Status Indian is a legal classification under the Indian Act referring to First Nations individuals registered with the federal government as 'Indians.' Status Indians have certain rights and benefits including tax exemptions on reserves, access to non-insured health benefits, and rights under treaties where applicable. The Indian Act's definition of who qualifies for status has historically been controversial, with rules that discriminated based on gender (women losing status upon marrying non-status men) and imposed blood quantum requirements. Bill C-31 (1985) and subsequent amendments addressed some discrimination but controversies continue. Many Indigenous people and organizations criticize the status system as a colonial construct that divides communities and allows government to define Indigenous identity.