Nunavut Land Claims Agreement

The Nunavut Land Claims Agreement (French: Loi concernant l’Accord sur les revendications territoriales du Nunavut) is a 1993 land claims agreement between the Inuit of the Nunavut Settlement Area (then part of the Northwest Territories) and the Government of Canada subject to the Constitution Act of 1982. The lands are not deemed to be "Lands Reserved for Indians" with respect to the Constitution Act of 1867. The Inuit were represented by the Tunngavik Federation of Nunavut to establish the agreement.

The agreement specifies two areas that are subject of the agreement: Area A consists of Arctic Islands and mainland Eastern Arctic, and their adjacent marine areas; Area B includes the Belcher Islands, its associated islands and adjacent marine areas. (A complete inventory of land, islands and marine territory subject to the Nunavut Land Claim Agreement is listed in the agreement itself.)

The agreement of July 9, 1993 was the basis for creating the new territory of Nunavut, which was officially established on April 1, 1999. The agreement led to a political accord which established dates for introducing legislation to Parliament for the eventual creation of the territory, the Government of Nunavut, and a transition process.

Under the terms of the agreement, jurisdiction over some territorial matters was transferred to the new government, among them wildlife management, land use planning and development, property taxation, and natural resource management.