New permanent resident in Canada: documents to keep and dates to track

Checked against official pages between 24 Sep 2026 and 29 Sep 2026.

The first months as a permanent resident come with a few deadlines and a lot of paperwork. Tick these off as you go, and print the page to keep with your landing papers.

Dates to track

First things to do

• Apply for a Social Insurance Number (SIN)

  You need one to work and to get many benefits. It is free, and applying online is the fastest way. Bring your PR card or confirmation of permanent residence, or your work or study permit, plus a passport or other ID. A study permit must say you may work. Permit holders get a SIN that expires with their permit.

  Apply for a SIN

• Give IRCC your Canadian mailing address for your PR card Within 180 days

  IRCC mails your first PR card automatically, but only if you give it a Canadian mailing address and photo within 180 days of becoming a permanent resident. After that you would have to apply and pay for the card yourself.

  After this you would have to apply for the card yourself.

  Do I need to apply for a PR card?

• If your PR card hasn’t arrived, contact IRCC

  First-time cards can’t be tracked. Wait for the usual processing time plus 6 weeks, then tell IRCC it never came, using a solemn declaration, and they reissue it. If 180 days have passed since it was mailed, you apply for a new card and pay the fee (refunded if IRCC made the mistake).

  What to do if your card hasn’t arrived

• Apply for the Canada child benefit if you have children under 18

  You can apply as soon as you arrive if you qualify, using “Apply for child benefits” in CRA My Account or form RC66. If you or your partner became a resident of Canada in the last 2 years, also send form RC66SCH. Temporary residents can start getting payments in the 19th month they have lived in Canada, if they hold a valid permit.

  How to apply for the CCB

• Apply for the Canada Groceries and Essentials Benefit (the GST/HST credit)

  It is the payment that used to be called the GST/HST credit. As a new resident you can apply before you file your first tax return, with form RC151. One application covers your household.

  Form RC151

• File your first Canadian tax return

  You don’t have to file until the year after you became a resident: if you arrived in 2026, your 2026 return is due by April 30, 2027. Filing every year, even with little or no income, keeps your benefits coming.

  Newcomers to Canada and the CRA

• Open a bank account

  You can open an account even without a Canadian credit history. Take original ID: usually one document with your name and address and another with your name and date of birth. You may need to go in person.

  Opening a bank account

• Keep IRCC up to date if you have an application in progress

  IRCC only needs your new address if you have an application with them, such as a PR card, a permit extension or citizenship. A missed letter can delay it or lead to a refusal.

  Update your address with IRCC

Documents to keep

• Keep your landing papers and permit safe

  Your confirmation of permanent residence (COPR), permit and passport are the documents Service Canada, IRCC and the provinces ask for when you apply for a SIN, a card or a licence. Keep the originals somewhere safe and a scan in Kist.

• Keep a record of trips outside Canada

  To keep permanent resident status you must be in Canada for at least 730 days in every 5 years, and IRCC recommends noting each trip out. For citizenship you need 1,095 days in Canada in the last 5 years, and time before you became a permanent resident counts as half days, up to a limit.

  Keeping your PR status

Health card and driver’s licence, by province and territory

Find where you live. Time limits count from the day you arrived or became a resident.

Ontario

• Apply for OHIP, your Ontario health card

  Ontario has no waiting period, so you can apply as soon as you arrive. You apply in person at a ServiceOntario centre with documents that show your immigration status, that you live in Ontario and who you are. The card comes by mail.

  Apply for OHIP

• Exchange your foreign driver’s licence in Ontario Within 60 days

  Ontario lets you use a valid licence from another country for 60 days after you move. After that you need an Ontario licence. Some countries exchange without tests; others need them.

  You can drive on your old licence until then.

  Exchange your licence in Ontario

British Columbia

• Apply for MSP, British Columbia’s health coverage

  Apply as soon as you arrive: online, by mail or at a Service BC office. Adults also visit an ICBC driver licensing office with ID to get a BC Services Card, which carries your health number.

  How to enrol in MSP

• Get private health insurance until your B.C. coverage starts

  MSP starts after the rest of the month you arrive plus two more months, and B.C.’s page suggests private insurance for that gap. Ask your employer or school whether they already provide some.

• Exchange your foreign driver’s licence in British Columbia Within 90 days

  After moving to B.C. you have 90 days to switch your licence to a B.C. one. Licences from some countries exchange the same day without tests; others also need a knowledge test and a road test.

  ICBC gives new residents 90 days.

  ICBC: moving from outside Canada

Alberta

• Apply for AHCIP, your Alberta health card

  If you are eligible, coverage can start from the day you settled in Alberta. Apply within 3 months of settling, with your immigration document from IRCC. After that, your start date is set when your application is processed.

  Apply for Alberta health coverage

• Exchange your foreign driver’s licence in Alberta Within 90 days

  If you live in Alberta permanently, you must exchange your licence within 90 days of becoming a resident. You hand your old licence to a registry agent. If you have held a licence for under 2 years you may be placed in graduated licensing.

  From the day you became a resident.

  Exchange a licence in Alberta

Saskatchewan

• Apply for your Saskatchewan health card

  Permanent residents, workers with a work authorization and international students can qualify on or before the first day of the third month after arriving in Canada. Send ID and proof of your address to eHealth Saskatchewan.

  Apply for a health card

• Get private health insurance until your Saskatchewan coverage starts

  Coverage can take until the first day of the third month after you arrive, so up to about 3 months. Until it starts you may have to pay for care yourself, so look at private insurance for the gap.

• Exchange your foreign driver’s licence in Saskatchewan Within 90 days

  New residents can drive on a valid licence for 90 days after moving to Saskatchewan. Licences from some countries can be exchanged for a Saskatchewan Class 5 licence. Visitors and temporary foreign workers keep the privileges of their home licence, except for Class 1 (semi) vehicles.

  SGI gives new residents 90 days.

  SGI: driver’s licence handbook

Manitoba

• Register for your Manitoba Health Card

  Permanent residents arriving from outside Canada can apply from the day they arrive in Manitoba; the three-month wait is for people moving from another province. Send a copy of your passport, your IRCC documents and proof that you live in Manitoba.

  Moving to Manitoba

• Exchange your foreign driver’s licence in Manitoba Within 90 days

  You can drive on your current valid licence for up to three months. To keep driving after that you need a Manitoba licence. Countries with an exchange agreement skip the tests, and a licence not in English or French needs a translation.

  MPI allows three months.

  MPI: new to Manitoba

Quebec

• Register with RAMQ, Quebec’s health insurance

  You register once you are in Québec and give a Québec mailing address for your letter of eligibility and card. Most permanent residents can register online. Cover depends on your status, so read RAMQ’s eligibility conditions.

  RAMQ eligibility and registration

• Get private health insurance for Quebec’s waiting period

  RAMQ’s conditions describe a waiting period of up to 3 months after registering, and care during it isn’t reimbursed. Check the length that applies to you on RAMQ’s page, and ask about private insurance from the day you arrive.

• Exchange your foreign driver’s licence in Quebec Within 180 days

  New residents can drive up to six consecutive months on a valid foreign licence, and the SAAQ suggests starting the exchange well before then. You can start as soon as you settle in Québec. The app counts 180 days, a little under 6 months, to leave a margin.

  About 6 months on the SAAQ page.

  SAAQ: foreign driver’s licence

Nova Scotia

• Apply for your Nova Scotia health card (MSI)

  Permanent residents’ coverage usually starts on the day they become a resident. Work permit holders (permit of 12 months or more) are covered from that day or the permit’s issue date, whichever is later. Study permit holders can apply from the first day of the 13th month after arriving.

  Apply for a health card

• Exchange your foreign driver’s licence in Nova Scotia Within 180 days

  Nova Scotia says you may be able to drive for up to 180 days on a valid licence from outside the province. Exchange it in person at an Access Nova Scotia or Registry of Motor Vehicles office. A licence not in English or French needs a translation.

  Nova Scotia says up to 180 days.

  Exchange your licence in Nova Scotia

New Brunswick

• Apply for New Brunswick Medicare

  People arriving from another country can be covered from their first day in the province once New Brunswick accepts that they live there. Apply online with documents for your status, identity and home, plus a copy of your passport and its last entry stamp into Canada.

  Apply for Medicare

• Exchange your foreign driver’s licence in New Brunswick

  Permanent residents get a New Brunswick licence as soon as they take up residence; the page gives no grace period. Work and study permit holders whose permit is valid for more than 6 months may drive on their home licence for up to 6 months from the day they landed.

  Driver’s licences for new residents

Newfoundland and Labrador

• Register for MCP, Newfoundland and Labrador’s health plan

  Send the health care coverage application with clear copies of your ID and immigration documents. A complete application usually gets a reply in about two weeks. A stay of under a year is generally not covered unless MCP’s rules allow it.

  Medical Care Plan (MCP)

• Exchange your foreign driver’s licence in Newfoundland and Labrador Within 90 days

  You must exchange your existing licence within three months of becoming a resident, and any valid foreign licence can be used until then. Some countries exchange without tests.

  Three months from becoming a resident.

  Licence application for new residents

Prince Edward Island

• Apply for your PEI health card

  If you have moved to the Island to live, work or study you may apply, saying that you can legally stay in Canada and that PEI is your main home. Ask Medicare Services (1-800-321-5492) when your coverage starts.

  Apply for a PEI health card

• Exchange your foreign driver’s licence in Prince Edward Island

  PEI lets newcomers drive on their existing licence for a limited time after becoming a resident (search results of its page say four months, and longer if you have started the exchange). We couldn’t open the page, so check the current limit there. Countries without an exchange agreement need the Novice Driver Course for Newcomers.

  Driving with an out-of-province licence

Yukon

• Apply for your Yukon health care card

  Yukon’s pages describe a waiting period of about 3 months before cover starts, and say to apply when you arrive because delays can affect your start date. We couldn’t open them, so confirm the wait there.

  Apply for a Yukon health care card

• Get private health insurance for Yukon’s 3-month wait

  Yukon describes about 3 months before cover starts for new residents. If you are coming from another country you have no earlier plan to fall back on, so look at private insurance for that time, and confirm the length on Yukon’s page.

• Exchange your foreign driver’s licence in Yukon

  When you move to the Yukon you must transfer your current licence to a Yukon one. The page gives no time limit for new residents. If you have held your licence for under 2 years you may join graduated licensing.

  Transfer your licence to the Yukon

Northwest Territories

• Apply for your NWT health care card

  Fill in the NWT application for health care and send it with a valid immigration document from IRCC that shows your NWT address. If you are on a work or study permit, contact the Health Services Administration Office about your cover.

  Applying for NWT health care

• Exchange your foreign driver’s licence in the Northwest Territories

  Foreign nationals apply at a Driver and Vehicle Services office. Some countries’ licences can be transferred; otherwise you pass a knowledge test and a road test. The page gives no time limit for new arrivals, so ask your local office.

  Driver’s licences for foreign nationals

Nunavut

• Apply for your Nunavut health care card

  Apply through the Government of Nunavut’s health care plan pages. Eligibility depends on Nunavut being your main home and on your immigration status, and you send ID that includes your immigration documents. We couldn’t open the pages, so check the current requirements there.

  Applying for Nunavut health care

• Exchange your foreign driver’s licence in Nunavut

  Apply for a Nunavut driver’s licence at a Motor Vehicles office. The Nunavut pages we could read give no time limit for licences from another country, so ask your local office how long you can keep driving on yours.

  Apply for a driver’s licence

Share on WhatsApp

This is guidance only and isn’t guaranteed to be accurate. Deadlines and rules change from time to time, so check the official website for this document (use the link if there is one, or search for it on Google or ask an AI assistant) and your local municipality or ministry before you act.