A mining claim (known in the Ministry of Northern Development and Mines (MNDM) as an unpatented mining claim) is an area of Crown Land that is staked out by an individual or Mineral Exploration Company that holds a valid Prospectors license. This grants the individual or mineral exploration company legal mineral interests to the staked out piece of land as provided for under the Mining Act of Ontario.

“Mining claim” means a parcel of land, including land under water, that has been staked and recorded in accordance with the Mining Act and the regulations. As for the ""pending"" status of unpatented mining claims, pending means that they are not officially active, and are shown on the maps to indicate that there is an activity on Crown Land that is pending approval for active status. Time frames for pending status could be days, weeks, months, or even years. Each case is unique.

Status codes for unpatented mining claims are Active, Cancelled and Pending.