Short Absences from Ontario

Before March 1, 1999, Ontario residents were allowed to be away from the province of Ontario for 182 days in any 12-month period. On March 1, 1999, a new regulation changed this rule by providing an extra 30 days for travel in any 12-month period.

As a result, you may be out of the province for up to 212 days in any 12-month period and still maintain your Ontario health coverage provided that you continue to make Ontario your permanent and principal home.

To be eligible for OHIP coverage you must be an eligible resident of Ontario. This means that you must :

• be a Canadian citizen, Permanent Resident or among one of the newcomer to Canada groups who are eligible for OHIP and
• be physically present in Ontario for 153 days in any 12-month period and
• make your permanent and principal home in Ontario.

You must be able to provide the ministry with documents that show you meet these requirements. For information about eligibility, please refer to the OHIP Eligibility fact sheet. For locations and hours of operation of ministry offices refer to OHIP offices.

If you have moved to Ontario from outside Canada, or if you have moved from another Canadian province or territory and were uninsured by that province or territory's health plan, you must be present for 153 days in the first 183 days immediately following the date residency is established in Ontario (you cannot be absent for more than 30 days during the first 6 months of residency in Ontario).

If your job requires you to leave Ontario frequently and you are unable to be present for 153 days in any 12-month period, you may still be eligible for OHIP coverage as a mobile worker. To maintain your OHIP coverage, you should

• be able to provide the ministry with documents that show that your work requires frequent travel in and out of Ontario and
• be able to provide the ministry with documents to show how you make your permanent and principal home in Ontario (refer to Ontario Health Coverage Document List).

New or returning residents to Ontario who qualify as a mobile worker are exempt from having to meet the 153-day in the first 183-day physical presence requirement immediately after establishing residency in Ontario.

June 2004