Unable to leave Canada

[bekahbob]

Hi
My husband, two year old daughter and I (Australian citizens) are in Canada on ETA's as visitors for six months. We arrived mid August. The plan was to stay with my parents and look for work, get an LMIA approved and flag pole at the border to get work permits. If we weren't able to find work we would just return to Australia. We found out about two weeks before flying that I'm pregnant. We were going to just change our return tickets if my husband didn't get a job so we could fly home before I was 32 weeks pregnant. No job yet.

Since being here I've seen seen a doctor, had an ultrasound and blood tests (all paid by cash), just routine stuff. It turns out, however, that I have placenta previa, so my pregnancy is high risk. If it doesn't resolve by the time we need to go (if no jobs come up), then I won't be able to fly at all. Travel of any kind is usually prohibited after a certain stage.

We could apply for an extension of our stay as visitors, but there is no way we can afford a hospital birth and all the extras that come with a high risk pregnancy. Our travel insurance runs out before I'm due and doesn't cover any of that anyway.

Would it be possible to apply for a work permit or permanent residency on humanitarian and compassionate grounds? Would inability to fly home for medical reasons and financial hardship be enough? What about my husband and daughter?

What do you guys think? Thanks!

 

[zardoz]

Hi
My husband, two year old daughter and I (Australian citizens) are in Canada on ETA's as visitors for six months. We arrived mid August. The plan was to stay with my parents and look for work, get an LMIA approved and flag pole at the border to get work permits. If we weren't able to find work we would just return to Australia. We found out about two weeks before flying that I'm pregnant. We were going to just change our return tickets if my husband didn't get a job so we could fly home before I was 32 weeks pregnant. No job yet.

Since being here I've seen seen a doctor, had an ultrasound and blood tests (all paid by cash), just routine stuff. It turns out, however, that I have placenta previa, so my pregnancy is high risk. If it doesn't resolve by the time we need to go (if no jobs come up), then I won't be able to fly at all. Travel of any kind is usually prohibited after a certain stage.

We could apply for an extension of our stay as visitors, but there is no way we can afford a hospital birth and all the extras that come with a high risk pregnancy. Our travel insurance runs out before I'm due and doesn't cover any of that anyway.

Would it be possible to apply for a work permit or permanent residency on humanitarian and compassionate grounds? Would inability to fly home for medical reasons and financial hardship be enough? What about my husband and daughter?

What do you guys think? Thanks!

You should leave as soon as possible then and not delay until you find yourself in serious difficulties. You have been given advanced notice of possible problems and trying to swing an H&C out of the situation is likely to be rejected.

 

[Leon]

There is no work permit on H&C grounds as far as I know. PR on H&C grounds wouldn't be approved in your case and even if it were, it takes years to process so no chance that you'd get it in time to get health coverage before the birth. I don't know if you have looked into a working holiday visa? If you qualify, you could get work permits in Canada. However, working holiday participants are generally expected to have their own insurance although in some cases I've heard they've applied for provincial health care and gotten it. Since childbirth is expensive though, health care is likely to scrutinize in your case whether you are eligible or not.

 

[canuck_in_uk]

You should leave as soon as possible then and not delay until you find yourself in serious difficulties. You have been given advanced notice of possible problems and trying to swing an H&C out of the situation is likely to be rejected.

Agreed. You have no H&C case and should return to your country as soon as you can.

 

[bekahbob]

Thank you for your replies! Unfortunately, I already shouldn't fly. I have to wait and see if the problem resolves itself. Most of these cases do, but not all. I have another ultrasound scheduled next week, so we'll see what they say then.

 

[bekahbob]

Also, my husband doesn't qualify for a working holiday visa because he has two (soon to be three) dependents.

 

[Leon]

Also, my husband doesn't qualify for a working holiday visa because he has two (soon to be three) dependents.

It doesn't say you can't have dependents, just that you can't have accompanying dependents, see http://www.cic.gc.ca/english/work/iec/eligibility.asp?country=au&cat=wh

If you both apply for it, then neither of you has accompanying dependents except your daughter who is not really accompanying either of you as she is on visitor status visiting her grandparents

However, it still might not be sufficient to get you health care. It depends on the province too. Some are more difficult in that regard than others.

 

[scylla]

Agreed there are no humanitarian options available to you.

I don't see the IEC route being a realistic solution since IEC holders have to provide their own insurance for the 1-2 year period they will be in Canada. The only way the IEC might help is if your husband was able to secure one AND get a full time job that is NOC skill level A, B or 0 - and you then obtained an open work permit. Additionally, you'd likely have to secure a full time job on top of that to qualify for provincial health care.

Realistically, I think your options are:

1) Fly home immediately if it is safe to do so (ideal).
2) Remain as visitors in Canada understanding that you will most likely have to pay for all of the care you receive out of pocket.

Good luck.

 

[Rob_TO]

You should read this as a worst case scenario: http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/british-columbia/b-c-baby-costs-aussie-couple-1m-1.1197529

Remember that even though the baby will be a Canadian citizen upon birth, most likely the baby will not be eligible for healthcare since neither you nor the baby will make Canada your permanent residence afterwards. So you will be responsible for not only your own hospital bills, but those of your newborn as well.

There is no amount to accurately budget for this, since as you can see from the article the final bill could reach incredibly high amounts in a relatively quick time due to any complications that may arise.

You should really try to fly back to Australia asap. As mentioned, neither CIC, provincial healthcare or the hospital will give you any leniency in this due to your condition (as cruel as that sounds).

 

[bekahbob]

Oh gosh. That's a scary story!

Thanks, guys. We'll see what our options are after the scan next week and go from there.