Insurance for "working holiday" in Canada

[GrumpyGregry]

My 27-year-old daughter has got a 12 month IEC "working holiday" visa for Canada, will be going for a year in September.

She needs insurance for the whole of the trip, to cover medical, et cetera.

Anyone got an experience, hints'n'tips, about obtaining cover for this sort of requirement please?

 

[mjr]

No idea but I would say to pay attention to how much you can work and how much you should holiday on such a visa because if you overwork, it can end up with you being denied entry under the visa waiver schemes in future!

I think insure and go may cover working trips and holidays but I'm not sure if they do 12 month single trips.

 

[TheDoctor]

I suspect what's needed is 'gap year' insurance, as it'll be designed for one long trip. Most annual travel policies (such as the one I've got) are designed for a number of short trips, often with a 31 day limit per trip.
On a quick Google, Insure&go do a year long policy from about £300, so it's definitely out there.

 

[Shadow]

I would have thought that if she is working, her employer pays for medical coverage under the relevant Provincial Health plan. (This was always the case when I was there).
If she is on holiday, she might require insurance.
My 2 nieces are currently coming to the end of their working visa and could probably provide help here. If you would like more info, you know where to find me.
Where is she going? What is the nature of the 'work'?

 

[GrumpyGregry]

I would have thought that if she is working, her employer pays for medical coverage under the relevant Provincial Health plan. (This was always the case when I was there).
If she is on holiday, she might require insurance.
My 2 nieces are currently coming to the end of their working visa and could probably provide help here. If you would like more info, you know where to find me.
Where is she going? What is the nature of the 'work'?

She hasn't yet got a job. and Vancouver.

 

[PK99]

My 27-year-old daughter has got a 12 month IEC "working holiday" visa for Canada, will be going for a year in September.

She needs insurance for the whole of the trip, to cover medical, et cetera.

Anyone got an experience, hints'n'tips, about obtaining cover for this sort of requirement please?

I'll check with D1 who is out there on a 2 year working holiday visa.

IIRC she needed: health insurance for the two years including repatriation cover but ho she got that from I don't know.

she also needed access (ie bank account) to iirc $can2000

 

[PK99]

No idea but I would say to pay attention to how much you can work and how much you should holiday on such a visa because if you overwork, it can end up with you being denied entry under the visa waiver schemes in future!
.

the expectation is you work not holiday. the ski resorts and BC/Vancouver tourist industry run on these! we have people coming permanently to be Baristas, Canada has a churning temporary workforce and high high hurdles for permanent immigration

D1 is there on a 2 year working holiday visa, in an $80k professional job that she would not have had the points for as a permanent immigrant, but work experience in Canada gives her points and she will find it much easier to get permanent residency toward the end of the 2 year.

 

[PK99]

D1's response:

There's a few companies to choose between, I think True Traveller and Alpha are the main ones. Things to look out for are whether you're limited on the number of days you're allowed to go home for whilst still being covered, excess, customer service etc. I went with True Traveller after reading very good reviews. It's not cheap but obviously insurance only feels like good value if you end up needing it.
There's criteria on the Canadian immigration website about what the insurance needs to cover, but the one that I remember is repatriation in the case of serious injury/illness or death. Once you've been working FT in BC for 3 months you become eligible for provincial healthcare coverage (for $75 per month), so the insurance is really to cover you for the first few months and if anything really big happens.
The visa you get given at the border will be as long as your insurance policy ie even if you're entitled to a 2 year visa, if you only have 1 year of insurance you'll be given a 1 year visa.
Hope that answers the question and is helpful?

 

[steveindenmark]

True Traveller or World Nomads you could try either of those.

 

[GrumpyGregry]

D1's response:

There's a few companies to choose between, I think True Traveller and Alpha are the main ones. Things to look out for are whether you're limited on the number of days you're allowed to go home for whilst still being covered, excess, customer service etc. I went with True Traveller after reading very good reviews. It's not cheap but obviously insurance only feels like good value if you end up needing it.
There's criteria on the Canadian immigration website about what the insurance needs to cover, but the one that I remember is repatriation in the case of serious injury/illness or death. Once you've been working FT in BC for 3 months you become eligible for provincial healthcare coverage (for $75 per month), so the insurance is really to cover you for the first few months and if anything really big happens.
The visa you get given at the border will be as long as your insurance policy ie even if you're entitled to a 2 year visa, if you only have 1 year of insurance you'll be given a 1 year visa.
Hope that answers the question and is helpful?

Very, please thank D1 profusely.

True Traveller or World Nomads you could try either of those.

True Traveller is looking to be on pole.

 

[Electric_Andy]

I got insurance when I had a working holiday in Australia. it's just a case of looking at the small print (especially the exclusions). Popular activities that will increase the premium are adventure sports such as skiiing, skydiving etc. Make sure repatriation is included. it may or may not cover medical treatment, not sure if they have NHS so make sure any medical treatment is covered.

In my case, there was no limit on how long you could work and how long you could "travel". The 12 months working visa assumes that someone may want to work solidly for 12 months. Make sure she keeps payslips and receipts (easier said than done if you do manual work for cash) as you can claim back your tax when you get home. You can do it yourself, but plenty of companies offer these services and they take a fee (about 20% IIRC).

Usual insurance rules apply though, stump up for as much as you can afford to cover all bases and check the small print.

 

[PK99]

I not sure if they have NHS so make sure any medical treatment is covered.
.

British Columbia’s Medical Services Plan (MSP) pays for many health costs, including doctors, most medical tests and treatments.

To use the Medical Services Plan, you need to be a resident of British Columbia, and one of the following:

• a Canadian citizen
• a landed immigrant
• a government-assisted refugee
• a post-secondary international student with a study permit
• a temporary worker with a work permit for six months or longer

If you are a refugee claimant, contact Health Insurance BC at 1-800-663-7100 to find out if you qualify for MSP coverage. If you do not qualify, see Citizen and Immigration Canada’s Interim Federal Health Program or phone 1-888-242-2100.

Register with the Medical Services Plan
Register with the Medical Services Plan as soon as you arrive in B.C. It may take up to three months before you can use the Medical Services Plan, so ask about private medical insurance for that time. If you do not have medical insurance, you must pay the doctor or hospital yourself, which can be expensive.

When your Medical Services Plan coverage begins, you will get a BC Services Card with your name and personal health number on it. For a photo BC Services Card, you will need to go to an ICBC driver licensing office for identity proofing. A photo BC Services Card is the preferred card due to the benefits of increased patient safety and to help avoid both health care and identity fraud.

Always take your card with you when you go to a doctor, clinic or hospital. You will also need a valid BC Services Card for prescriptions.

 

[Snizzlepops]

@GrumpyGregry This might be of use in someway, it is an old school buddy's blog that had lots of information on 'working holidays'. There is a section on Insurance too.
http://offtracktravel.ca/category/working-holidays-2/canada-wh/

 

[PK99]

Aside:

It is amazing just how many young people head off to Vancouver:

D1 is there looking to stay permanently
D2's friend just got a 1 year IEC visa
Best mates, son-in-law just accepted a 1 year physics research post at the uni
GG's daughter

 

[PK99]

another aside:

file for future reference, Parcel Hero are the go to firm for shipping out forgotten bits n bobs