 | Age |
You must be 18 years of age or older to give blood.
 | Weight |
You must weigh 50 kg (110 lb) or more to give blood.
- Women: If you’re between 18 and 22 years old,
click here
to find out whether you can give blood.
Weight and height play an important role The goal of the weight/height criterion is to ensure that no more than 15% of a
donor’s estimated blood volume is collected.
Adverse effects are more likely to occur in donors with a lower blood
volume. For this reason, weight and height are factored in to determine
whether you are eligible to donate.
 | Alcohol and drugs |
When you come to donate, you must be able to provide informed consent.
 | Injection drugs |
You cannot give blood if you have used injected drugs, even once.
 | Medications |
Some medications may pose a risk for donors or recipients. You cannot give blood
if you are taking these medications.
You must be able to provide the names of your medications during your selection
interview with a Héma-Québec staff member before your
donate.
Medications that make you ineligible to give blood
| Vaccinations |
You can give blood if you received a flu shot or COVID-19 vaccine.
Ask a Héma-Québec staff member about any other
vaccinations.
 | Acupuncture |
You can give blood if single-use needles were used. If not, you must wait 3
months.
 | Dental care |
You can give blood after tooth whitening or impressions.
You can give blood the day after a cleaning, filling or orthodontic
treatment.
You can give blood 3 days after an extraction, surgery, root canal, crown,
curettage, implant or gum autograft.
| Electrolysis |
You can give blood if your own needles or single-use needles were used. If not,
you must wait 3 months.
 | Piercings and tattoos |
You can give blood if your piercing or tattoo was done more than 3 months
ago.
 | Childbirth, breastfeeding and pregnancy |
You can give blood if you gave birth more than 6 months ago.
This means:
- You can’t give blood while you are pregnant.
- You can give blood if you are breastfeeding, as long as you gave birth more than 6 months ago.
Note: Do not bring babies and young children to your appointment unless they are accompanied by another adult who is not donating. If both adults wish to donate, book appointments at least one hour apart. That way, there will always be someone to watch the child, and the first donor will be free before the second donor has begun their eligibility interview with a Héma-Québec staff member.
 | Allergies
|
You can donate blood if you feel well, even if you have received an allergy
shot.
 | Cancer
|
You can donate blood if you have had basal or squamous cell carcinoma of the
skin or in situ cervical cancer, as long as it has been treated
successfully.
Ask Héma-Québec about other types of cancer.
 | Cholesterol
|
You can donate blood regardless of your cholesterol levels.
 | Cold
|
You can donate blood if you feel well and don’t have a
fever.
 | Creutzfeldt-Jakob Disease
|
Familial caseIf any of your close relatives (parent, child or sibling)
has familial Creutzfeldt-Jakob Disease:
Note: The “mad cow disease” eligibility criterion has been
lifted. This means that if you were previously denied the opportunity to donate
blood products due to geographic risk factors related to variant
Creutzfeldt-Jakob Disease (vCJD) and you meet all other eligibility criteria,
you can now donate blood.
 | Diabetes
|
You can donate blood if your diabetes is in remission or is controlled by diet
or oral medication.
If you inject insulin:
Type 1 diabetes (juvenile diabetes) You can donate blood if:
- You ate two hours before donating
- You haven’t had any serious episodes in the past 3 months
- You don’t currently have a foot or leg ulcer
- You don’t usually get dizzy or have vertigo while standing
Type 2 diabetes (diabetes mellitus) You can donate blood if:
- You haven’t had any serious episodes in the past 3 months
- You don’t currently have a foot or leg ulcer
- You don’t usually get dizzy or have vertigo while standing
Other types of diabetes - Ask a Héma-Québec staff member
 | Sore throat
|
You cannot give blood if you have symptoms and, if you take antibiotics, until
the antibiotic treatment is finished.
| Hemoglobin |
The minimum hemoglobin levels required to give blood are:
- ≥ 130g/L or 13.0g/dL for men
- ≥ 125 g/L ou 12,5 g/dL for women
If your hemoglobin is below this threshold, you cannot donate for a short period
of time (56 days for men and 84 days for women). We may give you a letter that
you can share with a health care practitioner who can help you determine whether
you would benefit from taking iron supplements.
Note that some people may have hemoglobin levels that are lower than the minimum
level required to give blood without it being a health issue.
There is a program allowing women from Black communities to give blood despite
having hemoglobin levels under the limit. If this applies to you, contact Donor
Services for more information at 1-800-847-2525 or visit
Black women and blood donation.
| Iron |
All blood donors should eat an
iron-rich diet.
In frequent donors (two or three or more donations per year, depending on
gender), iron absorbed from food may not be enough to offset the loss of iron
from donations.
- Consider using iron supplements. Get advice from your doctor or
pharmacist.
- Ask your doctor about getting your iron stores checked because you
regularly donate blood.
You can give blood: If you are taking iron supplements or multivitamins containing iron to
prevent your iron stores from becoming depleted.
You cannot give blood: If your hemoglobin levels are low:
You can donate once your hemoglobin has returned to an acceptable level for
donation.
If your iron stores are low:
You can donate six months after your stores were last measured as too low, as
long as they have returned to an acceptable level for donation (ferritin over
12 mcg/L). Ferritin is used to determine the status of your iron stores. It is
not measured by Héma-Québec.
Learn more:
Blood donation and iron reserve
 | Sexual relations |
If you are sexually active, you can give blood if:
- You have been in a monogamous relationship for more than three months
- You have one or more new partners and have not had anal sex in the past
three months*
Sexual relations can lead to the spread of sexually transmitted and blood-borne
infections (STBBIs). Despite the efficacy of screening tests, there is a window
period when a recently infected person may feel well and test negative for HIV
and hepatitis B and C, but they can still spread these viruses to the recipient
of a blood product they donated.
The expression “sexual relations” is used to designate the following
acts, with or without a condom or other means of protection: vaginal penetration
(contact between the penis and the vagina), oral sex (contact between the mouth
or tongue and the vagina, penis or anus) and anal penetration (contact between
the penis and the anus).
The expression “new partner” means someone with whom you have never
had sexual relations before, or someone who you had sex with in the past and are
now having sex with again.
*Sexual assault (with or without a condom) is a risk factor for the spread of
STBBIs, whether or not anal sexual contact occurred. Due to the risks associated
with the window period, sexual assault victims must wait three months to give
blood.
High-risk sexual behaviour If you have had anal sex with a new partner or several partners:
- You can give blood three months after the last time you had anal sex.
If you have:
- Taken money or drugs in exchange for sex
- Had sex with someone who took money or drugs in exchange for sex
- Had sex with someone who has used injection drugs
- Had sex with someone who has HIV, HTLV-1/2 or hepatitis C
- You can give blood 12 months after the last time you had sex in this
situation.
Sexual assault If you were the victim of a sexual assault, you can give blood three months
after the event.
Sexual assault (with or without a condom) is a risk factor for the spread of
STBBIs, whether or not anal sex occurred. Due to the risks related to the window
period, sexual assault victims must wait three months to give blood.
Sexually transmitted and blood-borne infections (STBBIs) Donation ineligibility periods due to sexually transmitted and blood-borne
infections vary. If you have:
- Chlamydia: You can give blood 7 days after you complete your antibiotic
treatment.
- Genital warts (human papillomavirus – HPV): You can give blood.
- Gonorrhea: You can give blood 12 months after the end of your treatment.
- Hepatitis B or C: You cannot give blood (permanent ineligibility).
- Cold sores: You can give blood.
- Genital herpes: You can give blood once the sores are fully healed.
- HTLV-1/2: You cannot give blood (permanent ineligibility).
- Syphilis: You cannot give blood (permanent ineligibility).
- HIV: You cannot give blood (permanent ineligibility).
Pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) and post-exposure prophylaxis
(PEP) Pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) and post-exposure prophylaxis (PEP) are medical
treatments used to prevent HIV. People undergoing these treatments may have low
enough levels of HIV in their blood that their viral load is undetectable, which
poses a risk of transmission through transfusion.
If you are taking this type of treatment, you can give blood four months after
you take your last tablets or two years after your last injection, as
applicable.
 | Travelling and living abroad |
Some stays abroad make you temporarily or permanently ineligible to give blood,
based on the following criteria:
ZIKA AND OTHER ARBOVIRUSESIf you have travelled
outside of Canada, the continental United States and Europe in
the last 21 days, you cannot give blood for three weeks (21 days) after you
return.
This measure is to prevent risks related to Zika and similar viruses such as
dengue fever and chikungunya.
CHAGAS DISEASEIf you were born in Latin America, including Mexico, if your mother or maternal
grandmother were born there or if you have travelled or lived in Latin America
for 30 consecutive days or more, your blood donation will be analyzed to
determine whether you are a carrier of Chagas disease.
List of affected Latin American countries
| Argentina
| Colombia | Guyana | Nicaragua | El Salvador |
| Belize | Costa Rica | French Guiana | Panama | Suriname |
| Bolivia | Ecuador | Honduras | Paraguay | Uruguay |
| Brazil | Guatemala | Mexico | Peru | Venezuela |
| Chile | | | | |
MALARIAPermanent ineligibility If you have had malaria before, you cannot
give blood or platelets, but you can give plasma if you meet the eligibility
criteria.
Temporary ineligibility Before donating, you must be able to provide the Héma-Québec staff
member with a list of the countries you’ve visited over the past 3 years
and your return dates.
If you have spent time in one or more high-risk areas in the past 3
years, the length of your ineligibility period will depend on how long you stayed
there:
- Less than 6 months: You are eligible 3 months after the
date of return.
- 6 months or more: You are eligible 3 years after the
date of return. When in doubt, or if you have any questions about this
criterion, contact us.
Malaria risk by country
| COUNTRY
| COMMENTS
|
| Afghanistan | Country-wide risk |
| Angola | Country-wide risk |
| Azerbaijan | No risk in the city of Baku |
| Bangladesh | No risk in the city of Dhaka |
| Benin | Country-wide risk |
| Bolivia | No risk in the cities of La Paz, Oruro, Potosi, Sucre and at
Lake Titicaca
|
| Botswana | No risk in the city of Gaborone |
| Brazil | No risk in the following areas: Belém, Brasília,
Iguaçu Falls, Cuiabá, Rio de Janeiro, São
Luís, São Paulo
|
| Burkina Faso | Country-wide risk |
| Burma (Myanmar) | Country-wide risk |
| Burundi | Country-wide risk |
| Cambodia | No risk in the cities of Phnom Penh and Siem Reap and at the Angkor
Wat temple site
|
| Cameroon | Country-wide risk |
| Central African Republic | Country-wide risk |
| Chad | Country-wide risk |
| Colombia | No risk in the cities of Bogotá, Cartagena, Manizales,
Medellín and San Juan de Pasto
|
| Comoros | Country-wide risk |
| Congo | Country-wide risk |
| Costa Rica | Risk in the provinces of Alajuela and Limón
|
| Côte d’Ivoire | Country-wide risk |
| Democratic Republic of the Congo (Zaire)
| Country-wide risk |
| Djibouti | Country-wide risk |
| Dominican Republic | Risk in the provinces of Azua, La Altagracia (including Punta Cana), Elias Pina, Santo Domingo and San Juan
|
| Ecuador | No risk in the cities of Guayaquil and Quito and on the
Galápagos Islands
|
| Equatorial Guinea | Country-wide risk |
| Eritrea | No risk in Asmara |
| Eswatini (Swaziland) | Country-wide risk |
| Ethiopia | No risk in Addis Ababa |
| French Guiana | No risk in the city of Cayenne |
| Gabon | Country-wide risk |
| Gambia | Country-wide risk |
| Ghana | Country-wide risk |
| Guatemala | No risk in the cities of Antigua and Guatemala and at Lake
Atitlán
|
| Guinea | Country-wide risk |
| Guinea-Bissau | Country-wide risk |
| Guyana | No risk in the cities of New Amsterdam and Georgetown
|
| Haiti | Country-wide risk |
| Honduras | No risk in the cities of San Pedro Sula and Tegucigalpa
|
| India | Country-wide risk |
| Indonesia | No risk in the cities of Jakarta and Ubud and at the seaside resorts
on Java and Bali
|
| Iran | Risk in the province of Sistan and Baluchestan
|
| Kenya | Country-wide risk |
| Laos | No risk in the city of Vientiane |
| Liberia | Country-wide risk |
| Madagascar | Country-wide risk |
| Malawi | Country-wide risk |
| Malaysia | No risk in the cities of George Town and Kuala Lumpur and in Penang
State (including Penang Island)
|
| Mali | Country-wide risk |
| Mauritania | Country-wide risk |
| Mexico | Risk in the states of Campeche, Chiapas and Chihuahua
|
| Mozambique | Country-wide risk |
| Myanmar (Burma) | Country-wide risk |
| Namibia | Country-wide risk |
| Nepal | No risk in the city of Kathmandu and on Himalayan trekking
trails
|
| Nicaragua | Risk in the North Caribbean Coast and South Caribbean Coast
Autonomous Regions
|
| Niger | Country-wide risk |
| Nigeria | Country-wide risk |
| North Korea | Country-wide risk |
| Pakistan | Country-wide risk |
| Panama | No risk in the Panama Canal Zone, in Panama City and in the provinces of Coclé, Herrera and Los Santos
|
| Papua New Guinea | Country-wide risk |
| Peru | No risk in the city of Lima, at the Cuzco, Machu Picchu and
Lake Titicaca tourist sites and in the cities of Arequipa, Ica,
Moquegua, Nazca, Puno and Tacna
|
| Philippines | No risk in the cities of Cebu, Manila and Quezon
|
| Rwanda | Country-wide risk |
| Sao Tome and Principe | Country-wide risk |
| Saudi Arabia | No risk in the cities of Jeddah, Mecca, Medina, Riyadh and
Taif
|
| Senegal | Country-wide risk |
| Sierra Leone | Country-wide risk |
| Solomon Islands | Country-wide risk |
| Somalia | Country-wide risk |
| South Africa | No risk in the cities of Bhisho, Bloemfontein, Cape Town, East
London, Johannesburg, Kimberley, Port Elizabeth and Pretoria
|
| South Korea | No risk in the city of Seoul |
| Sudan | Country-wide risk |
| Suriname | No risk in the city of Paramaribo |
| Tanzania (United Republic of) | Country-wide risk |
| Thailand | No risk in the cities of Bangkok, Chiang Mai, Chiang Rai, Ko
Pha-ngan, Ko Samui, Pattaya and Phuket and on the islands of Krabi
province (Ko Phi Phi, Ko Yao Noi, Ko Yao Yai and Ko Lanta)
|
| Togo | Country-wide risk |
| Uganda | Country-wide risk |
| Vanuatu | Country-wide risk |
| Venezuela | Country-wide risk |
| Vietnam | No risk in the following cities: Da Nang, Haiphong, Hanoi, Ho Chi
Minh (Saigon), Nha Trang and Quy Nhon, along with the Mekong and Red
River Deltas
|
| Yemen | No risk in the city of Sanaa |
| Zaire (Democratic Republic of the Congo)
| Country-wide risk |
| Zambia | Country-wide risk |
| Zimbabwe | Country-wide risk |
