1949年，紐芬蘭自治領（現在是紐芬蘭與拉布拉多）加入加拿大聯邦。加拿大的經濟快速增長，與逐漸親近的北美土地感情，隨之帶來加拿大人更強烈的自我認同，標志事件為1965年楓葉旗的采用，加拿大獨有的英法融合移民文化，也開始了1969年的雙語政策以及1971年多元文化政策的實施。
社會福利政策也被重新提起，例如醫療保險、退休金計劃以及學生貸款等，但在其他省政府，尤其是魁北剋和艾伯塔的省政府都十分反對這些政策，他們認為聯邦政府推行這些政策會侵犯到他們的管轄範圍。
在1982年前，英屬北美法一直承擔着加拿大實質憲法的角色，而再經過數次修憲會議之後，1982年《加拿大憲法》正式製定施行，加拿大終於擁有自己的一套憲法，並同時見證加拿大權利與自由憲章的誕生。
1999年，在因紐特人與聯邦政府爭取之下，努納武特從西北地區獨立，成為加拿大第三個地區。
與此同時，20世紀60年代在魁北剋掀起的寂靜革命深深影響了該省的社會和經濟，並掀起了魁北剋民族主義運動。信仰馬剋思主義的極左翼恐怖組織魁北剋解放陣綫策劃了多次恐怖襲擊，其中最嚴重的事件為在1970年發生的十月危機。1976年，主張魁北剋獨立的魁北剋人黨贏出大選，並在1980年就魁北剋應否獨立而進行全民公投，但以失敗收場。1990年，各省為了安撫魁北剋民族主義而嘗試通過米奇湖協定修改憲法，但未能通過。作為回應，魁北剋成立聯邦政黨魁人政團，西加拿大成立加拿大改革黨。1995年，魁北剋人黨再次進行全民公投，但以衹有49.4％的得票率失敗。1997年，加拿大最高法院裁定省單方面宣佈脫離聯邦是違憲，隨後，加拿大國會通過清晰法案，規定在魁北剋全民公决中所提出的問題足夠明確且得到明顯多數的支持時，魁北剋便可以與加拿大政府進行脫離聯邦的協商程序。
除了魁北剋主權問題之外，在80年代末至90年代初也發生一些震撼加拿大社會的事件。其中包括在加拿大歷史上最大的一場屠殺，印度航空182號班機空難；1989年的蒙特利爾工程學院大屠殺；還有在1990年的奧卡危機，加拿大政府第一次與原住民團體發生衝突的事件。加拿大也參加1990年的波斯灣戰爭，並積極參與維和任務，包括在前南斯拉夫的維和行動。加拿大在2001年支持出兵阿富汗，但當美國邀請加拿大加入伊拉剋戰爭時，加拿大拒絶。2009年，加拿大的經濟遭受經濟大衰退影響，但現已開始恢復。2011年，加拿大軍隊參加由北約領導的武裝干涉利比亞內戰。
The financial crisis of the Great Depression had led the Dominion of Newfoundland to relinquish responsible government in 1934 and become a crown colony ruled by a British governor. After two bitter referendums, Newfoundlanders voted to join Canada in 1949 as a province.
Harold Alexander at desk receiving legislation
Governor General the Viscount Alexander of Tunis (centre) receiving the bill finalizing the union of Newfoundland and Canada on March 31, 1949, at Rideau Hall
Canada's post-war economic growth, combined with the policies of successive Liberal governments, led to the emergence of a new Canadian identity, marked by the adoption of the Maple Leaf Flag in 1965, the implementation of official bilingualism (English and French) in 1969, and the institution of official multiculturalism in 1971. Socially democratic programs were also instituted, such as Medicare, the Canada Pension Plan, and Canada Student Loans, though provincial governments, particularly Quebec and Alberta, opposed many of these as incursions into their jurisdictions.
Finally, another series of constitutional conferences resulted in the Canada Act, the patriation of Canada's constitution from the United Kingdom, concurrent with the creation of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms. Canada had established complete sovereignty as an independent country, although the Queen retained her role as monarch of Canada. In 1999, Nunavut became Canada's third territory after a series of negotiations with the federal government.
At the same time, Quebec underwent profound social and economic changes through the Quiet Revolution of the 1960s, giving birth to a secular nationalist movement. The radical Front de libération du Québec (FLQ) ignited the October Crisis with a series of bombings and kidnappings in 1970 and the sovereignist Parti Québécois was elected in 1976, organizing an unsuccessful referendum on sovereignty-association in 1980. Attempts to accommodate Quebec nationalism constitutionally through the Meech Lake Accord failed in 1990. This led to the formation of the Bloc Québécois in Quebec and the invigoration of the Reform Party of Canada in the West. A second referendum followed in 1995, in which sovereignty was rejected by a slimmer margin of 50.6 to 49.4 percent. In 1997, the Supreme Court ruled unilateral secession by a province would be unconstitutional and the Clarity Act was passed by parliament, outlining the terms of a negotiated departure from Confederation.
In addition to the issues of Quebec sovereignty, a number of crises shook Canadian society in the late 1980s and early 1990s. These included the explosion of Air India Flight 182 in 1985, the largest mass murder in Canadian history; the École Polytechnique massacre in 1989, a university shooting targeting female students; and the Oka Crisis of 1990, the first of a number of violent confrontations between the government and Indigenous groups. Canada also joined the Gulf War in 1990 as part of a U.S.-led coalition force and was active in several peacekeeping missions in the 1990s, including the UNPROFOR mission in the former Yugoslavia.
Canada sent troops to Afghanistan in 2001, but declined to join the U.S.-led invasion of Iraq in 2003. In 2011, Canadian forces participated in the NATO-led intervention into the Libyan Civil War, and also became involved in battling the Islamic State insurgency in Iraq in the mid-2010s.