Applying through FSW program, wife pregnant, what happens if we get PR?

[hanimorrar]

Hello Everyone,

My wife and I are applying through FSW program, and we've already created our EE profiles and applied online. After we applied we found out that my wife is pregnant, she is 9 weeks pregnant now.

The question is, if we get invitation to apply and everything went through well, will she be covered by Ontario's healthcare system in terms of giving birth? And if not, is there any province that will cover her. Her due date is mid-Feb, and we expect to be there 2-3 months before that.

Thanks,

 

[scylla]

Your wife will be covered by OHIP three months after she arrives in Canada as a PR. Yes - there are provinces that will provide you with health care coverage immediately. However you have to plan to live there for at least 8 months. If you give birth in one of these provinces and then quickly relocate to Ontario, that province will come after you for the costs of the health care you received (you can expect the amount they come after you for to be significantly higher than what you would have spent if you had just paid for the delivery on your own).

You also need to be aware that as part of the PR application process, both you and your wife will have to have an x-ray done. You cannot complete the medical or be approved for PR without the chest x-ray. The vast majority of doctors recommend again having a chest x-ray done while pregnant since this can harm the unborn child. If you decide not to have the chexst x-ray, your wife will complete the entire medical (except the x-ray) when CIC requests it and you will notify CIC that your wife is pregnant and cannot complete the medical at this time. CIC will then put your file on hold. Once the child is born, your wife can then complete the x-ray so that the processing of the file can proceed. At that point you will also have to complete additional paperwork to add your new born child to the application.

 

[hanimorrar]

If you decide not to have the chexst x-ray, your wife will complete the entire medical (except the x-ray) when CIC requests it and you will notify CIC that your wife is pregnant and cannot complete the medical at this time. CIC will then put your file on hold. Once the child is born, your wife can then complete the x-ray so that the processing of the file can proceed. At that point you will also have to complete additional paperwork to add your new born child to the application.

Thanks a lot for the thorough response.

Do you mean that our PR process as a whole will be on hold and we wont be able to land in Ontario until the medical is fully done. Therefore, it will mean we will stay in our country until the child is born then we can complete the papers and move to Canada? Or is there a way to move there and complete the chest x-ray once we are in Canad and the child is born?

 

[Rob_TO]

Thanks a lot for the thorough response.

Do you mean that our PR process as a whole will be on hold and we wont be able to land in Ontario until the medical is fully done. Therefore, it will mean we will stay in our country until the child is born then we can complete the papers and move to Canada? Or is there a way to move there and complete the chest x-ray once we are in Canad and the child is born?

You can't move to Canada until you have your PR status.
You can't get your PR status until you complete your medical, which you can't do until after your wife gives birth. Or if she is willing to take the chance of having an x-ray done while pregnant, and you can find a doctor willing to do this, then she could get medical done earlier in the process.

Until you get PR you can only come to Canada as visitors, in which case you won't be covered for OHIP and will need to pay for the entire pregnancy out of pocket.

Also as mentioned there is a 3-month wait for OHIP after landing in Ontario as a PR. So even if you got your PR approval a couple months before delivery date, with the waiting period she may still not be covered in time and you would still end up paying everything yourselves.

 

[scylla]

Do you mean that our PR process as a whole will be on hold and we wont be able to land in Ontario until the medical is fully done. Therefore, it will mean we will stay in our country until the child is born then we can complete the papers and move to Canada? Or is there a way to move there and complete the chest x-ray once we are in Canad and the child is born?

To echo what Rob_TO said...

Correct - you won't be approved for PR or be able to land in Canada until after the child is born and after you have completed the xray.
No - there is no way to move to Canada now as permanent residents and complete the xray later.

 

[hanimorrar]

Thanks for the replies everyone. I'm not sure what we're gonna do, it all depends on when are we gonna get an invitation to apply or if we're even gonna have one.

But at least this area is crystal clear now, either wait after delivery of baby, or go through with chest x-ray.

Thanks! and Good luck for everyone