The brassard is the primary indicator of the status of a Military Policeman on duty. Postwar dress instructions specified that the brassard was to be worn on the left arm, midway between the elbow and the shoulder, or on the left cuff of the winter parka. Initially, Second World War pattern brassards were worn in Canada and were worn by Canadian Provost in Korea. In the early 1950s a new pattern of brassard was issued. Similar in design to the Second War issue it was made of black cloth with PROVOST in 1 1/4 inch high letters individually sewn onto the backing. Both patterns of brassards were worn concurrently until the late 1950s, depending on local dress instructions. In the early 1960s a new pattern of brassard made an appearance. Similar in appearance to an American pattern, it consisted of the letters MP in white sewn onto a black melton cloth backing. Unlike previous patterns of brassards which were secured by metal snaps, this brassard was secured by buttons. Relatively few of these appear to have been made, and they were soon replaced by a "NATO Pattern" brassard.

The "NATO Pattern" brassard differed from previous patterns in that the MP lettering was embroidered directly onto the backing, and it was secured by velcro strips. It was made in the form of a rectangle with tapered ends. This pattern was worn well past Unification until it was replaced by a bilingual brassard.

A variety of locally acquired brassards were worn on United Nations operations, these appear to generally conform to a standard pattern of red or white lettering on a contrasting background.
A universal pattern of Regimental Police brassard was adopted about 1954, this followed the same pattern as the PROVOST brassard. It was still in use at least as late as 1975. Some Regiments and Corps produced their own pattern of Regimental Police brassards, often incorporating unit insignia or coloured distinctions.