Add dependents who don’t have provincial health coverage to your benefits plan

When providing benefits to dependents from a country outside of Canada, certain rules apply. These dependents can be:

• Your spouse or common-law partner,

• Your child under age 18,

• Your child age 18 and over, who is a full-time student

To add a dependent to your benefits plan, they first need to be covered by:

• The provincial healthcare plan for the province or territory they live in, or

• A provincial plan replacement program (PPR)

How provincial plan replacement programs (PPR) work

Each province or territory decides when people become eligible for provincial health coverage. Usually there’s a three month waiting period from the date the person arrives in Canada. During this waiting period, your employer can buy PPR coverage for your dependents, or your dependents can buy PPR coverage themselves. This ensures they have health coverage in the case of illness or medical emergency. 

PPR coverage replaces provincial plan coverage, and covers things like doctor's fees and hospital care. PPR coverage is sometimes called Inpatriate Health Plans.

You can buy PPR products from several private insurance carriers including Manulife, Canada Life, Sun Life, and Desjardins. PPR plans:

• Don’t have Evidence of Insurability (EOI) requirements, as long as you apply for them within 31 days of becoming eligible

• Don’t require you to disclose pre-existing conditions

• Usually have a lifetime maximum for all covered expenses (for example, a $1,000,000 maximum for all expenses) 

PPR coverage lasts for three months. This aligns with the three month waiting period for provincial coverage. Foreign workers who aren't eligible for provincial coverage can apply to extend their PPR coverage.

How your dependents can buy PPR coverage

PPR application forms are available online from private insurance companies. Contact your insurance carrier to see if they provide PPR coverage.