I examined vegetation community development of reclaimed oil sands wetlands. Soil transfers from reference wetlands accelerated plant colonisation rates in a consolidated/composite tailings (CT) wetland. Hydrologic regimes differed between reference and CT wetlands making it difficult to explain observed differences in species composition. CT was a hospitable environment for plants, indicated by rapid colonization of isolated CT plots in reference wetlands. Wetland soil seed banks were more similar in species-relative abundances than composition. CT subsoils reduced emergence from seed banks (species composition and relative abundance). Salinity (surface waters, subsoils), wetland isolation and northern climates may slow or alter species replacement sequences for Reclaimed wetland plant communities. Seed bank analyses overestimated species richness, compared to field observations of wetland vegetation communities, except for Newly Constructed wetlands. Adding a CT subsoil treatment increased the accuracy of the seed bank analyses to predict initial vegetation establishment in a Newly Constructed CT wetland.