Is your status card valid

<!DOCTYPE html>   <html class="no-js" lang="en" dir="ltr"> <head> <meta charset="utf-8">  <title>Is your status card valid </title> <meta content="width=device-width,initial-scale=1" name="viewport">   <script>(function(w,d,s,l,i){w[l]=w[l]||[];w[l].push({'gtm.start': new Date().getTime(),event:'gtm.js'});var f=d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0], j=d.createElement(s),dl=l!='dataLayer'?'&l='+l:'';j.async=true;j.src= 'https://www.googletagmanager.com/gtm.js?id='+i+dl;f.parentNode.insertBefore(j,f); })(window,document,'script','dataLayer','GTM-NLBMCJ3');</script>    <meta name="dcterms.creator" content="Government of Canada; Indigenous Services Canada"> <meta name="dcterms.issued" title="W3CDTF" content="2008-11-06"> <meta name="dcterms.modified" title="W3CDTF" content="2024-10-11"> <meta name="description" content="If your status card is no longer valid, you may have difficulty with service providers that rely on it for official identification. As a registered person, you will still retain benefits and rights for Indigenous peoples."> <meta name="dcterms.description" content="If your status card is no longer valid, you may have difficulty with service providers that rely on it for official identification. As a registered person, you will still retain benefits and rights for Indigenous peoples."> <meta name="dcterms.language" title="ISO639-2" content="eng"> <meta name="dcterms.subject" title="gcinac" content="Certificates of Indian status; Fraud; Indian registration; Indian registry; Indians; Prevention; Registration; Rights; Status Indians"> <meta name="dcterms.title" content="Is your status card valid"> <meta name="dcterms.type" title="gctype" content="promotional material"> <meta name="dcterms.audience" title="gcaudience" content="aboriginal peoples"> <meta name="gcterms.topicTaxonomy" content="Indigenous Services Canada > Indian status > Get, renew or replace a status card">   <script type="text/javascript" src="https://www.canada.ca/etc/designs/canada/cdts/gcweb/rn/cdts/compiled/soyutils.js"></script> <script type="text/javascript" src="https://www.canada.ca/etc/designs/canada/cdts/gcweb/rn/cdts/compiled/wet-en.js"></script> <noscript>    <link href="https://www.canada.ca/etc/designs/canada/cdts/gcweb/rn/assets/favicon.ico" rel="icon" type="image/x-icon"> <link rel="stylesheet" href="https://www.canada.ca/etc/designs/canada/cdts/gcweb/rn/css/theme.min.css"> <link rel="stylesheet" href="https://www.canada.ca/etc/designs/canada/cdts/gcweb/rn/cdts/cdtsfixes.css">    <link rel="stylesheet" href="https://www.canada.ca/etc/designs/canada/cdts/gcweb/rn/css/noscript.min.css"> </noscript> <script src="/DAM/PresentationDAM/STAGING/Scripts/inter-cdts.js"></script>  <script type="text/javascript"> document.write(wet.builder.refTop({ cdnEnv: "prod" })); </script>  <link href="/DAM/PresentationDAM/STAGING/css/cust-isc.css" media="screen, print" rel="stylesheet" type="text/css">   <link rel="stylesheet" href="https://use.fontawesome.com/releases/v5.15.4/css/all.css" integrity="sha256-mUZM63G8m73Mcidfrv5E+Y61y7a12O5mW4ezU3bxqW4=" crossorigin="anonymous"/> </head> <body vocab="http://schema.org/" typeof="WebPage"> <span typeof="Organization"><meta property="legalName" content="Department_of_Indian_Affairs_and_Northern_Development"></span>   <noscript><iframe src="https://www.googletagmanager.com/ns.html?id=GTM-NLBMCJ3" height="0" width="0" style="display:none;visibility:hidden"></iframe></noscript>   <div id="def-top"> </div>  <script type="text/javascript"> var defTop = document.getElementById("def-top"); defTop.outerHTML = wet.builder.customTop({ cdnEnv: "prod", showPreContent: false, lngLinks: [{lang: 'fr',href: 'https://www.sac-isc.gc.ca/fra/1100100032424/1572461852643',text: 'Fran莽ais'},], customSearch: [{"action":"https://www.canada.ca/en/indigenous-services-canada/search.html"}], breadcrumbs: [{title: "Canada.ca", href: "https://www.canada.ca/en.html"},{title: "Indigenous Services Canada", href: "/eng/1518196579110/1520997240623"},{title: "Indian status", href: "/eng/1100100032374/1572457769548"},{title: "Get, renew or replace a status card", href: "/eng/1100100032380/1572461388012"}] }); </script> <main role="main" property="mainContentOfPage" class="container"> <h1 property="name" id="wb-cont">Is your status card valid</h1> <p>Your registration under the <cite>Indian Act</cite> doesn't need to be renewed, but your status card does.</p> <section class="alert alert-warning"> <h2 class="h3">Updated version of the Certificate of Indian Status</h2> <p>In August 2023, First Nations started to issue an updated version of the laminated paper status card with <a rel="bookmark" href="#nsf">new security features</a>. <b>The updated version isn鈥檛 a replacement</b>. You don鈥檛 need to apply for a new one unless it鈥檚 past its renewal date, lost, stolen or damaged.</p> </section> <section> <h2>On this page</h2> <ul> <li><a href="#cp1" rel="bookmark">Why your status card needs to be renewed</a></li> <li><a href="#s1" rel="bookmark">What makes a status card valid</a></li> <li><a href="#s2" rel="bookmark">Status cards being issued</a> <ul> <li><a href="#s2-1" rel="bookmark">Secure Certificate of Indian Status</a></li> <li><a href="#s2-2" rel="bookmark">Certificate of Indian Status</a></li> </ul> </li> <li><a href="#s3" rel="bookmark">Older versions of the status card</a></li> <li><a href="#s4" rel="bookmark">History of the status card</a></li> </ul> </section> <section> <h2 id="cp1">Why your status card needs to be renewed</h2> <p>Like other government-issued identity documents, for example, passport, driver's license, health card, your status card needs to be renewed to reflect your current appearance.</p> <p>If your status card is past its renewal date, you need to <a href="/eng/1462806841047/1572461062751#sec2">submit an application to renew it</a>.</p> <section class="alert alert-info"> <h2 class="h3">Note</h2> <p>Even if your card is past its renewal date, you remain registered and retain the benefits and rights of a registered person.</p> </section> </section> <section> <h2 id="s1">What makes a status card valid</h2> <p>A status card is valid if it's:</p> <ul> <li>available</li> <li>not past its renewal date</li> <li>not suspended or revoked</li> <li>not reported lost, stolen or damaged</li> </ul> <p>If your status card is no longer valid, you may have difficulty with service providers that rely on it for official identification. As a registered person, you will still retain <a rel="external" href="https://www.canada.ca/en/services/indigenous-peoples/benefits-and-rights-for-indigenous-peoples.html">benefits and rights for Indigenous peoples</a>.</p> </section> <section> <h2 id="s2">Status cards being issued</h2> <p>The Secure Certificate of Indian Status and the Certificate of Indian Status are both issued to confirm registration under the <cite>Indian Act</cite>.</p> <section> <h3 id="s2-1">Secure Certificate of Indian Status</h3> <p>The Secure Certificate of Indian Status, or secure status card, issued centrally by Indigenous Services Canada, has a number of security features: </p> <ul> <li>laser-engraved data burned directly into the card</li> <li>raised letters and numbers on the surface</li> <li>patterns of extremely fine lines not easily scanned or copied</li> <li>ultra-violet imaging and printing visible with special equipment</li> <li>secondary photo image of the cardholder visible from both sides of the card</li> <li>toll-free number to call to confirm card is valid</li> <li>machine-readable zone to facilitate <a href="/eng/1100100032399/1572459562067">crossing the Canada–U.S. border</a></li> </ul> <div class="row mrgn-tp-md mrgn-bttm-md"> <div class="col-md-6 col-sm-12 col-xs-12"> <figure> <img src="/DAM/DAM-ISC-SAC/DAM-INSTS/STAGING/images-images/indian-status-card-01_1549056402751_eng.jpg" alt="Secure Certificate of Indian Status - Front" class="img-responsive"></figure> </div> <div class="col-md-6 col-sm-12 col-xs-12"> <figure> <img src="/DAM/DAM-ISC-SAC/DAM-INSTS/STAGING/images-images/indian-status-card-02_1549056421174_eng.jpg" alt="Secure Certificate of Indian Status - Back" class="img-responsive"></figure> </div> </div> <p>Since February 2019, all new and renewed secure status cards are being issued with a machine-readable zone on the back of the card.</p> <p>The machine-readable zone contains only cardholder information already on the front of the card.</p> </section> <section> <h3 id="s2-2">Certificate of Indian Status</h3> <p>The Certificate of Indian Status, or laminated paper status card, is issued in some First Nations offices.</p> <p>To help reduce fraudulent reproduction, new security features have been added to the card.</p> </section> <section> <h3 id="nsf">New security features</h3> <div class="row mrgn-tp-md mrgn-bttm-md"> <div class="col-md-12"> <figure class="row mrgn-tp-md mrgn-bttm-md"> <img src="/DAM/DAM-ISC-SAC/DAM-INSTS/STAGING/images-images/new-security-certificate-indian-status-sample_1696361257671_eng.jpg" alt="Certificate of Indian Status Front and Back Sample" class="img-responsive"></figure> </div> </div> <ul> <li>secure holographic foil in the header (1)</li> <li>micro text below the header (2)</li> <li>a watermark visible when a light is cast through the card</li> <li>visible and invisible fibers that can be detected both with the naked eye and a UV light</li> <li>chemically reactive agents visible when a chemical alteration is attempted</li> </ul> <section class="alert alert-warning"> <h2 class="h3">Printing error</h2> <p>Due to a printing error, some updated status cards may have blurry, incomplete or misplaced security features. Those status cards <b>remain acceptable</b>.</p> </section> <p>All previously issued versions of the status card are valid until their renewal date.</p> </section> </section> <section> <h2 id="s3">Older versions of the status card</h2> <p>All previously issued versions of both the secure status card and status card are acceptable and remain valid until the renewal date on the card.</p> <p>Some secure status cards in circulation may not have a machine-readable zone but are acceptable and remain valid until their renewal date.</p> <div class="row mrgn-tp-md mrgn-bttm-md"> <div class="col-md-6"> <figure> <img src="/DAM/DAM-ISC-SAC/DAM-INSTS/STAGING/images-images/indian-status-card-04_1549056451775_eng.jpg" alt="Older versions of the status card - Front" class="img-responsive"></figure> </div> <div class="col-md-6"> <figure> <img src="/DAM/DAM-ISC-SAC/DAM-INSTS/STAGING/images-images/indian-status-card-05_1549056478958_eng.jpg" alt="Older versions of the status card - Back" class="img-responsive"></figure> </div> </div> <p>Some laminated paper status cards have only a limited number of security features found on other government-issued identity documents. Those cards are acceptable and remain valid.</p> <div class="row mrgn-tp-md mrgn-bttm-md"> <div class="col-md-6 col-sm-12 col-xs-12"> <figure class="row mrgn-tp-md mrgn-bttm-md"> <img src="/DAM/DAM-ISC-SAC/DAM-INSTS/STAGING/images-images/indian-status-card-03_1549056433708_eng.jpg" alt="Indian status certificate - front" class="img-responsive"></figure> </div> <div class="col-md-6 col-sm-12 col-xs-12"> <figure class="row mrgn-tp-md mrgn-bttm-md"> <img src="/DAM/DAM-ISC-SAC/DAM-INSTS/STAGING/images-images/indian-status-card-031_1615478005575_eng.jpg" alt="Indian status certificate - back" class="img-responsive"></figure> </div> </div> <p>There are some laminated paper status cards with no renewal date. Those cards also remain valid.</p> <p>If you have questions about your status card, contact <a href="/eng/1291132820288/1603310905799#sec2">Public enquiries</a>.</p> </section> <section> <h2 id="s4">History of the status card</h2> <p>In 1956, the Government of Canada started to issue the status card as an official identity document confirming registration under the <cite>Indian Act</cite>.</p> <p>The status card is either a laminated paper or a plastic card with fewer security features than is now expected of government-issued identity documents.</p> <p>In 2009, we started to issue a secure status card to help protect registered persons from identity theft. <a rel="bookmark" href="#s2-1">Improved security features</a> make the card less vulnerable to tampering and counterfeiting.</p> <section class="alert alert-info"> <h2 class="h3">To help protect yourself from identity theft</h2> <p>We encourage you to <a href="/eng/1695837901058/1695837939989">apply for a secure status card</a>.</p> </section> </section> <section> <h2>Related links</h2> <ul> <li><a rel="external" href="https://www.canada.ca/en/immigration-refugees-citizenship/services/ibx-measures.html">Temporary measures to reunite families of Indigenous people separated by Canada鈥檚 border</a></li> <li><a href="/eng/1100100032463/1572459644986">About Indian status</a></li> </ul> </section>  <div class="row row-no-gutters mrgn-tp-xl"> <div class="col-sm-7 col-lg-6"> <section class="gc-pg-hlpfl provisional"> <div class="well mrgn-bttm-0"> <form id="gc-pg-hlpfl-frm" action="#" method="post" autocomplete="off"> <input type="hidden" name="institutionopt" value="Institution acronym - required - must use same value EN and FR"> <input type="hidden" name="themeopt" value="Indigenous peoples"> <input type="hidden" name="language" value="Language - required - use EN or FR"> <input type="hidden" name="pageTitle" value="Page title EN - required"> <input type="hidden" name="submissionPage" value="Page URL - required"> <input type="hidden" name="sectionopt" value=""> <input type="hidden" id="helpful" name="helpful" value="Yes"> <div class="gc-pg-hlpfl-btn"> <div class="row row-no-gutters"> <div class="col-xs-12 col-sm-7 mrgn-tp-sm"> <h2 class="mrgn-tp-sm h5">Did you find what you were looking for?</h2> </div> <div class="col-xs-8 col-sm-5 text-right"> <button id="btnyes" type="submit" value="Yes" class="btn btn-primary">Yes</button> <button id="btnno" type="button" class="btn btn-primary mrgn-lft-sm nojs-hide">No</button> </div> </div> </div> <p class="h3 hidden nojs-show">If not, tell us why:</p> <div class="gc-pg-hlpfl-no nojs-show"> <fieldset> <legend class="h4 mrgn-tp-0 mrgn-bttm-md">What was wrong?</legend> <div class="radio"> <label for="problem1"> <input name="problem" id="problem1" type="radio" value="I can't find the information" data-gc-analytics-wtph-value="I can't find the information-Je ne peux pas trouver l'information" data-gc-analytics-collect="notPrivate"> I can't <strong>find</strong> the information </label> </div> <div class="radio"> <label for="problem2"> <input name="problem" id="problem2" type="radio" value="The information is hard to understand" data-gc-analytics-wtph-value="The information is hard to understand-L'information est difficile 脿 comprendre" data-gc-analytics-collect="notPrivate"> The information is hard to <strong>understand</strong> </label> </div> <div class="radio"> <label for="problem3"> <input name="problem" id="problem3" type="radio" value="There was an error / something didn't work" data-gc-analytics-wtph-value="There was an error or something didn't work-Il y avait une erreur ou quelque chose ne fonctionnait pas" data-gc-analytics-collect="notPrivate"> There was an error or something <strong>didn't work</strong> </label> </div> <div class="radio"> <label for="problem4"> <input name="problem" id="problem4" type="radio" value="Other reason" data-gc-analytics-wtph-value="Other reason-Autre raison" data-gc-analytics-collect="notPrivate"> Other reason </label> </div> </fieldset> <label for="problem6" class="mrgn-bttm-0">Please provide more details</label> <p class="small"> <strong>You will not receive a reply. 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Is your status card valid