All international students who are registered in courses for the Fall/Winter 2023-24 term are automatically enrolled in UHIP. If you have not yet enrolled in your courses, please do so as soon as possible. If you have dependents (partner/spouse or children) with you in Canada, they can also be added to your plan. Visit the UHIP website for more details.

UHIP coverage officially begins on Sept. 1, but it can start as early as Aug. 10. If you have already completed the form and your information remains the same, no additional action is required.

Once UHIP enrolment is complete, your UHIP card will be emailed to your @my.yorku.ca email address. Please check your Junk or Spam folders if you don’t receive the notification message by mid-August. Students will continue to be enrolled throughout the summer and fall terms.

For info on how to access your Yorku email, check out UIT's website.

UHIP will pay up to $1,000,000 (Canadian dollars) per policy year for eligible health services and medical treatments you and your family might need to maintain your health while living in Canada. This includes: Hospital Services, Physician Services, and Laboratory & Diagnostic Tests.

UHIP is comparable to the Ontario Health Insurance Plan (OHIP), rather than identical. Other types of services, such as prescription drugs, are covered through your student union supplemental health plan.

Please note: While most services are fully covered under the plan with no additional cost to you, some medical professionals may bill you for more than the UHIP reimbursement rate. In these cases, you will be responsible to pay the difference between the two amounts. You can check Cowan’s Preferred Provider Network at UHIP.ca starting August 10, for a list of providers who will send the bill directly to Cowan, and not charge you more than the UHIP reimbursement rate.

You have 12 months from the date the claim was incurred to submit for reimbursement.

Visit UHIP Forms & Important Documents for info on how to submit your claims online.

Your UHIP Member ID is YU + your student ID (e.g. YU123456789) and your policy number is 150150.

1. Print your UHIP card (sent to your YorkU email)
2. Present your UHIP card at a preferred clinic/hospital/lab (use uhip.ca to find a preferred provider)
3. They will bill UHIP directly

If you visit a non-preferred provider, pay for services out of pocket and apply for a reimbursement from UHIP (instructions on Submit a claim - UHIP/RAMU)

UHIP covers basic medical costs such as doctor’s visits, emergencies, lab tests, etc. Generally, if you visit a clinic or hospital or lab, it will be covered under UHIP.

UHIP does not cover prescription medicine, dentist fees, eyeglasses or contact lenses, physiotherapy, massage therapy, psychologists, therapists, etc. These medical costs are covered through your extended health plan, which is administered by your student union.

Your extended health plan is administered by your student union.

• Undergrad students: York Federation of students (YFS)
  • Email: yfshp@yfs.ca
• Grad students (non-TA): Graduate Student Association (GSA)
  • Students who were previously out of Canada and are now returning for the first time this academic year must contact the health plan office within 30 days of their arrival to get enrolled in the YUGSA plan.
• Grad students (TA): provided through CUPE as an employee

Medical services in Ontario, including physician fees and emergency visits at a hospital, can be very expensive. UHIP (University Health Insurance Plan) is a mandatory basic coverage plan that helps cover these expenses. Students who are required to be covered under UHIP include:

• International students with a valid study permit who are registered as active in a degree program,
• Incoming exchange students,
• Dependent(s), spouse and/or children, of eligible students, 
• International Visiting Research Trainees with a valid work permit, and
• Some Visiting Scholars 

Please note that dependents must be enrolled in UHIP within 30 days of their eligibility. You must enrol your dependents each September that you are registered at York. Dependents enrolled after 30 days will be subject to a $500 late fee.

Renewing your dependents: If you added your dependent(s) under your UHIP last year, you must renew their coverage within 30 days of their coverage expiry date via our UHIP application form, or a late fee of $500 will apply. You must do this each year that your dependents require UHIP coverage.

Please note that your dependent(s) are covered under your UHIP till 31st August 2024 (end of current coverage year). You will need to renew their coverage for the Fall 2024 semester. Please ensure that you submit your renewal application before September 30th, 2024, or a late fee of $500 will apply.

Please check the UHIP website for detailed information about your dependent(s)’ coverage.

NOTE : UHIP does not cover prescriptions, dental, eye care, or physiotherapy. These services are covered through your extended health and dental plan, which is administered by your student union (YFS if you are an undergraduate student or GSA if you are a graduate student). For information regarding your extended health and dental plan, please contact your student union: http://www.yfs.ca/healthplan or http://yugsa.ca/services/health-plan/.

Not sure whether you are eligible for UHIP? Take the quiz here to find out!

If you take a semester off from your studies and are still in Canada, it is important to remain covered under UHIP!

To be covered under UHIP during your leave of absence, approval must be granted at least one month prior to taking the leave of absence. Therefore, you are required to apply for UHIP under leave of absence at least one month prior to taking the leave.

You may be covered under one of three types of leave of absence:

1. Medical leave of absence: In this case, your UHIP coverage may be continued for a maximum of 4 months per academic year. If you are unable to continue your studies for another semester due to medical reasons, you may be able eligible for an extension of the leave of absence. However, this is assessed on a case-by-case basis. You will need to submit medical documents to support your reason for taking another semester off.
2. Non-medical leave of absence: Your UHIP coverage may only be continued for a maximum of 4 months per academic year.
3. Maternity/paternity leave of absence: For a maternity or paternity leave of absence, your UHIP coverage may be continued for a maximum of 12 months.

Please click here to apply for UHIP under a leave of absence.

NOTE: Taking a semester off could affect the status of your study permit. To find out more information, please be sure to contact an International Student Advisor here.

You may be eligible to extend your UHIP coverage for up to six months after your last month of studies if Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) have approved your stay. Below is the maximum you can extend your UHIP coverage based on your convocation month:

• June Convocation: You should already be covered until August. You may extend your UHIP for 2 more months (September and October) if the IRCC has approved your stay.
• October Convocation: You may extend your UHIP for 6 months after your Summer term ends, maximum until February. 
• February Convocation: You are automatically enrolled under UHIP for 12 months if you are registered for the Fall term. If you graduate in February, you may request a refund for the Winter and Summer term of UHIP. To request a refund for February graduation, please click here. Deadline for refund request is March 1st.

The process to apply for a UHIP extension for graduation is as follows:

1. Submit an application to extend your UHIP here. Documents that you will need to provide are: the UHIP application form and a copy of your study permit.
2. Once we receive the application form, we will need to process a payment for the UHIP extension. We will contact you via email to arrange payment via Zoom shortly following your application. Alternatively, you can attend our drop-in QLess hours on Fridays in person (details listed below).

NOTE: Your coverage will be continuous and retroactive from Sept 1st.

After you have extended your UHIP for the maximum number of months, you will need to look into private health plans until you become eligible for the provincial health plan (OHIP). For information regarding how to become eligible for OHIP, click here.

1. Step 1: Check your @my.yorku.ca email.

   • Undergrad students: Click here to access your @my.yorku.ca email with your Passport York. You should see an email titled “Welcome to the University Health Insurance Plan (UHIP)”.
   • Grad Students: Contact your Faculty on how to access your yorku email.

   NOTE : The insurance company can only send your UHIP details to your YorkU Email Address hence, it is very important that you activate your YorkU email address.

2. Step 2: Print your UHIP card and keep it with you in case of medical emergency.

Don’t see the email with your UHIP Card? Here is what you can do:

• Find out whether you have UHIP coverage, check your student account.
  • If your student account shows the UHIP charge under the description (e.g. UHIP2324), this means that you should have UHIP coverage.
    • In this case, get your UHIP card by registering on the Cowan website. If the registration asks for your member ID and policy number, it is as follows: Member ID is YU plus your student number (e.g. YU123456789) and policy number is 150150.
  • If you do not see the UHIP charge on your student account, then email UHIP with your student number or stop by our QLess drop-in (listed below).
• NOTE: If you dropped your courses, your UHIP will be terminated. In this case, you will see a UHIP reversal on your student account. This means that you do not have UHIP coverage. Please see the Leave of Absence section to inquire about getting covered under UHIP while taking a semester off.

You can also complete the Getting your UHIP Card quiz to find out how to get your UHIP card

Preferred providers are clinics, hospital, and labs that accept UHIP. This means that if you visit these providers with a paper copy of your UHIP card, you do not need to pay anything - they will bill the insurance company (Manulife/Cowan) directly. The only exception to this is the Appletree clinics, where you pay a $15 admin fee. The preferred provider list can be found here.

The table below shows the process for a preferred provider visit vs a non-preferred provider visit.

• Note: It is recommended that you visit a preferred provider whenever possible to avoid any out-of-pocket costs and avoid having to file a claim.

Please note that preferred providers should not ask you to pay if you provide them with a paper copy of your UHIP card (except the $15 admin fee at Appletree clinics). If you visit a preferred provider clinic or hospital or lab and they ask you pay, please email case.mgmt@cowangroup.ca and cc uhip@yorku.ca with your member ID (YU + student number) in the subject line. In the email, please state the name of the clinic/hospital/lab you visited, the person you spoke with and events that occurred. If you made the payment, please attach your receipt.

If you visited a non-preferred provider, you may file a claim for the doctor’s fees within 12 months of visiting the clinic/hospital/lab if you still have the receipt. The claim form can be found here.  The instructions on how to fill out the form can be found here. Using your yorku email, you can submit scanned copies or photographs of the claim form and accompanying invoices/receipts via Cowan's online secure portal.

Please note that you may not get 100% of your money back. This is because there is a limit as to how much Manulife can reimburse you. If the clinic/hospital/lab charged higher than that limit, then you may have some out-of-pocket costs.

In Canada, there are two types of plans that make up your total health coverage: Basic plan and extended (sometimes known as supplementary) plan.

Your basic plan, as an international student, is through UHIP (University Health Insurance Plan). This plan is specifically tailored for international students to provide them with similar coverage to the government plan.

Your extended health plan is administered by your student union. Below is where you can get information regarding your extended health plan and who you can contact if you have questions:

• Undergrad students: Your student union is York Federation of students (YFS). For information regarding the plan, please visit: http://www.yfs.ca/healthplan. If you have further questions, you may contact yfshp@yfs.ca.
• Grad students (non-TA): Your student union is Graduate Student Association (GSA). For information regarding the plan, please visit: http://yugsa.ca/health-plan. If you have further questions, you may contact health@yugsa.ca.
• Grad students (TA): If you are a TA, your extended health plan will be provided through CUPE as an employee. For information regarding your extended health plan, please visit: https://3903.cupe.ca/extended-health-benefits-fund/.

For a detailed infographic showing the difference between basic and extended health plans, click here.

• What UHIP covers: UHIP covers basic medical costs such as doctor’s visits, emergencies, lab tests, etc. Generally, if you visit a clinic or hospital or lab, it will be covered under UHIP. Please note that some exceptions apply – for example, doctor’s notes are not covered under UHIP and are an out-of-pocket cost.
• What UHIP does not cover: UHIP does not cover prescription medicine, dentist fees, eyeglasses or contact lenses, physiotherapy, massage therapy, psychologists, therapists, etc. These medical costs are covered through your extended health plan, which is administered by your student union.

For a detailed infographic showing the difference between basic and extended health plans, click here.

For details about your UHIP coverage, please visit https://uhip.ca/Enrollment/PlanDetails. You can also find the UHIP coverage booklet here.

The premium for the 2023/24 academic year is $63.00 per month, per person ($756.00 for 12 months). 

Once you are enrolled in UHIP, your UHIP fees will appear on your student account. When you see the charges on your student account, you will be responsible for the outstanding balance. Payment for UHIP fees is made the same way tuition is paid. For more information on how and when to pay, please visit: https://sfs.yorku.ca/fees/your-student-account/how-and-when-to-pay

Note: It is your responsibility to check your student account and ensure payment of your outstanding balance.

UHIP is mandatory for international students who are currently registered in a degree program and exchange students. The following are the reasons for which you may be eligible for a UHIP refund:

• Deregistration: If you decide to deregister from your program and do not attend any classes, your UHIP will be automatically terminated and will be refunded through your student account. Deadline for refund request is March 1st.
• Withdrawn: If you enroll and attend some of your classes but decided to drop them later, your UHIP will be automatically terminated. However, you will only be refunded a partial amount depending on the date you dropped your courses. - Deadline for refund request is March 1st.
• OHIP coverage: If you become eligible for the provincial government health plan, you may be eligible for a full or partial UHIP refund. To apply for a UHIP refund, complete the form below. The amount of UHIP refund that you are eligible for will be communicated once you submit the OHIP document or card.
• Alternate government plan: If you have an alternate government plan such as the IFHP, the Saudi government plan, Libyan government plan, etc., please complete the form below to request a UHIP refund.
• Alternate private plan: If you have an alternate private plan, you are not eligible for a UHIP refund.
• February Convocation: You are automatically enrolled under UHIP for 12 months if you are registered for the Fall term. If you graduate in February or you are not taking Winter courses, you may request a refund for the Winter and Summer term of UHIP. Deadline for refund request is March 1st.

To request a UHIP refund, click here.

Please note that the refund deadline for most eligible reasons is March 1st of your coverage year. Most requests received after this deadline will not be eligible for refund.