Hello, I'm an international student planning to come to Canada in Sep 2025. I had my medical exam in June 2025 and there were abnormalities in my chest X-ray. The panel physician asked me to do a sputum test, which came out positive. She said that I have active TB and told me that I have to undergo medication for 6 months using the Directly Observed Treatment (DOT), which is where I take the TB medication in front of a medical officer every morning before breakfast, and they will fill out an attendance book to show to IRCC that I took my medication daily. She told me that it had to be carried out in that exact hospital where I did my medical exam with the panel physician. My problem is that the hospital is very far away from my house and it is simply not possible for me to go there every morning to complete this DOT. I would like to ask, is it possible for me to take this DOT in a different hospital that is not part of the appointed hospital by IRCC for medical exams? One that is closer to my home. I will still do my sputum tests and chest x-rays mid-medication in the appointed hospital, just not the DOT there. If this is possible and suppose I completed my medication, what proof does IRCC need to ensure that I am free from TB and get my study permit approved? Because I've heard news that those who undergo DOT not in the appointed hospital will have the IRCC telling them to do sputum tests and chest x-rays several times, like in the 3rd month and 6th month after they completed their TB treatment to get their permits approved. I have deferred my admissions offer for a year and I hope I don't have to defer it any longer. Thank you.
Is DOT for active TB really needed for Study Permit?
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Yes you can do treatment elsewhere. You will have to repeat chest X-ray and sputum culture after treatment to ensure TB has been cured. If there are still concerns you can be asked to do further testing.
Hello, thank you for your reply. When does this repetition of chest X-ray and sputum culture usually happen? Is it directly after the 6-month treatment or 3 months after I finished my treatment? Also, is the DOT really necessary? Does the IRCC really need it? Is there a standard for what information should be included in the attendance book for the DOT?
Will happen after the 6 month treatment. In terms of DOT not sure. Given that it is not available in all countries I don’t think so but would clarify with IRCC.
X-ray is usually each month, sputum is going to be every 2 months. There's no fixed 6 month timeline here. It depends on how well your body responds to TB medication. It can go as far as 9-10 months too.
DOT is super-subjective to where you really are, but it looks like you've been instructed for a DOT, so just follow it. You can very likely request online DOT via Zoom or something else too. If the treatment is going to follow Canadian standards, you'll likely be asked to go for a blood test every month as well.
Hello, I've completed my 6-month TB treatment on Jan 13 under DOT, and my panel physician has submitted all my records to IRCC. All my sputum cultures (before treatment, 2nd month of treatment, and 3rd month of treatment) are negative. And all my X-rays (during treatment and after treatment) say that opacities on the lungs are decreasing. Although for my X-ray after treatment, there is still a small spot. My TB specialist says that it might be a scar that cannot disappear. However, IRCC still asked for another X-ray in April. Is this normal? Anyone experiencing the same thing? Will they ask me for another sputum as well? Hope my visa will be approved after the X-ray in April. Thanks.
>However, IRCC still asked for another X-ray in April. Is this normal?
This is a pretty odd thing to say - this is still Jan, did IRCC said that you'll need to do another X-ray in April in the future? Or did IRCC asked you to do another in April 2025?
Pretty normal and just an added precaution on their part. The scar tissue(spot) remains for quite a few after TB treatment. They won't ask for another sputum if they don't see progression + a sputum test is just another spit and a few weeks of added wait for the result at best. Their only concern is that they want to see if you aren't in relapse of TB and the x-ray should hopefully tell them.
Thanks for your reply. I've completed my treatment on 23 Jan 2026, and just yesterday, they asked for another X-ray in April 2026. If in April, the spot is still stable or improving, there shouldn't be any problem right?
Completely upto them to be honest - but if your TB treatment is over and you are not in a relapse, they likely shouldn't. Canada takes TB treatment and diagnosis very very seriously. At the same time, Canadian Pulmonologists aren't very experienced with TB either as the number of cases are far far less compared to developing nations. So, a Canadian doctor would stay very conservative to a point that wouldn't make sense to someone not living here. All depends on your TB scars and how assuring they appear to a Canadian doctor at this point of time.
