Buy visitors to Canada insurance before the parent boards the flight. The process takes about 15 minutes online: quote with their passport age and travel dates, choose a coverage amount, answer the medical questionnaire if they are over the carrier’s threshold age, set the start date to the arrival date, pay, and save the certificate. Every carrier waives the illness waiting period for policies bought before arrival; buying after landing adds 48 hours to 7 days, and RBC will not sell at all more than 5 days after arrival.
What you need before you start
Four things: the parent’s passport details, their travel dates, a Canadian address for the stay, and their medical history. The medical list matters most, because the questionnaire asks about diagnoses, medications and changes over the last 90 to 365 days.
| Item | Why it is needed | Where to get it |
|---|---|---|
| Passport name and date of birth | The certificate must match the passport the border officer sees | Photo page of the passport |
| Arrival and departure dates | Sets the policy term and the premium | Flight booking |
| Canadian address | Mailing and assistance contact | Your home address |
| List of diagnoses and medications, with dates of any change | Medical questionnaire at 55 or 60 and over | The parent’s doctor or pharmacy record |
| Credit card | Payment; the cardholder need not be the insured | Yours or the parent’s |
IRCC does not ask for insurance with a visitor visa or eTA application. The visa fee is $100 plus $85 biometrics; an eTA costs $7 and is usually approved within minutes. Apply for the visa first, buy insurance once it is approved.
How to buy, step by step
Allow 15 minutes, longer if the parent is over 60 and the questionnaire needs a phone call home. Do it the day the visa is approved.
- Confirm the visa or eTA is approved and the flight is booked. You need firm dates; the premium is per day.
- Open the quoter and enter the parent’s date of birth, arrival date and departure date. Use the dates on the ticket, not the planned stay. Add two or three days at the end for delays.
- Choose a coverage amount. $100,000 for a parent under 60; $150,000 for a parent over 60 or anyone with a condition. The coverage amounts page explains why.
- Choose a deductible. $0 is simplest; $500 saves about 15% at most carriers. See deductibles.
- Read the plan card. The quoter shows one price for the TuGo Visitors to Canada plan, underwritten by iA Financial Group, with the stability period at the parent’s age, the refund rule and the cancellation terms on the same card. A table of every carrier’s rules is on the pre-existing conditions page if you want to check it against the market.
- Answer the medical questionnaire with the parent on the phone. Every answer must be accurate as of the purchase date. An undisclosed condition is the most common reason a claim is denied.
- Set the effective date to the arrival date in Canada and pay on TuGo’s secure checkout. Save the policy PDF, email it to the parent, and print one copy for their hand luggage.
The certificate arrives by email within minutes. Check that the name, date of birth, dates and coverage amount are correct before the parent flies; corrections after arrival can trigger a waiting period.
Which start date should I use?
The date the parent lands in Canada, local time. Coverage starting earlier wastes premium; coverage starting later leaves a gap on the day of arrival, which is when flight delays and airport falls happen. Manulife lets you apply up to 365 days before the start date.
| Situation | Start date to use | Note |
|---|---|---|
| Direct flight, arrives same day | Arrival date | Standard |
| Overnight flight, arrives next day | Date of arrival in Canada | Not the departure date |
| Connecting through the US | Date of first entry to Canada | Transit medical events in the US are not covered by a visitor plan |
| Flight moved after purchase | Change the start date before it begins | No charge at carriers in our comparison |
| Parent already in Canada | Today, with a waiting period | See the after-arrival page |
What to do if something goes wrong
Three things can go wrong between purchase and arrival: the visa is refused, the flight changes, or the parent’s health changes. Each has a fix if you act before the effective date.
| Problem | What to do | Refund position |
|---|---|---|
| Visitor visa refused | Send the IRCC refusal letter to the carrier | Full refund at most carriers; Travelance refunds without a fee with proof of denial |
| Flight delayed or rebooked | Email the carrier with the new date | No charge to move the start date before it begins |
| Trip cancelled | Cancel before the effective date | Manulife refunds in full before the effective date; Travelance in full within 10 days of purchase, otherwise less $250 |
| New diagnosis or medication change before the flight | Tell the carrier before the start date | The condition may become excluded; buying a no-questionnaire plan does not solve this |
| Error on the certificate | Request a correction before arrival | Corrections after arrival can trigger a waiting period |
Full refund rules by carrier are on the refunds and cancellation page.
Should I buy from a Canadian insurer or one at home?
A Canadian insurer, for a visitor plan as much as for a super visa. Canadian carriers bill the hospital directly through their assistance line, cover stable pre-existing conditions to age 85 or beyond, and refund in Canadian dollars. Policies from home-country insurers typically pay the patient afterwards and cap age around 70.
The plan sold on SuperVisaDirect is TuGo’s, underwritten by iA Financial Group. Every carrier in our comparison is a Canadian insurer or the Canadian branch of a foreign insurer: TuGo (iA Financial Group), 21st Century (Manulife), Secure Travel (iA Financial Group, claims by MSH), GMS (Group Medical Services), Destination Travel Group (Zurich Insurance Company Ltd, Canadian Branch), Allianz Global Assistance (CUMIS General Insurance), Manulife CoverMe (Manufacturers Life) and Travelance (Old Republic Insurance Company of Canada). How it works explains our process.
SuperVisaDirect is operated by Super Visa Direct Insurance Services, an independent Ontario life and accident-and-sickness insurance agency licensed by FSRA (licence [FSRA-LICENCE]). We serve Ontario residents; other provinces are planned for 2028. Email [email protected] or request a callback, Monday to Friday, 8:00am to 6:00pm Eastern Time.
Questions people ask
When should I buy the policy?
The day the visa is approved and the flight is booked, and in any case before departure. Every carrier waives the illness waiting period for policies bought before arrival in Canada. Manulife lets you buy up to 365 days before the start date, and every carrier in our comparison lets you move the start date before coverage begins if the flight changes.
Who should be the policyholder, the parent or me?
The parent is the insured person; you can be the purchaser and payer. The application needs the parent's legal name as it appears in the passport, date of birth, home address and the medical answers given by them. Keep your own email on the file so the certificate and any renewal notices reach you in Canada.
What documents do I need to buy?
The parent's passport details, the arrival and departure dates, a Canadian address for the stay, and a list of their current medications and diagnoses for the questionnaire. No visa document is required for a visitor plan; carriers ask for the visa refusal letter only if you later claim a refund on refusal.
Does the policy have to be in the visa application?
No. IRCC does not ask for insurance with a visitor visa or eTA application, so you can apply for the visa first and buy insurance once it is approved. The super visa is the exception: it requires a paid one-year $100,000 policy in the file. Our decision guide explains the difference.
What if the flight is delayed or cancelled?
Change the start date before coverage begins; carriers allow this at no charge. If the trip is cancelled entirely, Manulife refunds in full before the effective date, and Travelance refunds in full within 10 days of purchase or less a $250 fee before departure. If the visa is refused, most carriers refund in full with the IRCC letter.
Can I buy for both parents on one policy?
Yes at most carriers, as a couple or family application. TuGo's Family and Friends rate covers two adults aged 59 or under and up to six children; Travelance charges a family rate of twice the eldest person's premium. Each parent answers the medical questionnaire separately, and each gets their own certificate.
Get the policy IRCC requires, in minutes
Three questions, one price, one button. The certificate your parent needs is emailed the same day.
Sources
- IRCC – Apply for a visitor visa (fees, documents, no insurance requirement)
- IRCC – eTA facts (CAD $7, approval within minutes, up to 6 months per visit)
- GMS – Visitors to Canada travel insurance (waiting period waived if bought before arrival)
- TuGo – Visitors to Canada insurance (no waiting period if bought before arrival)
- Manulife CoverMe – Complete guide to visitor to Canada insurance (buy up to 365 days ahead; full refund before effective date)
- RBC Insurance – Compare visitors to Canada plans (buy before arrival or within 5 days)
- PolicyAdvisor – Travelance visitor to Canada review (free look, refund fees, family rate)
- iA Financial Group – TuGo Visitors to Canada (Family and Friends rate)