Health Insurance for International Students

Temporary medical insurance for international students is delivered by guard.me, which provides emergency medical insurance coverage and covers the required medical services to address new and unexpected illnesses or injuries.

Coverage 

Full details on benefits, exclusions, and limitations are found in your guard.me policy. A policy summary is also available.

Enrolment 

All full-time international students are automatically enrolled in the temporary medical insurance plan upon registration at JIBC. Once enrolled, you will receive an ID Card and policy information by email from the Office of International Affairs. Coverage begins on the first day of the month before the start date of a semester.  

Please note that international students enrolled in part-time, online, or continuous intakes are not automatically enrolled in JIBC's temporary medical insurance plan.

Payment 

Students will be charged a fee based on which semester they start, as noted in the opt-out section below.  This fee will be added to your JIBC student account upon registration.

Add A Dependent

We strongly recommend that family members residing with you in Canada also have comprehensive temporary medical insurance coverage that can be purchased at an additional cost through guard.me.

Visit the guard.me page to add a dependent and follow the instructions to purchase emergency medical insurance coverage for family members who will accompany you to Canada.

 Arriving Early 
Students arriving in Canada before the start date of their program are required to contact guard.me to have their insurance extended. Failure to do so will result in any expenses incurred in the event of a medical emergency to be the sole responsibility of the student.  

To extend the policy, the certificate or policy number and date of birth are required.  If this information hasn’t been provided or there are further questions, please contact the Office of International Affairs for assistance. 

If you already have valid BC MSP coverage, you may opt out of the guard.me health insurance plan. To start an opt out request, visit the opt out page on the guard.me site. 

You will be asked to declare that you are enrolled with BC MSP and to identify the start date and end date of your coverage. The deadline to demonstrate valid BC MSP coverage and complete this opt-out process is listed below. No opt-out requests will be processed beyond this date.

Your application to opt-out will be declined if the period of coverage of your BC MSP ends before the end of your first semester at JIBC.

If payment has been made and your application to opt-out is received before the deadline and is submitted successfully, you will receive a credit to your JIBC student account.

It is important that you pay all your JIBC fees, even if you want to opt out, before the fee payment deadline to avoid being charged late fees.

The waiting period to receive BC MSP coverage is up to three months. 

Eligible students, including full-time students who are members of the Justice Institute Students’ Union (JISU) are automatically enrolled with the Extended Health and Dental plan through JIBC’s Student Union.

The plan provides access to a full range of benefits that help students with medical and other issues. Coverage includes prescription medication costs, vision coverage, dental coverage and more.  Visit the JISU Extended Health & Dental Plan page for more information.

If you are a resident of BC for more than six months you must enroll in the BC MSP.  

New international students need to apply for coverage within the first ten days of arrival in BC. The waiting period to receive this coverage is up to three months. For more information on how to apply online, please visit the BC MSP website. You will receive your BC Service Card and a confirmation of coverage letter in the mail with a bill for payment of the BC MSP monthly fees.

Important: BC MSP coverage expires the same day your Study Permit expires. If you renew your Study Permit, you also need to update your status with BC MSP online.  

The British Columbia Services Plan (BC MSP) is a provincial government program.  Application and payment of monthly fees are separate from any JIBC fees. 

All incoming exchange students are required to enroll in the temporary medical insurance plan provided by guard.me.

Students staying for more than six months 

For visiting and exchange students who are planning to stay in the Province of British Columbia for more than six months, it is mandatory that you enroll in the British Columbia Medical Services Plan (BC MSP). You must apply within the first ten days of your arrival in BC. For more information on how to apply online, please visit the BC MSP website.

Students staying for one semester 

Students staying for one semester will be enrolled in the temporary medical insurance plan and will receive all the benefits listed.  They do not need to apply for or show proof of coverage through BC MSP as the duration of stay is not long enough to be eligible for BC MSP. Students should simply review their coverage under the JIBC temporary medical insurance plan.

Outgoing Students (Exchange/Field Schools/Others) 
All outgoing students are required to have insurance coverage for the duration of their time abroad.

To provide consistent medical coverages for all JIBC students while they are overseas, you are required to purchase insurance through8 the guard.me exchange student site.