Canada Spent $275M on Health Care for Rejected Asylum Seekers Over 10 Years, Feds Say

Medical devices are seen in an examination room at a health clinic in Calgary on July 14, 2023. The Canadian Press/Jeff McIntosh

Ottawa has spent upwards of $275 million in the last 10 years on health coverage for asylum seekers whose claims were turned down by the Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada, the immigration department says.

The information was disclosed following an order paper inquiry by Conservative MP Burton Bailey.

The government’s reply tracks the use of the Interim Federal Health Program (IFHP), which finances health care expenses for refugee claimants across fiscal years 2016-2017 through 2024-2025.

“Since 2016, the Liberal government has paid health expenses for over 130,000 rejected refugee claimants costing taxpayers over $275 million under the Interim Federal Health Program,” Bailey said in an April 22 X post. “This, while Canadians cannot get access to basic healthcare services.”

The data provided by the government indicates program costs associated with rejected Immigration and Refugee Board applications rose from $10 million in 2016-2017 to more than $53 million in 2024-2025.

The data applies to all individuals who have had their asylum claims rejected, including those currently in the appeal process.

IFHP was created in 1957 to offer temporary, publicly funded health insurance to bridge the gap for refugees and protected persons until they either become eligible for provincial or territorial health insurance or leave Canada.

The program provided assistance to 623,365 beneficiaries in the fiscal year 2024-2025, including 440,537 asylum claimants, according to the Immigration Canada website. The expenditures totalled $896.5 million, reflecting an increase of $306.1 million from 2023-2024 due to a higher volume of claims, the ministry said.

But those amounts should drop beginning May 1 when the government implements a co-pay program for users receiving supplemental health coverage. Under the plan, refugees and asylum seekers pay 30 percent of costs for dental visits, optometry, and physiotherapy, as well as a $4 flat rate on prescriptions.

Patients will continue to receive complete coverage under the basic plan of the IFHP for consultations with doctors and specialists, hospital care, and diagnostic services but must pay out of pocket for 30 percent of what the government calls supplemental health products and services.

Aside from dental, optometry, and physiotherapy, this includes fees for psychologists and counselling therapists, occupational therapists, speech language therapists, assistive devices like prosthetics, mobility aids and hearing aids, home care and long-term care, and medical supplies and equipment.

The government first announced the co-pay in the federal budget last fall as part of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada’s strategy to reduce departmental expenses by 15 percent within the next three years.

The Canadian Press contributed to this report.