A wireless communication protocol for print by reference operations initiated by a portable wireless device. The protocol allows a portable wireless device, such as a handheld personal digital assistant, to initiate a print job with a printer by indicating the nature of the communication as a print by reference operation and identifying a location including print content. The protocol is preferably used as the body of an Object Exchange (OBEX) packet in a Bluetooth RF communication initiated by the portable wireless device with a Bluetooth capable print device, e.g., a printer or multi-function peripheral with a print capability. A preferred embodiment of the wireless communication protocol uses the body of an OBEX packet communicated by Bluetooth RF to include a tag identifying a packet body as being a packet body for a print by reference operation and a location identifying the location of the print content. With a preferred extensible mark-up language format, the location comprises an attribute. Additional attributes may, for example, include attributes enabling security clearance, billing identifications, use of supporting print services, and identification of alternate locations for targeted print content.