Health Insurance

Medical Services Plan (MSP)

In Canada, public health insurance is available to eligible residents. Canadian citizens and permanent residents can apply for provincial health insurance.

In B.C., public health insurance is called the Medical Services Plan – or MSP.

MSP starts from the 91st day of the arrivals as a full-time student. Meanwhile, from day 1 to 90, an individual must cover with temporary health insurance. You can buy it from your country or buy it here in Canada with any private health insurance. Royal Roads prefer Guard.me health insurance. https://www.guard.me/rru

All residents of B.C. must enroll with the Medical Services Plan (MSP).

In order to enroll in MSP, you must meet certain eligibility criteria. These criteria fall under four categories:

Residents

Dependents

First Nations' residents

Other individuals in B.C.

Residents

A person must be a B.C. resident to qualify for medical coverage under MSP. A resident is a person who meets all of the following conditions:

• must be a citizen of Canada or be lawfully admitted to Canada for permanent residence;

• must make his or her home in B.C.; and

• must be physically present in B.C. at least six months in a calendar year, or a shorter prescribed period.*

* Eligible B.C. residents (citizens of Canada or persons who are lawfully admitted to Canada for permanent residence) who are outside B.C. for vacation purposes only, are allowed a total absence of up to seven months in a calendar year.

Dependents

Dependents of MSP beneficiaries are also eligible for coverage if they are B.C. residents as set out above. Dependents include a spouse, children and dependent post-secondary students.

Spouse: A resident of B.C. who is married to or is living and cohabiting in a marriage-like relationship with the applicant.

Child: A resident of B.C. who:

• is a child of a beneficiary or a person who stands in place of a parent;

• who is a minor;

• does not have a spouse; and

• is supported by the beneficiary.

Dependent post-secondary student: A resident of B.C. who is:

• older than 18 and younger than 25 years of age;

• in full-time attendance at a recognized post-secondary institution (this includes trade, technical or high schools); and

• supported by a beneficiary who is the person’s parent or who stands in place of the person’s parent.

A spouse or child of an eligible B.C. resident may also be deemed a resident provided that an application for permanent residence status has been submitted to Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) and the sponsorship fee and application fee for permanent resident status have been paid

As of Jan 1st, 2022, the monthly fee for MSP for students is $75