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Métis communities are found across Canada; however, the only legislated Métis land base is in Alberta. Eight Métis settlements are located across the northern and central-eastern part of the province: Paddle Prairie, Peavine, Gift Lake, East Prairie, Buffalo Lake, Kikino, Elizabeth and Fishing Lake. As of 2016, the settlements cover 512,121 hectares of land and are home to approximately 5,000 people. The Métis Settlements are self-governing and provide for the protection of Métis culture and identity.

There are 42 reserves in Nova Scotia, held by 13 First Nations (see First Nations in Nova Scotia). Nova Scotia is one of just two provinces, the other being Prince Edward Island, that is part of the traditional territory of only one Indigenous people. In both cases, it is the Mi'kmaq. In 2020, there were 17,895 registered Mi’kmaq in Nova Scotia, about 63 per cent of whom (11,202 people) lived on reserve. Reserves in Nova Scotia vary in size from over 3,500 hectares to less than one, though almost every First Nation has more than one land tract.

Saskatchewan is home to at least 70 First Nations and various Métis communities. It contains 782 reserves, settlements and villages, many of which are located in the southern half of the province. Reserves in Saskatchewan were created between 1874 and 1906 by Treaties 2, 4, 5, 6, 8 and 10. As of 2016, 47.5 per cent of the province’s 114,570 self-identified First Nations peoples live on reserves, a percentage comparable to the province of Manitoba. Most of the remaining 47 per cent who reside off-reserve in Saskatchewan live in the cities of Saskatoon, Regina and Prince Albert.

A reserve is land set aside by the Canadian government for use by First Nations. Reserves are managed under the Indian Act. Reserve lands represent a small fraction of the traditional territories First Nations had before European colonization. While reserves are places where members of a First Nation live, some reserves are used for hunting and other activities. Many First Nations hold more than one parcel of reserve land, and some reserves are shared by more than one First Nation. There are reserves in every province in Canada, but few have been established in the territories. Most reserves are rural, though some First Nations have created urban reserves, which are reserves within or neighboring a city.

This is the full-length entry about Reserves in Canada. If you are interested in reading a plain-language summary, please see Reserves in Canada (Plain Language Summary).

A reserve is land set aside by the Canadian government for use by First Nations. Reserves are managed under the Indian Act. Reserves are places where First Nations often live. However, some reserves are only for practices like hunting. Not all First Nations have reserve lands. There are reserves in every province in Canada, but most are in rural or remote areas. Few reserves have been established in the territories.

(This is a plain-language summary of Reserves in Canada. If you are interested in reading about this topic in more depth, please see our full-length entry, Reserves in Canada.)

Road allowance communities were home to Métis families throughout the late 1800s until the mid- to late 1900s. Métis peoples used the road allowances as new home communities after experiencing relocations, migrations and dispossession from their homelands. After resistance and violence in a period during and after the Riel Resistance of 1869–1870 and the North–West Resistance in 1885, Métis were marginalized and labelled as rebellious or troublesome by the government of Canada and the provinces.

As of 2019, there were 1,583 reserves in British Columbia associated with 203 Indigenous Nations (see also First Nations in British Columbia). Unlike many other parts the country, where reserves resulted from treaties made between the federal government and Indigenous Nations, most reserves in BC were created without such negotiations. Only two general locations in BC are covered by historic treaties: parts of Vancouver Island are covered by the Douglas Treaties, and the northeast corner of the province by Treaty 8. In BC as with other parts of the country, reserves are bound by the terms of the Indian Act. However, given the number of Indigenous Nations without a treaty in BC, the province has implemented a modern treaty negotiation process. Several BC Indigenous communities have used this process or other means to negotiate self-governing agreements. These agreements place decision-making authority over land management in the hands of Indigenous governments.