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NB medicare says child born outside Canada to Canadian citizen needs proof of PR or TR status - help please!

MJSPARV

Hero Member
Sep 17, 2020
405
251
Hi,

We came to NB in May from the US and applied for Medicare immediately. We being my citizen husband, myself (at the time a visitor now a PR), and our one year old born in the US. Our daughter is a presumptive citizen though her citizenship certificate is still pending (and apparently citizenship certificates are low priority so very backed up), and CBSA let her in as a citizen so she has no stamp in her US passport, nor any sort of visa/visitor record etc since CBSA considers her a citizen. The problem is that NB medicare now wants us to provide proof from IRCC that she's a PR or TR or visitor, which of course isn't feasible since she's neither and not eligible for any of those statuses as a (presumptive) citizen...

We've contacted IRCC and CBSA and they both say there's nothing they can give us to show she's here as a citizen, so we're stumped. Anyone encountered anything similar in NB or elsewhere and found a solution? We've written them a letter explaining but have little hope of them accepting it so trying to plan ahead. (These are after all the folks who tried to tell my husband he couldn't get medicare because he didn't have a valid working permit or PR status so there was no proof of his lawful status in Canada while looking at his Canadian passport.)
 

canuck78

VIP Member
Jun 18, 2017
52,959
12,759
Hi,

We came to NB in May from the US and applied for Medicare immediately. We being my citizen husband, myself (at the time a visitor now a PR), and our one year old born in the US. Our daughter is a presumptive citizen though her citizenship certificate is still pending (and apparently citizenship certificates are low priority so very backed up), and CBSA let her in as a citizen so she has no stamp in her US passport, nor any sort of visa/visitor record etc since CBSA considers her a citizen. The problem is that NB medicare now wants us to provide proof from IRCC that she's a PR or TR or visitor, which of course isn't feasible since she's neither and not eligible for any of those statuses as a (presumptive) citizen...

We've contacted IRCC and CBSA and they both say there's nothing they can give us to show she's here as a citizen, so we're stumped. Anyone encountered anything similar in NB or elsewhere and found a solution? We've written them a letter explaining but have little hope of them accepting it so trying to plan ahead. (These are after all the folks who tried to tell my husband he couldn't get medicare because he didn't have a valid working permit or PR status so there was no proof of his lawful status in Canada while looking at his Canadian passport.)
This is fairly standard. Your daughter entered Canada as a visitor from the US. You will need to purchase emergency health insurance and pay out of pocket for routine medical care until your child gets proof of citizenship.
 

MJSPARV

Hero Member
Sep 17, 2020
405
251
Thanks for the reply. We have emergency insurance and have been paying out of pocket.

No, the CBSA officer explicitly said she was NOT being let in as a US citizen but as a Canadian citizen. He reiterated that point several times. In fact she was allowed a returning citizen imported goods allowance but as a minor it got listed on her dad's allowance paperwork. When we talked to CBSA this week they confirmed that she was let in as a Canadian NOT a US citizen but that they can't issue anything saying that because they acted on behalf of IRCC. In fact, because she had a birth certificate showing a Canadian parent and her dad's Canadian passport was present they didn't really have any option to admit her as a visitor because my understanding is a dual citizen can't enter Canada on the other citizenship. I suppose she and I could leave Canada and reenter without proof of her dad's citizenship and ask for a visitor record, but I can only see that working if I lied to them about her dad's citizenship and my policy is don't lie to the CBSA...
 

canuck78

VIP Member
Jun 18, 2017
52,959
12,759
Thanks for the reply. We have emergency insurance and have been paying out of pocket.

No, the CBSA officer explicitly said she was NOT being let in as a US citizen but as a Canadian citizen. He reiterated that point several times. In fact she was allowed a returning citizen imported goods allowance but as a minor it got listed on her dad's allowance paperwork. When we talked to CBSA this week they confirmed that she was let in as a Canadian NOT a US citizen but that they can't issue anything saying that because they acted on behalf of IRCC. In fact, because she had a birth certificate showing a Canadian parent and her dad's Canadian passport was present they didn't really have any option to admit her as a visitor because my understanding is a dual citizen can't enter Canada on the other citizenship. I suppose she and I could leave Canada and reenter without proof of her dad's citizenship and ask for a visitor record, but I can only see that working if I lied to them about her dad's citizenship and my policy is don't lie to the CBSA...
Good to know. Yes you are right that Canadian children are required to enter as Canadians. Have seen others come in ad US visitors by land when it isn’t obvious that they are a child of a Canadian citizen.

In terms of healthcare you can try to appeal to someone in the NB health authority but in general you usually need to have proof of Canadian citizenship before getting healthcare. No harm in trying to appeal to someone higher up but also no promise of any approval. Very few questions on the forum about appealing to NB health authority so don’t think you’ll find the exact procedure when it comes to appeals. Assume you are resettling for at least the year in NB. Routine care is pretty affordable coming from the US so it shouldn’t be a large expense
 

MJSPARV

Hero Member
Sep 17, 2020
405
251
Thanks! Think what's most frustrating is that NB is actually quite generous in terms of giving coverage, except it seems in this situation. If she was here as a dependent of a student, or had a visitor record or TRV she'd be given it no problem. It just feels so backwards!
 

bryndog1950

Star Member
Dec 14, 2020
56
23
Hi,

We came to NB in May from the US and applied for Medicare immediately. We being my citizen husband, myself (at the time a visitor now a PR), and our one year old born in the US. Our daughter is a presumptive citizen though her citizenship certificate is still pending (and apparently citizenship certificates are low priority so very backed up), and CBSA let her in as a citizen so she has no stamp in her US passport, nor any sort of visa/visitor record etc since CBSA considers her a citizen. The problem is that NB medicare now wants us to provide proof from IRCC that she's a PR or TR or visitor, which of course isn't feasible since she's neither and not eligible for any of those statuses as a (presumptive) citizen...

We've contacted IRCC and CBSA and they both say there's nothing they can give us to show she's here as a citizen, so we're stumped. Anyone encountered anything similar in NB or elsewhere and found a solution? We've written them a letter explaining but have little hope of them accepting it so trying to plan ahead. (These are after all the folks who tried to tell my husband he couldn't get medicare because he didn't have a valid working permit or PR status so there was no proof of his lawful status in Canada while looking at his Canadian passport.)
When did you apply for the baby's citizenship certificate? According to the government website, the current processing time is approximately 15 months.

The application guide allows for "urgent processing" in special cases, but the request should have been made at the time of application.
I don't know whether there is any way you can retroactively request urgent processing but it might be worth exploring.
https://www.canada.ca/en/immigration-refugees-citizenship/services/canadian-citizenship/proof-citizenship/apply/urgently.html

Apply for a Canadian citizenship certificate: Urgent processing

"Processing times show how long it takes us to process applications for proof of citizenship (citizenship certificate). We can process applications faster in special cases.
When and how to request urgent processing for proof of citizenship
You can ask for urgent processing if you need a citizenship certificate to:
access benefits like:
a pension
health care
a Social Insurance Number
prove you’re a Canadian citizen to get a job
travel to or from Canada because of a death or serious illness in your family

Your request for urgent processing must include:
an explanation letter
supporting documents, for example:
plane tickets or itineraries, with proof of payment
letter from employer
letter from school
doctor’s note
death certificate

We’ll review your request to see if it qualifies. Even if you qualify, we can’t guarantee that you’ll get your citizenship certificate on time."
 

canuck78

VIP Member
Jun 18, 2017
52,959
12,759
When did you apply for the baby's citizenship certificate? According to the government website, the current processing time is approximately 15 months.

The application guide allows for "urgent processing" in special cases, but the request should have been made at the time of application.
I don't know whether there is any way you can retroactively request urgent processing but it might be worth exploring.
https://www.canada.ca/en/immigration-refugees-citizenship/services/canadian-citizenship/proof-citizenship/apply/urgently.html

Apply for a Canadian citizenship certificate: Urgent processing

"Processing times show how long it takes us to process applications for proof of citizenship (citizenship certificate). We can process applications faster in special cases.
When and how to request urgent processing for proof of citizenship
You can ask for urgent processing if you need a citizenship certificate to:
access benefits like:
a pension
health care
a Social Insurance Number
prove you’re a Canadian citizen to get a job
travel to or from Canada because of a death or serious illness in your family

Your request for urgent processing must include:
an explanation letter
supporting documents, for example:
plane tickets or itineraries, with proof of payment
letter from employer
letter from school
doctor’s note
death certificate

We’ll review your request to see if it qualifies. Even if you qualify, we can’t guarantee that you’ll get your citizenship certificate on time."
Where Is the urgent requirement? If you land but choose to leave and have your baby elsewhere you know you’ll need to sponsor them.
 

canuck78

VIP Member
Jun 18, 2017
52,959
12,759
Thanks! Think what's most frustrating is that NB is actually quite generous in terms of giving coverage, except it seems in this situation. If she was here as a dependent of a student, or had a visitor record or TRV she'd be given it no problem. It just feels so backwards!
PRs are different. You had the opportunity to remain in Canada after landing and then your child would have had coverage from day one. You chose to have your baby out of Canada and you knew you’d then have to sponsor your child.
 
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MJSPARV

Hero Member
Sep 17, 2020
405
251
PRs are different. You had the opportunity to remain in Canada after landing and then your child would have had coverage from day one. You chose to have your baby out of Canada and you knew you’d then have to sponsor your child.
Nope nope nope. That's not at all what is going on. My husband is a Canadian citizen, was living with me outside in the US while he was in grad school in the US. Our daughter was born there before I even applied for my PR and before we even knew for sure that we'd be coming to Canada so I didn't choose to leave and have her outside after landing. We applied for her citizenship certificate months before my PR application was submitted and before we knew we'd be coming to Canada. She wasn't eligible to be included in my PR application because..... She's the child of a citizen and eligible for citizenship. Thanks for blaming me for something that's not even true lol.
 

MJSPARV

Hero Member
Sep 17, 2020
405
251
When did you apply for the baby's citizenship certificate? According to the government website, the current processing time is approximately 15 months.

The application guide allows for "urgent processing" in special cases, but the request should have been made at the time of application.
I don't know whether there is any way you can retroactively request urgent processing but it might be worth exploring.
https://www.canada.ca/en/immigration-refugees-citizenship/services/canadian-citizenship/proof-citizenship/apply/urgently.html

Apply for a Canadian citizenship certificate: Urgent processing

"Processing times show how long it takes us to process applications for proof of citizenship (citizenship certificate). We can process applications faster in special cases.
When and how to request urgent processing for proof of citizenship
You can ask for urgent processing if you need a citizenship certificate to:
access benefits like:
a pension
health care
a Social Insurance Number
prove you’re a Canadian citizen to get a job
travel to or from Canada because of a death or serious illness in your family

Your request for urgent processing must include:
an explanation letter
supporting documents, for example:
plane tickets or itineraries, with proof of payment
letter from employer
letter from school
doctor’s note
death certificate

We’ll review your request to see if it qualifies. Even if you qualify, we can’t guarantee that you’ll get your citizenship certificate on time."
Thanks for the suggestion but I think it's too late to ask for urgent processing. We applied in July 2020 when she was four months old - took us until then to get her US passport which we needed as her photo id. It was returned to us ten months later for not having a second form of photo id (for an infant 4 months old at the time of submission...) with a note on there showing it had been received and deemed incomplete in August 2020. We reapplied within a week of it being returned in May 2021.
 

canuck78

VIP Member
Jun 18, 2017
52,959
12,759