# Summary

Canonical page: https://carecard.ca/knowledge/care-card-guide/user-guide
Language: en-CA





CareCard shows you which documents must be ready before placement, stores your
uploads, and creates a certificate from your verified requirements.

## Start Here [#start-here]

New here? Read [Your Home
Dashboard](/care-card-guide/user-guide/home-dashboard) first — it explains the
welcome tour, the progress cards, and the Side Menu you'll use for everything
else.

## Your Placement, in Order [#your-placement-in-order]

<Steps>
  <Step>
    ### Request Access [#request-access]

    [Share With Institution](/care-card-guide/user-guide/institution-access) — Choose your institution,
    campus, program, term, and role. Once you submit the request, that program's assigned requirements
    appear on the [Requirements](/care-card-guide/user-guide/requirements) page.
  </Step>

  <Step>
    ### Get Your Details Right [#get-your-details-right]

    [Updating Your Profile](/care-card-guide/user-guide/profile-update) — Your official-record name helps
    reviewers compare your evidence. Your **Date of Birth** and each **Identity** entry can only be
    corrected for 42 days after you save them.
  </Step>

  <Step>
    ### Get Your Documents In [#get-your-documents-in]

    [Uploading Requirement Documents](/care-card-guide/user-guide/requirements) — Attach the requested
    files, submit each requirement, and follow its status. This also covers renewing an approval before
    it expires.
  </Step>

  <Step>
    ### Share Proof [#share-proof]

    [Your Certificate](/care-card-guide/user-guide/certificate) — Get your program certificate once every
    assigned requirement has current, eligible evidence, or build a custom certificate from selected
    evidence.
  </Step>
</Steps>

<Callout type="warn">
  Double-check your **Date of Birth** the first time you enter it. After 42 days the edit option
  simply disappears — with no warning — and you can't correct it yourself. Contact support if the
  saved value is wrong.
</Callout>

## The Rest of Your Side Menu [#the-rest-of-your-side-menu]

These pages also sit on the Side Menu, and you'll want them sooner or later:

<Cards>
  <Card icon="<FolderOpen />" title="My Files" href="/care-card-guide/user-guide/my-files">
    Every file you've uploaded, and how to connect one to a requirement.
  </Card>

  <Card icon="<MessageSquare />" title="Messages" href="/care-card-guide/user-guide/messages">
    Reach CareCard support about a specific requirement, or about the site itself.
  </Card>

  <Card icon="<CreditCard />" title="Services" href="/care-card-guide/user-guide/services">
    Paying a CareCard fee, if your institution doesn't cover it.
  </Card>

  <Card icon="<Settings />" title="Settings" href="/care-card-guide/user-guide/settings">
    Language, date format, theme, notification switches, and account actions.
  </Card>

  <Card icon="<LifeBuoy />" title="Troubleshooting" href="/care-card-guide/user-guide/troubleshooting">
    A rejected requirement, a request stuck on **Info needed**, the wrong program, a document about
    to expire.
  </Card>
</Cards>

## Before You Begin [#before-you-begin]

* **A verified primary email is required** — Verify it right after [registering](/care-card-guide/account-access#registering), before you can request institution access.
* **Some requirements take time** — Records, appointments, tests, vaccine series, and certifications each have their own timeline. Open your requirement list early so you know what to request or book first.