2018年,联邦政府将医疗支出的费用翻了三倍(目前为2万加币左右),此外因为残疾导致可能会对社会福利带来的负担不再会导致体检不合格,参考移民部放宽体检条件。
在新的标准下,即使是携带HIV这种需要持续药物控制的疾病也可以通过体检。
“程序公平”是签证和移民案件审理过程中非常重要的原则。程序公平的适用原则是由无数案例堆积起来的,体检是其中比较常见、也比较让人关心的话题。
做超级签证、留学签证、工作签证,和申请任何类别的移民,用CIC的话说,“在加拿大停留超过6个月以上”就需要体检了。只是什么样的体检能过,什么样的不能过,很多人都是一头雾水。
“体检不能过”的情况,适用于移民法IRPA 38条:
38. (1) A foreign national is inadmissible on health grounds if their health condition
(a) is likely to be a danger to public health;
(b) is likely to be a danger to public safety; or
(c) might reasonably be expected to cause excessive demand on health or social services.
(2) Paragraph (1)(c) does not apply in the case of a foreign national who
(a) has been determined to be a member of the family class and to be the spouse, common-law partner or child of a sponsor within the meaning of the regulations;
(b) has applied for a permanent resident visa as a Convention refugee or a person in similar circumstances;
(c) is a protected person; or
(d) is, where prescribed by the regulations, the spouse, common-law partner, child or other family member of a foreign national referred to in any of paragraphs (a) to (c).
我们先看(1)(a)和(1)(b)说的是对加拿大公共卫生或者公共安全有威胁,比如严重的传染病,这种比较少。大部分体检有问题都是引用38(1)(c)拒签的。
再看(2),说的是什么样的人例外(1)(c),答案很明确,团聚类别、难民和受保护的人例外,所以这些类别的人即使体检有问题也不用担心。那么经济类(包括投资移民、技术移民、省提名移民等)和各种签证都没有例外。
最后再看(1)(c),也就是本文要讨论的主题:“会对加拿大的卫生或公共服务造成较大的负担”。我们把这句话单独列出来:might reasonably be expected to cause excessive demand on health or social services. 这句话里的每个单词都引发过无数争议,也产生了无数案例。
什么样的负担能够算上”excessive demand”呢?这是被量化的,每年都会稍微涨一些,2014年12月1号的最新标准,是每年超过$6,387加币的负担,算的上是较大的负担。那么签证官根据申请人得的什么病,找相关的医生和社会机构一算,得出申请人一年会对加拿大造成多少钱的负担,没超就过签,超过了就拒签,不就可以了么?
还不可以!在这里程序公平的重要性就出来了,签证官必须要给申请人一个解释的机会。程序公平,就是签证官要给申请人一个解释的机会,让申请人打消签证官的顾虑。这封信通常叫做Procedural Fairness Letter(PFL). 对于体检不符合要求的情况,程序公平必须要体现。如果你哪天因为体检被拒签了,却没有收到过PFL,上诉是一定能赢的。
如何回复PFL?对于体检,至少可以从两个方面回复PFL.
价格计算
首先就是质疑签证官的价格计算。比如糖尿病,签证官认为需要每周打胰岛素,胰岛素多少钱然后一乘超了——我们只是举一个简单的例子,实际情况要复杂地多——发了PFL过来,于是我们回复各种体检报告、医生的证明、病例等,证明胰岛素只要每个月打一次,辅以药物治疗,大概多少钱就可以了,而且申请人还在积极康复,情况还会越来越好。
对于这种回复,签证官有3种决定:一是他们坚持自己的计算拒签,如果申请人还有意见就只能闹到法院了。第二种是签证官结合申请人的意见重新算了一遍,虽然价格不同,但还是超了,于是签证官需要再发一次PFL。第三种就是签证官认可了申请人的意见,那么申请人不再inadmissible,得以继续审理案子。
有能力并愿意减少健康和社会支出
说这一节就必须要说两个案例,一个打到了最高法院:Hilewitz v. Canada; De Jong v. Canada, 2005 SCC 57. 这是一些商业移民的申请人因为家属体检没有通过被拒签了,签证官认为申请人的资产和他们是否愿意支付有关医疗和社会支出,和体检导致的结果是无关的。
最高法院最后的判决摘要如下:
[70] The medical officers were obliged to consider all relevant factors, both medical and non-medical, such as the availability of the services and the anticipated need for them. In both cases, the visa officers erred by confirming the medical officers’ refusal to account for the potential impact of the families’ willingness to assist. Moreover, their failure to read the families’ responses to the fairness letters sent to them by the medical officers meant that their decisions were not based on all the relevant available information.
[71] The parties are in agreement that correctness is the applicable standard for reviewing the visa officers’ decisions in these appeals. The error in the interpretation of s. 19(1)(a)(ii) warrants the setting aside of those decisions.
[72] Both appeals are allowed with costs throughout, and both applications are referred to the Minister for reconsideration and redetermination by different visa officers in accordance with these reasons.
也就是签证官要考虑申请人的非医疗因素,其中就包括申请人是否有能力,和是否愿意承担相应的支出。
因为最高法院判决的对象都是商业移民,对技术移民是否适用?这也就是我们要说到的第二个案例Canada v. Colaco, 2007 FCA 282,联邦上诉法院给出了肯定的答复。
[8] If a skilled worker applicant, like the respondents, can establish that his or her admissibility in Canada cannot reasonably be expected to cause excessive demand on social services, there is, in our respectful view, no reason to exclude that applicant on that basis.
[9] The appeal will be dismissed and the following certified question:
Does the reasoning of the Supreme Court of Canada decision of Hilewitz and de Jong apply to individuals applying to immigrate to Canada as skilled workers?
will be answered in the affirmative.
虽然这两个判决是有利于申请人的,但是把事情弄得尤为复杂。现在签证官发送PFL,得附上一封Declaration of Ability and Intent让申请人选择是否签署。申请人可以提交材料证明自己将如何减少加拿大的健康和社会支出。而最终如何打消签证官的疑虑更是有大量的工作需要做。
无论如何,有这样一个机会总比没有要好,既然所有的医疗衡量都是case by case的,大部分申请人都没有必要担心自己的体检过不了,因为一是价格不一定超过,二是就算超了还可以采取一些努力。随着HIV病毒逐渐可控,在最近的一些案例中(Companioni v Canada, 2009 FC 1315),HIV病毒携带者都被认为是可以接受的。
细心的人可能发现,既然团聚类别可以例外,那我先自己移民,之后再团聚身体状况无法通过配偶和孩子,是否可行?
不太可行,移民申请人的配偶和孩子即使不随行,也需要体检,不体检就失去了以后团聚的机会。当然这并没有把假离婚给堵上,正如国内的房屋限购也对假离婚束手无策一样,或许没有什么办法可以把假离婚堵上。