I have been accepted to SFU to start in the upcoming term. Due to extenuating circumstances, I will be taking online courses from my home country. Am I still required to have primary & secondary medical insurance in Canada?

PRIMARY INSURANCE

You must have medical insurance for the entire duration of your studies. As a new international student, you will be automatically enrolled in a 4-month primary medical insurance plan with guard.me@SFU, only for your first term of studies. You must apply for the BC Medical Services Plan (MSP) as soon as you arrive in BC so that you will have continuous primary medical insurance coverage when your guard.me@SFU plan expires after your first term.

If you already have a valid coverage through BC Medical Services Plan (MSP) or one of the eligible plans, or are outside of Canada, you may be able to opt out of (cancel) the guard.me@SFU Plan. If you opt out because you are studying remotely outside of Canada for your first term at SFU, please contact International Services for Students to learn about medical insurance options before you eventually travel to Canada to join SFU at a later term.

To opt out of (cancel) guard.me@SFU, visit their website. Click the "Undergraduate Students" or "Graduate Students" category and follow the opt-out instructions. The opt-out periods can be viewed here.

SECONDARY INSURANCE

Eligible students who join SFU in the Fall or Spring terms will be automatically enrolled in the SFSS/GSS Health and Dental Plans for a full or partial policy year. As this is an annual plan, there is no opt-out option only for one term due to remote studies.