Medical Insurance

Students from outside British Columbia are responsible for ensuring that they have basic medical insurance as a condition of their acceptance to UBC.

Anyone residing in BC for longer than six months is required by law to enrol in BC Medical Services Plan (MSP) and pay premiums directly to the plan. However, there is a waiting period of three months before any newcomer to BC is eligible to enrol in MSP. For more information and to download an application, visit BC MSP.

International students, refer to iMED.

Canadians or permanent residents, visit BC MSP or contact the Health & Wellness Centre.

Extended Health and Dental Plan

All students at the UBC Okanagan campus are also members of the Students' Union Okanagan of UBC (SUO of UBC)and are covered by the SUO Extended Health and Dental Plan. The extended health and dental plan provides coverage for expenses not covered by MSP such as prescription drugs, travel health insurance, paramedical services, and dental care.

Opting Out
Students can opt out during Change of Coverage periods only. The opt out and enrolment deadlines are as follows:

• For students starting in September: September 16, 2024
• For students starting in January: January 17, 2025

Opt outs and enrolments can only be processed during the Change of Coverage period or within 30 days of their registration period, whichever is later. For information on enrolling or opting out, go to Studentcare.

iMED (for International Students)

There are two basic insurance plans (iMED and MSP) and one extended plan (UBCSUO Health and Dental) for international students at UBC. Descriptions of all three plans are provided below.

UBC provides a mandatory basic health insurance program (iMED) for all new international students as a condition of registering as a student (Canadian citizens and permanent residents of Canada are excluded). iMED covers emergency hospitalization and medical services (including doctor's visits) for sickness or injury.

All new international students who pay international tuition fees, as well as international exchange students, are automatically assessed the following fees:

Coverage period: New international students are automatically covered for the three-month waiting period before they become eligible for BC's Medical Services Plan (MSP), with the exception of one-term exchange students, who are covered by iMED for the duration of their exchange because they are not eligible for MSP.

For one-term international exchange students, iMED covers:

• Term 1: August 26, 2024 to January 2, 2025 (You will also be covered while travelling from your home country or primary place of residence to Canada, if your travel itinerary is ten days or less AND your arrival date is not earlier than the start date of your iMED coverage.).
• Term 2: December 24, 2024 to May 2, 2025 (You will also be covered while travelling from your home country or primary place of residence to Canada, if your travel itinerary is ten days or less AND your arrival date is not earlier than the start date of your iMED coverage.).

The iMED fee will be assessed before the start of classes and will be listed online as a student fee.

One-term exchange students cannot change their dates; they can purchase additional days of coverage directly from David Cummings Insurance Services (DCIS) if they arrive in BC before, or leave after, the dates indicated above. For more information, visit DCIS.

For visiting international research students: A monthly rate (up to 6 months) is available for international students conducting research full-time at the University under the supervision of a UBC faculty member. The student can be either enrolled in an undergraduate, graduate, or graduate-equivalent program at another university or can be a participant in a UBC-recognized “bridging” program through Go Global. A fraction of a month will be considered a full month.

For all other international students: iMED covers the three-month waiting period before eligibility for MSP, from the time a student leaves home (up to ten days prior to arrival, provided the arrival date is within the iMED coverage dates) until the student's MSP eligibility date. iMED coverage will begin upon arrival in Canada, with the earliest arrival date being August 1 (Term 1), December 1 (Term 2), April 1 (Summer Term 1), or June 1 (Summer Term 2). The iMED fee for the three-month period will be assessed when a student registers and will be listed online as a student fee.

For students arriving in BC in the month(s) before their iMED coverage is due to start, please contact DCIS to purchase advance coverage; such students may then be eligible to opt out of the iMED plan.

Students arriving in BC in the month after the dates indicated above must submit the Date Change Request Form, with proof of arrival date in BC (a copy of study permit), to DCIS. Dates of coverage can then be shifted to cover the three-month waiting period for BC MSP. The deadline for submitting the Date Change Request Form is the end of the Add/Drop date.

Fee-freezing: Any iMED fee assessed to a student's account will be "frozen" on the last day to withdraw from classes without a "W" standing. If a student withdraws from classes after the fee-freeze date and was not in Canada at any time during the coverage period, they may contact International House at 604.822.5021 or email International Advisors to request the removal of the iMED fee from their UBC student account. Those who fail to do so will be required to pay the iMED fee. The request for removing the iMED fee must be received by the Add/Drop date.

Adding family members: Students may add dependents to their iMED plan. For more information and application forms, visit DCIS.

Opting out: Students who are already covered by MSP, by another Canadian provincial health plan, or by mandatory health insurance purchased for them by a third-party sponsor with whom UBC has an agreement, must opt out of iMED by the Add/Drop date. Please note that having private insurance does not make a student eligible to opt out of iMED. For opt out instructions and forms, visit DCIS.