“After you become a permanent resident of Canada, you receive your Permanent Resident Card, used for all identification purposes.  Although this card was initially used as a travelling card only by Federal government, all provincial governments now use an individuals PR card as mandatory identification for all provincial services, such as health services or social insurance numbers.

When you lose your permanent resident card, then you cannot technically replace it.  You must file for a new permanent resident card by filing a permanent resident card application, which requires you to meet your permanent residency obligation such as your 2 years of residency in Canada and no criminal inadmissibility.  If you have concerns regarding meeting your permanent residency requirement AND decide to replace your permanent resident card by filing your application, you may inadvertently open yourself an investigation by Immigration, Refugee, Citizenship Canada.

If you lose your original copy of your confirmation of permanent residence, you again cannot replace this document, but must file an application for status verification.  If you do not have a permanent resident card or an original copy of confirmation of permanent residence, you may not be able to access any provincial services at all; in addition, you may not travel outside of Canada and cannot apply for your Canadian citizenship application.

Finally, if you lose your wallet including your permanent resident card, you must file a police report. This is important for you to obtain verifiable proof that you lost your PR card when you file your new permanent resident card application.

For more specific issues surrounding this issue, please seek customized professional advice for your situation first before you take your next step to avoid any hardship”. – Jennifer