tests
- Syphilis, HIV, creatinine from age 15
- Valid
- 12 months
- Cost
- Set by the clinic; paid at the visit
- Refund
- None if the visa is refused
Medical validity and stability checker
Enter the exam date and the planned arrival. If the exam led to a new diagnosis, medicine or test, enter that date too.
Stability periods shown are the common 90, 120, 180 and 365-day rules used by Super Visa plans that cover pre-existing conditions. Each plan's wording decides.
How the medical exam affects the insurance
The insurer never sees the IRCC exam. These are the four ways it still matters.
A new diagnosis
If the exam found diabetes, high blood pressure or a lung problem for the first time, that is now a known condition. Answer the insurance questions with it, and with the date.
A new medicine
A pill started after the exam is a change. Plans count stability from that date: often 90 days under 60 and 180 days from 70.
Tests still waiting
If the physician asked for more tests or a specialist report, many stability definitions treat pending tests or referrals as "not stable" until the results are in.
The timing
Stability is counted up to the policy start date. If something changes after you buy but before the start, tell the insurer or Pankaj before the policy starts.
A wrong "no" on the insurance questionnaire is one of the most common reasons claims are refused. See why claims get denied.
Already have the visa but never travelled, and the medical is older than 12 months? See what to do if the Super Visa medical has expired.
Questions about the Super Visa medical exam
Does every Super Visa applicant need a medical exam?
Yes. IRCC lists an immigration medical exam as a requirement for every parent and grandparent Super Visa applicant.
For ordinary visitor visas of 6 months or less, an exam is generally not needed unless the visitor will work in certain jobs. The Super Visa is different because the stay is longer.
Can our family doctor do the exam?
No. It must be an IRCC-approved panel physician; IRCC says your own doctor can't do the medical exam.
Search IRCC's panel physician list by country and city, and book directly with the clinic.
Should my parents do the exam before applying?
They can. An upfront exam lets them include the physician's confirmation with the application instead of waiting for IRCC's instructions.
The trade-off is the 12-month validity: if the application or travel is delayed past a year from the exam, they may need another one.
How long is the Super Visa medical valid?
Twelve months. If your parent does not arrive in Canada within that period, they may need another exam.
Use the date checker to compare the exam date with the planned arrival.
How much does the immigration medical exam cost?
It depends on the clinic and on any extra tests or specialist visits. All fees are paid at the appointment.
Vaccines offered by the physician may cost extra. IRCC does not refund medical exam fees if the application is refused.
What tests are included?
A medical history and physical exam, a chest x-ray from age 11, and tests for syphilis, HIV and kidney function (serum creatinine) from age 15.
These are the routine items in IRCC's guide for panel physicians. The doctor can ask for more tests or a specialist report if something is found.
Does the insurer see the medical exam results?
No. The exam goes to IRCC. The insurer relies on your parent's answers to its own medical questions.
Those answers must still match the medical facts. If the exam led to a new diagnosis, new medicine or a follow-up test, include it, with the date.
The exam found high blood pressure and the doctor started a pill. What now?
The date that pill started is a change in health, so the stability clock for blood pressure starts from that date.
A plan with a 90-day rule could cover it 90 days later; a 180-day plan would take twice as long. See the pre-existing conditions guide.
Written by Pankaj Bhatia, CHS, PFA
Insure In Canada Inc. · Licensed in Ontario, Alberta, British Columbia, Manitoba, Saskatchewan, New Brunswick and Nova Scotia
Pankaj has sold Super Visa insurance for 11 years. He asks families what the panel physician found before answering the insurance questions, because a new finding at the exam is easy to forget on the application.
Sources and related pages
General information, not medical, immigration or legal advice. IRCC decides medical admissibility; the panel physician does not. Insurance stability rules differ between plans and the policy wording governs.