An employee hired after your group’s start date must apply for coverage for themselves and their eligible dependents within 31 days of their eligibility date. If he/she applies after this deadline, he/she and their dependents are considered to be a Late Applicant. Below is an example of a standard 3 month waiting period:
An employee is hired January 1st
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Three month waiting period
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An employee is eligible for benefit plan April 1st
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An application form must be received by BCCA Employee Benefits office by May 2nd
Life events such as cohabitation, marriage, and births allow for dependents to be added to the employee’s group plan. Employees must submit a completed change form for their eligible dependent(s) within 31 days of the life event. Failure to do so will result in dependent(s) being deemed a late applicant. Common-law spouses are eligible after 12 months of cohabitation.
As a late applicant, the employee and their dependents must complete a medical questionnaire. The insurer will review the questionnaire and will either approve or decline the application. There is no guarantee a late applicant will be approved and the process can be quite lengthy and frustrating.
We recommend employees complete their Employee Enrolment Group Insurance Application Form the day they are hired. Submit this form to our office when it’s completed and the employee will be entered into our systems as “pending”. Following the waiting period, the employee’s coverage will automatically become effective. If an employee is terminated before the eligibility date, you can inform us and we will remove the employee.
