Surrey is BC's fastest-growing city with some of the worst healthcare access in Metro Vancouver. Walk-in clinics in Newton, Guildford, and Fleetwood have 2-4 hour waits. MedLetter delivers a physician-reviewed sick note to your email same day.
If you live or work in Surrey and need a sick note for your employer, you have several options — but not all of them are practical when you are actually unwell. Walk-in clinics across Surrey routinely have wait times of 2-4 hrs, and many close by 5pm or are not open on weekends. For shift workers, gig workers, and anyone without a family doctor, getting a simple piece of documentation can mean losing an entire day of wages on top of already feeling sick.
MedLetter is an online medical documentation service that connects Surrey residents with CPSBC-registered physicians who can review your situation and issue official sick notes, return-to-work letters, stress leave documentation, and workplace accommodation letters — all delivered by email, typically same day of submission. There is no clinic visit, no waiting room, and no need to have a family doctor. The entire process is completed from your phone or computer.
Every document issued through MedLetter is reviewed and signed by a physician registered with the College of Physicians and Surgeons of British Columbia (CPSBC). This means your employer, HR department, insurance provider, or academic institution must accept it — there is no legal distinction between a note issued after a virtual consultation and one issued after an in-person visit, provided the physician determines it is clinically appropriate.
The process takes approximately 5 minutes to complete. You do not need to schedule an appointment, create an account, or provide your health card number.
Fill out a secure online form describing your symptoms, the dates you were or will be absent from work, and your employer's name. You will also provide your full name, date of birth, and email address where the note should be delivered. The form takes most people under 5 minutes.
A CPSBC-registered physician reviews your submission to determine whether medical documentation is clinically appropriate for your situation. This is not an automated process — a real physician reads your information and makes a clinical judgment. If additional information is needed, the physician may reach out by phone or email.
Once approved, your signed sick note is delivered as a PDF to the email address you provided. Most notes are delivered within 2 to 4 hours for submissions received before 2pm. You can forward it directly to your employer, HR department, or upload it to your company's absence management system.
Surrey's walk-in clinics serve a population of 600,000+ spread across a massive geographic area — from White Rock to Cloverdale to Newton. Many clinics are concentrated along King George Boulevard, leaving south Surrey, Clayton, and Campbell Heights with limited access. MedLetter delivers same-day for all submissions before 2pm PST.
This matters because most employers expect documentation on the day you call in sick, or at the very latest, on your first day back. If you call in sick on Monday morning and cannot get a clinic appointment until Wednesday, you may face disciplinary action or have your absence recorded as unexcused. MedLetter eliminates this gap by delivering documentation the same day you submit your request, so you can forward it to your manager or HR before your next scheduled shift.
Delivery timeline: Before 2pm PST: same day (typically 2-4 hours). After 2pm: by 9am next business day.
BC employers in Surrey require documentation for sick days 2014 especially in logistics, warehousing, construction, and manufacturing where strict attendance policies are standard. Without a sick note, your absence gets flagged as unauthorized. Surrey's economy is is dominated by logistics, warehousing, construction, and manufacturing — industries with strict attendance policies. Many Surrey workers commute to Vancouver or Delta for work, making clinic visits during work hours nearly impossible.
It is important to understand that the law and your employer's policy are two different things. Even if the British Columbia Employment Standards Act does not require a sick note for your specific situation, your employer may still have an internal policy that does. Refusing to provide documentation when your employer's policy requires it — even if the law does not mandate it — can result in the absence being recorded as unauthorized. MedLetter helps you avoid this conflict by providing documentation quickly and affordably, regardless of whether it is legally required or simply expected.
Reference: BC Employment Standards Act, Section 49.1
MedLetter serves workers across every industry in Surrey. The common thread is that these are people who cannot afford to spend half a day in a walk-in clinic waiting room when they are already dealing with illness, injury, or a medical situation that requires time away from work.
A picker at the Amazon YVR4 fulfillment centre in Delta who lives in Newton. Their strict attendance policy requires documentation for any unscheduled absence. Their shift starts at 5:30am and no clinics are open.
A framer working on one of Surrey's massive townhouse developments in Cloverdale who wakes up with severe back pain. His employer requires documentation for any absence from a construction site.
A care aide at Surrey Memorial Hospital who develops symptoms after a night shift. Fraser Health infection control requires documentation before returning to patient care.
A long-haul truck driver based in Surrey who develops symptoms between runs. Their carrier requires medical documentation before they can drive their next load.
A teacher-on-call for the Surrey School District who needs documentation for a missed assignment. The district requires notes for any absence from a scheduled teaching day.
A shift manager at a Guildford Town Centre restaurant whose employer requires a note for any weekend absence. The walk-in on 104th Avenue has a 3-hour wait.
Surrey adds 10,000+ new residents annually but family physician capacity has not kept pace. New communities like Clayton, Grandview Heights, and Campbell Heights have thousands of families with no local GP. Many newcomers to Canada settle in Surrey and face 12-18 month waitlists. MedLetter requires no family doctor, no referral, and no clinic registration.
For people without a family doctor, getting a sick note traditionally means going to a walk-in clinic and waiting for hours alongside people with more complex medical needs. This is not only inconvenient — it is also a public health concern, as you may be exposing others to your illness or exposing yourself to theirs while immunocompromised. MedLetter provides an alternative that does not require you to have an existing relationship with a physician, a provincial health card, or a clinic registration.
Surrey has one of BC's fastest-growing populations with insufficient GP capacity
Surrey's walk-in clinics are overwhelmed by a population that has grown faster than its healthcare infrastructure. The city spans 316 km² — getting to a clinic from south Surrey or Cloverdale can take 30+ minutes.
The table below compares your options for getting a sick note in Surrey. Walk-in clinic wait times are based on community-reported averages and may vary by time of day, day of week, and season.
| Clinic | Address | Wait Time | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Surrey Memorial Hospital ER | 13750 96 Ave | 4-8 hours | Busiest ER in BC. Not for sick notes. |
| Newton Walk-In Clinic | 7155 King George Blvd | 2-4 hours | Serves Newton/Panorama Ridge. Very busy. |
| Guildford Medical Clinic | 10252 152 St | 2-3 hours | Serves Guildford/Fleetwood. Limited hours. |
| Cloverdale Walk-In | 5671 176 St | 1.5-3 hours | Only option for east Surrey. Closes at 5pm. |
| MedLetter (Online) | From your home | 0 min wait | CPSBC physician review. Delivered by email. $49 flat. |
The cost of a sick note in Surrey depends on where you get it. Walk-in clinics typically charge between $20 and $50 for a sick note, but this does not account for the hidden costs: 2 to 4 hours of lost wages while you wait, transportation costs to get to the clinic, and the physical toll of sitting in a waiting room while you are sick. For someone earning $25/hour, a 3-hour clinic wait represents $75 in lost wages on top of the $30 clinic fee — making the true cost over $100.
MedLetter charges a flat fee of $49 for a standard sick note with same-day delivery. There are no hidden fees, no consultation charges, and no follow-up costs. You submit your information from home, and the note arrives in your email. When you factor in the time saved and the wages you do not lose, MedLetter is often the most affordable option — especially for shift workers, hourly employees, and anyone who cannot afford to take half a day off work just to get a piece of paper.
Yes. Every sick note issued through MedLetter is signed by a physician registered with the College of Physicians and Surgeons of British Columbia (CPSBC). Under British Columbia law, there is no distinction between medical documentation issued after a virtual consultation and documentation issued after an in-person visit. Your employer cannot refuse a legitimate sick note solely because it was obtained online.
MedLetter notes include the physician's name, CPSBC registration number, clinic information, the dates of your absence, and a professional attestation that you were assessed and that time away from work is medically appropriate. This is the same information that would appear on a note from any walk-in clinic or family doctor's office in Surrey.
Below are the most common questions we receive from Surrey residents about getting a sick note online.
Submit a secure intake form on MedLetter describing your symptoms and dates. A CPSBC-registered physician reviews your request and delivers your signed sick note by email same day.
Yes. MedLetter delivers same-day for all requests before 2pm PST. Surrey walk-in clinics have 2-4 hour waits.
Yes. BC employers must accept documentation from any CPSBC-registered physician. Warehouses, construction companies, and hospitals all accept virtual care documentation.
MedLetter charges $49 flat. Walk-in clinics charge $30-60 plus 2-4 hours of waiting.
Yes. MedLetter requires no family doctor or referral. Many Surrey residents are unattached to a GP.
Yes. MedLetter serves all of Metro Vancouver. Your Vancouver employer will accept documentation from a CPSBC-registered physician.
Warehouse, construction, and healthcare employers in Surrey require documentation for any unscheduled absence. Their attendance policies are strict — one undocumented absence can trigger a write-up. A $49 note takes 2 minutes and protects your job.
MedLetter delivers to all Surrey neighbourhoods — Newton, Fleetwood, Guildford, Whalley, Cloverdale, South Surrey. Submit online and get your signed doctor's note by email same day. No driving to a packed walk-in on King George.
Surrey employers in logistics, warehousing, manufacturing, and healthcare have strict attendance policies. Undocumented absences accumulate toward termination thresholds. Port and trucking companies use point systems — miss a shift without documentation and you lose priority for future assignments. A $49 sick note keeps your record clean.
MedLetter serves every neighbourhood in Surrey. Because our service is entirely online, it does not matter whether you live in a neighbourhood with good clinic access or one of the many communities where walk-in options are limited.
Many of Surrey's largest employers have specific sick note policies that require documentation after a certain number of consecutive absent days. MedLetter has issued documentation accepted by all of the following employers:
Students at Surrey post-secondary institutions often need medical documentation for deferred exams, late assignment submissions, or academic petitions. MedLetter provides same-day sick notes accepted by the following institutions: