Determining Health: Migrant health issue brief
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“Only by recognizing racism, discrimination and migratory pathways as social determinants of health will it be possible to take action to reduce social inequities in health” (p. 35). – Direction régionale de santé publique de Montréal (Montréal Regional Public Health Department)
Immigration status is a significant yet often overlooked determinant of health. Migrants — people living, working and studying in Canada with temporary resident status or no status — experience precarious status because they are excluded from the full rights, protections and benefits granted to permanent residents and citizens. The distinction between having permanent resident status or not has profound implications for health and health equity.
This issue brief provides an overview of the health and health equity impacts of immigration status for migrants in Canada to build understanding and guide public health planning, policy and action. It is designed to help public health and health sector practitioners, decision-makers, researchers, educators and learners understand this complex issue and advance migrant health and justice.
It is organized into six easy-to-navigate sections:
Section 1 defines key terms and differentiates between two overarching categories — having permanent resident status and not having permanent resident status — a distinction that has significant implications for the health of migrants in Canada.
Section 2 provides a determinants of health framework that describes the interplay of immigration status with the structural and social determinants of health and health status of migrants in Canada.
Section 3 and Section 4 explore the structural factors, such as laws, policies, world views, governance and institutional practices, that create precarious immigration status and intersect with other social positions to drive health inequities.
Section 5 summarizes evidence about the conditions of daily life (social determinants of health) for migrants, including:
- employment and working conditions
- housing conditions
- access to public health and health care services
Section 6 concludes the issue brief with four broad directions — and related actions for public health and the health sector in collaboration with migrant-led organizations — to advance migrant health and justice:
- Recognize immigration status as a foundational determinant of health
- Ensure permanent status, full protection and rights, and health care for all
- Foster responsive and inclusive public health and health care systems
- Strengthen research and data while ensuring safety and confidentiality
This issue brief underscores the urgent need for public health to recognize and address precarious immigration status as a core driver of health inequity.
Use this resource to
- Understand how structural determinants shape social position, the conditions of daily life, and resulting health outcomes and health inequities experienced by people with precarious immigration status in Canada
- Identify and implement measures to reduce barriers to public health and health care services encountered by people with precarious immigration status
- Consider ways for public health and the health sector to contribute to healthy public policies to address health inequities experienced by people with precarious immigration status
Related resources:
See other resources related to immigration.
See other resources in the Determining Health series
Migrant Workers Alliance for Change
Reference
National Collaborating Centre for Determinants of Health. (2025). Determining Health: Migrant health issue brief. Antigonish, NS: NCCDH, St. Francis Xavier University.
Tags: Access to health services, Housing, Immigration, Structural determinants, Working conditions, Document, Report / Document, Determining Health