Canadian citizenship* — is granted to people born within the federal borders (including Indigenous people), who go through the formal naturalization process, or to people born to or adopted by at least one parent with Canadian citizenship. People with this status have the right to enter, remain in and leave Canada, access to the full range of rights outlined in the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms, and exclusively the right to vote

Permanent residency — is granted to people who have applied and been accepted through a variety of programs including economic class, family class, and business class immigrants, as well as resettled refugees (government assisted, privately sponsored, and blended visa office-referred), protected persons granted permanent resident status on the basis of a well-founded fear of returning to their country of origin, and successful asylum or Humanitarian and Compassionate applicants. People with permanent residency must maintain physical residency terms, and have access to most social benefits of Canadian citizens, including health care coverage, and ability to travel and work throughout Canada. They have the option of applying for Canadian citizenship after meeting length of stay, knowledge, and official language requirements

Temporary status** — describes people from other countries (“foreign nationals”) who have been authorized to be in Canada for a temporary period, and includes international students, temporary workers, visitors, refugee claimants (i.e., asylum seekers), and sponsored family members. Access to health and social services is variable and dependent on provincial, municipal, local, and individual contexts. For example, some students and workers may be eligible for provincial health insurance, refugee claimants are eligible for federal health insurance, and visitors may have private insurance or pay out of pocket for health services. Local community–organized supports, along with Community Health Centres and other clinics in various places provide health care to people regardless of immigration status

*We note this is separate from citizenship or membership in Indigenous nations, who have their own determining processes based on customary law and tradition; and, that Indigenous nations have specific legal relationships with the federal government of Canada.

**This group falls into the larger category of precarious immigration status in Canada, which includes undocumented people who are often those in the above categories who continue to live and work in Canada beyond the expiration of their temporary documentation, and whose access to health and social services is limited.