The Consular offices of Mexico in Ontario (Ottawa, Toronto and Leamington), and the Consulate General of Mexico in Montreal, wish you a successful 2025 season, hoping that your farming community continues to enjoy good health and prosperity while we provide the following recommendations:

Employers play a key role in access to health for workers.
According to current regulations, the EMPLOYER must take the WORKER to obtain their Ontario OHIP Health Card as soon as the WORKER arrives to Ontario. In the absence of an updated OHIP Health Card, a WORKER still has the right to receive free medical attention. If payment for medical services is requested, a reimbursement can be processed with OHIP when the valid Health Card is received and presented to the medical practitioner. Please consider that upon any request from the WORKER for medical attention, the EMPLOYER has to make travel arrangements within less than 24 hours to take the WORKER back and forth a medical facility with no charge to the WORKER, as many times as needed. In case of an emergency, immediate action needs to be taken by calling 911. The EMPLOYER and the WORKER are expected to inform the CONSULATE when a worker gets sick or injured, either during working hours or during rest periods. It is possible to process an emergency electronic Health Card directly with OHIP or through the respective consular office when needed. The electronic version does not substitute the printed card nor exempts the EMPLOYER of their obligation to update health cards every year upon the arrival of workers. COWAN/CIGNA coverage is valid when OHIP and WSIB are not into place, or, to cover loss of wages for a non-work related medical leave. COWAN cards no longer expire, and they can be downloaded from their website. The Embassy of Mexico will continue to provide verification of the arrival of workers to the private health insurance company (COWAN) so that insurance coverage can be activated.

Please make sure that all your workers have a valid and current Social Insurance Number (SIN) upon their arrival. If a WORKER does not receive a SIN after arriving in Canada, please contact Service Canada or Central Index at: 1-800-206-7218
immediately. It is extremely important to recheck the SIN status of workers’ upon arrival at the workplace.

IMPORTANT: the EMPLOYER should support every WORKER to obtaining their Ontario OHIP Health Card as a priority upon their arrival to Ontario.

It is mandatory to share with WORKERS the company’s internal rules and any “house rules” upon their arrival at your facilities in Spanish language in written form, and to have them visible in their housing spaces.

We would like to remind you to NOT TO SEND workers’ personal correspondence to the Consulate, inclusive of Records of Employment (ROE), T4 Forms, Pay Sheets, Pay Stubs, Bank Statements or other services by mail, unless requested by the Consulate.
It is an obligation of the EMPLOYER to keep any relevant documents for the period of time required by Canadian regulations.
The Mexican Consulates do not keep backup copies of the employer-worker labor relationship documents.