Overview
An effective date is the date that your benefits started. Dependants are eligible based on your start date or the date they became your dependant, whichever is later.
This date is important as it will impact eligibility for claim reimbursements. If your dependant has a start date that's later than the date of expense, the expense will be ineligible.
Since these can be tricky, let’s review with some examples.
The details
For dependants that pre-date the Plan start date
If someone was your dependant before the Plan start date, their effective date will be the first day of the Plan.
For example, if you had a kid in 2015, but the Plan start date was 2024-09-01, their effective date would be 2024-09-01.
For dependants that are eligible after the Plan start date
If the dependant was active after the first day of the plan (let's say you got married on 2024-09-15 but the Plan was active 2024-09-01) their effective date would be 2024-09-15.
For children born after the Plan start date, their birthday would be the effective date.
Common-law partners
Common-law partners are eligible after 12 months of co-habitation. If your common-law status predates the Plan start, their effective date will be 2024-09-01, if you hit the 12-month co-habitation marker after 2024-09-01, use the date you hit the 12 month mark 🙂
Anything else?
If you have any questions about dependant effective dates, reach out to us using the Support Form in your Member Centre. You can read more about adding dependants in this article on adding dependants in your Member Centre.