In Canada, people seeking permanent resident status or temporary residence as students or workers can be rejected on the basis of their HIV status due to the “excessive demand” provision of Canada’s laws governing medical inadmissibility. Relying on the purportedly neutral criteria of the cost of health services, this law renders any applicant who would require more than $6450 per year’s worth of health or social services inadmissible to Canada. Due to the high cost of antiretroviral medications, the health care costs of many people living with HIV are higher than the current threshold.
This joint submission to Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada outlines why we recommend that the excessive demand provision be repealed.