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Reason 48 of 50 · Statutory inadmissibility and serious legal grounds

Medical inadmissibility or failure to satisfy a required medical assessment

Classified asIRPA section 38 / medical requirement

YOUR FILEVISA OFFICERassesses48
Statutory ground — get adviceThis is a legal finding of inadmissibility, not an evidence gap. Speak to a Canadian immigration lawyer or an RCIC before reapplying.

What this actually means

A health condition may create inadmissibility where it is likely to endanger public health, endanger public safety, or might reasonably be expected to cause excessive demand on health or social services, subject to statutory exceptions. Some temporary applicants may also be required to undergo a medical exam.

Why it matters to the officer

Medical inadmissibility is assessed under law and medical evidence, not by assumptions about a diagnosis. IRCC states there is no single condition that automatically determines excessive-demand inadmissibility; assessment is individualized.

IRPR 179 — WHAT THE OFFICER MUST BE SATISFIED OFYou applied in the correct wayYou will LEAVE by the end of your stayYou hold a valid travel documentYou are not inadmissibleMost visitor refusals turn on the second line — s. 179(b).

What the officer compares

Immigration medical examination results, specialist information where requested, expected services/costs and statutory exemptions.

THE OFFICER CROSS-CHECKSImmigration medical examination resultsspecialist information where requestedexpected services/costsstatutory exemptions

Weak file vs strong file

The same situation, presented two ways. The right-hand column is what a reapplication needs to look like.

WHAT WEAKENS ITWHAT STRENGTHENS ITSelf-diagnosing admissibilityComplete required exams with anapproved panel physician andhiding medical historyfailing to attend a required examassuming private insuranceautomatically resolves all

How to strengthen a reapplication

Complete required exams with an approved panel physician and respond to procedural fairness/medical requests carefully. Complex medical inadmissibility issues should be handled with qualified legal/medical advice.

Common mistakes

Self-diagnosing admissibility; hiding medical history; failing to attend a required exam; assuming private insurance automatically resolves all medical-admissibility issues.

Illustrative example

A diagnosis alone is not the legal test; the statutory health-ground criteria and individual assessment are what matter.

Before you reapply

THE ONLY SEQUENCE THAT WORKS1Read the notesFind the real reason2Fix that one thi…Not everything at on…3Prove it with do…Evidence, not claims4Then reapplyAnswering the object…

You cannot fix a reason you have not read. Your GCMS notes contain the officer's own words about your file, and requesting them is free we publish every step.

Scope note. IRCC does not publish an official ranked list of refusal reasons. This is a research-based classification of the legal grounds and evidence weaknesses that recur in real refusals. A weak itinerary or a new job is not itself a statutory ground — it affects whether the officer is satisfied under IRPR 179(b). Source references for this entry: [S3], [S11], [S12]. This page is general information, not legal advice.

Questions people ask about this refusal

A health condition may create inadmissibility where it is likely to endanger public health, endanger public safety, or might reasonably be expected to cause excessive demand on health or social services, subject to statutory exceptions. Some temporary applicants may also be required to undergo a medical exam.

Medical inadmissibility is assessed under law and medical evidence, not by assumptions about a diagnosis. IRCC states there is no single condition that automatically determines excessive-demand inadmissibility; assessment is individualized.

Immigration medical examination results, specialist information where requested, expected services/costs and statutory exemptions.

Complete required exams with an approved panel physician and respond to procedural fairness/medical requests carefully. Complex medical inadmissibility issues should be handled with qualified legal/medical advice.

Self-diagnosing admissibility; hiding medical history; failing to attend a required exam; assuming private insurance automatically resolves all medical-admissibility issues.

No. IRCC states that refiling the same information will likely not change the decision. A reapplication has to answer the specific concern the officer recorded — which is why you should read your GCMS notes first and find out exactly what that concern was.

Not sure this is why you were refused?

Most refusals cite more than one concern, and only one of them is usually decisive. Your GCMS notes say which. Get them free, or send them to us and we will tell you exactly what to fix.

More in “Statutory inadmissibility and serious legal grounds

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