Criminal Record Pardons: Advocacy and Assistance in the Record Suspension Application Process

Question: What are the steps involved in applying for a criminal record suspension in Canada?

Answer: Applying for a criminal record suspension involves gathering necessary documents, ensuring you meet the waiting period requirements of five or ten years since your last conviction, and submitting a complete application package, which can take several months to prepare and process, ultimately opening doors to new opportunities.

Criminal Record Suspension Application Procedures

People make errors in judgment; however, the consequences of those mistakes should eventually, within reason, come to an end.  Unfortunately, after penalties as a debt to society are paid, adverse affects may continue for many years by way of reduced freedom to travel, loss of work or volunteer opportunities, among other impediments.  Obtaining a criminal record suspension works to enable new beginnings without the shackles of a criminal record.

The Law

It was in March 2012 that the Safe Streets and Communities Act, S.C. 2012, Chapter 1 went into effect thereby making various amendments to the Criminal Code of Canada, R.S.C. 1985, c. C-46, as well as the Criminal Records Act, R.S.C. c. C-47, among other laws. The various changes included amendments to the guidelines and procedures involved in obtaining a criminal record pardon; and indeed, a significant change was amendment of the term pardon to the new term that is now known and referred to as a record suspension.  Among the various amendments, the waiting periods for obtaining a record suspension now require that five (5) years have passed since the applicant was last convicted of a summary conviction offence or ten (10) years have passed since the applicant was last convicted of an indictable offence.

Expected Process

Applying for a record suspension may involve various complexities depending on the individual situation of the applicant as the application process requires various supportive documents be obtained from various sources and submitted collectively as a complete package with the primary application documents.  The various supportive documents include court records from the jurisdictions in which convictions were registered, finger print checks, among other things.  The process of gathering the required documents and preparing the properly complete package often takes a few months; and after the package of application document are submitted, a decision may take a few more months.  Overall, the entire process may take up to a year, and maybe more for highly complex situations.

Application Guidelines

When applying for a criminal record suspension you must be in law-abiding status subsequent to the end of your most recent sentence and be without any outstanding fines or fees due to the government such as monies owed for driving offences (traffic tickets), among other things.

Additionally, you must await expiry of the applicable waiting period.  The waiting period is five (5) years after completion of summary conviction sentences or ten (10) years after completion of a sentence for an indictable offence conviction.

Furthermore, persons previous convicted for sexual offences may have limitations applicable to a record suspension.  Persons previously convicted of three, or more, indictable offences involving prison sentences of two (2) years or more, as well as persons previously convicted for sexual offences inflicted upon minor persons are unable to obtain a record suspension (a few very rare exceptions may apply).