Birth Tourism is growing here in Canada and the highest numbers are occurring here in BC.

Birth Tourism is when people who are visiting Canada give birth while they’re here. There is some concern out there that people are coming to Canada to take advantage of the system. Babies born here automatically get Canadian citizenship. That would give them advantages in that they would have the ability to receive domestic education rates and be able to sponsor their family to come here when they’re adults.

Fellow of the Canadian Global Affairs Institute Andrew Griffith says birth tourism in Canada was up 13 per cent year over year, but it still only accounts for about one per cent of all births in the nation. “Richmond in many ways is the epicentre of birth tourism in Canada. Roughly between one fifth and one quarter of all births in Richmond are to birth tourists. And we have enough anecdotal evidence and media accounts that the majority of the non-resident births in Richmond are in fact coming here just for birth tourism.”

Griffith says the hospitals with higher rates tend to be near bigger cities, which isn’t a surprise. He adds that Richmond may be even promoting the idea. “I think Richmond also benefits with the presence of a sort of birth tourism industry of consultants who organize packages, birth hotels which sort of provide care for the mothers giving birth and preparing to give birth.”

According to data from Interior Health, there were five babies born to out of country mothers at the Royal Inland Hospital in the last fiscal year.