Super visa insurance: the policy IRCC requires, bought in 3 steps

Super visa insurance is the one document that decides more super visa files than any other. IRCC requires a private medical policy with at least $100,000 of emergency coverage per applicant, valid for 1 year from the date of entry, from a Canadian insurer or an OSFI-authorized foreign insurer. In October 2026, a 65-year-old paid about $2,150 a year without pre-existing cover and $2,986 with stable pre-existing conditions covered, on the TuGo plan sold here (underwritten by iA Financial Group); across the Canadian market the range was $2,051 to $4,201.

IRCC approved 73,604 super visas in 2023 and 53,695 in 2024, with an approval rate of 75 to 81 per cent. Missing or non-compliant insurance is one of the main refusal reasons named in IRCC’s report to Parliament. This page gives you the exact rule, the price, and the three-step path to a compliant certificate.

What does IRCC require from super visa insurance?

IRCC requires a policy that gives at least $100,000 of emergency coverage per applicant, covers health care, hospitalization and repatriation, and is valid for at least 1 year from the date of entry on each entry. It must be issued by a Canadian insurer or an OSFI-authorized foreign insurer, and be paid in full or in instalments with a deposit.

The wording below comes from IRCC’s forms and documents page and the officer instructions that visa officers follow.

Two further points trip up families. First, there is no “IRCC-approved list” of insurers. The only test for a foreign insurer is OSFI’s public register, and the policy must carry a statement that it was issued in the course of the insurer’s business in Canada. Second, the certificate must name the underwriter, because IRCC says brokers and claims administrators “are not insurance companies and will not appear on the OSFI list.”

Indian and Filipino domestic insurers such as Tata AIG, Bajaj Allianz, ICICI Lombard, Niva Bupa and Star Health are not OSFI-registered. Their policies lead to refusals. No mainstream foreign retail product currently meets the test, so in practice the choice is among Canadian-issued plans.

How does buying on SuperVisaDirect work?

You answer three questions: which province you live in, the parent’s date of birth, and whether any medical condition has changed recently. You see one price for the TuGo Visitors to Canada Emergency Medical plan, underwritten by iA Financial Group, with the fine print that matters on the same card: the stability period at your parent’s age, the refund if the visa is refused, the cancellation terms. You buy on TuGo’s secure checkout; your card goes to the insurer, never to us.

We sell one insurer’s plan on purpose. It meets every IRCC requirement, has no maximum age on the Comprehensive plan, offers a 7-day rider for a condition that changed recently, and issues instantly. If you want to see how it sits against the rest of the market, the 2026 comparison shows every Canadian insurer’s price, stability period and fees, dated and sourced.

The certificate arrives by email within minutes. It shows the insured’s name, the underwriter, the coverage amount, the effective and expiry dates and the policy number. You upload it with the IRCC application and keep a copy for the border.

The plan sold on SuperVisaDirect and the other Canadian plans you may see elsewhere are listed below with their underwriters, because the underwriter is what IRCC checks on the certificate.

How much does super visa insurance cost?

A 55-year-old with stable pre-existing conditions paid $1,577 to $2,373 a year in October 2026. A 65-year-old paid $2,051 to $4,201. A 75-year-old paid $4,000 to $9,910. Plans that exclude pre-existing conditions cost 30 to 45 per cent less.

Annual premium, $100,000 coverage, $0 deductible, stable pre-existing conditions covered, rates seen Oct 2026 — verify at quote time.

Rates are from the BestQuote and PolicyAdvisor tables. Price is driven by age band, pre-existing cover, deductible and coverage amount, in that order. The cost page has full age bands from 55 to 80 and couple examples.

Should you pay monthly or annually?

Pay annually if you can. Monthly plans cost the same premium plus a set-up fee of $10 to $120, and a missed instalment lapses the cover. Pay monthly if cash is tight or you expect the parent to leave before the year ends, because you stop paying when they go.

IRCC accepts instalments explicitly: the policy must be “paid in full or in instalments with a deposit.” The deposit is two months’ premium at every insurer that offers monthly billing.

Example: a 58-year-old on a no-pre-existing plan paid about $111 a month plus the fee, against $1,329 a year. The monthly plans page covers what the certificate says and what happens if a payment bounces.

What about pre-existing conditions?

A pre-existing condition is covered only if it has been stable for the insurer’s stability period before the effective date. Stable means no new diagnosis, no new or changed medication, no new symptoms and no pending tests. Stability periods run from 90 to 365 days and lengthen with age.

The risk of getting this wrong is real. In January 2024 an 88-year-old super visa holder spent three weeks in Hamilton General Hospital and received a $96,311 bill. Her plan asked no medical questions upfront, so the insurer reviewed her records at claim time and initially denied the claim for undisclosed heart failure. Read the pre-existing conditions guide before you choose a plan.

What if the visa is refused, or the dates change?

If IRCC refuses the super visa, every insurer we compared refunds the premium when you cancel before the effective date and send the refusal letter. If processing runs long, you move the start date forward at no charge. Both are routine requests handled by email.

Refund terms differ in detail. Manulife, 21st Century (proof within 30 days), Travelance (no fee, 30 days) and Destination refund in full before the effective date. GMS and Secure Travel refund less an administration fee. MSH requires the request within 60 days. See refunds and cancellation for the cancellation fees that apply in other cases.

Start-date changes matter because processing is unpredictable. The IRCC service standard is 112 days. In September 2026 India took 70 days, China 77, the Philippines 90 and Pakistan 92, according to immigration.ca. India took 208 days in March 2026. Set the effective date to the planned arrival, then adjust it once the passport comes back with the visa.

What must the certificate show?

The certificate must show the insured’s full name as on the passport and the underwriter’s legal name. It must show $100,000 or more of emergency medical coverage, including hospitalization and repatriation. It must show an effective date, an expiry date at least 365 days later, and the policy number. A quote or a broker invoice is not accepted.

Visa officers check that the insurer named on the proof is an insurance company, not a broker or administrator. If the insurer is foreign, the proof must carry the “issued in the course of its insurance business in Canada” statement. The sample certificate page walks through each field.

Carry the certificate on the flight. IRCC’s after you apply page tells applicants to “be ready to show proof of paid health insurance” to the border officer and to keep application documents out of checked luggage. The port of entry page explains what CBSA asks.

How do you buy for a parent who is still abroad?

The host in Canada buys the policy online in the parent’s name and pays by card. The parent’s physical location does not matter for the purchase. What matters is that the parent is outside Canada when the super visa application is submitted, which is an IRCC rule, not an insurer rule.

You will need the parent’s full passport name, date of birth, home address abroad, planned arrival date and, for plans with medical questions, their medication list and diagnosis dates. Ask the parent to photograph their prescriptions and last doctor’s letter before you start. Answering the questionnaire from memory is the single most common cause of a denied claim later.

The certificate is a PDF. Email it to the parent for the IRCC upload, or upload it yourself if you are completing the application on their behalf. For two parents, buy two policies or one policy with two insureds, each at $100,000. See couples.

Who is SuperVisaDirect?

SuperVisaDirect is operated by Super Visa Direct Insurance Services, an independent Ottawa-based agency. It is a licensed life and accident-and-sickness insurance agency regulated by the Financial Services Regulatory Authority of Ontario (licence number: [FSRA-LICENCE]). We currently serve Ontario residents. Other provinces are coming in 2028, and Quebec is not served.

We are an agency, not an insurer. Every certificate we issue names the underwriter, because that is what IRCC checks. We do not offer gifts, cash-back or referral rewards, and we do not claim any insurer is approved by IRCC, because no such approval exists.

Prices on this site are a dated snapshot from the insurers’ rate tables; the insurer confirms the exact premium at checkout. Prices change with age bands at 60, 65, 70, 75 and 80, so a 64-year-old and a 65-year-old pay different amounts. Start with the requirements page if you have not yet confirmed the host’s income, then come back here to buy.