Consequences of Criminal Records After Sentencing
| This page was last substantively updated or reviewed January 2014. (Rev. # 95673) |
General Principles
Holders of Public Offices
- Disabilities
- Public office vacated for conviction
750 (1) Where a person is convicted of an indictable offence for which the person is sentenced to imprisonment for two years or more and holds, at the time that person is convicted, an office under the Crown or other public employment, the office or employment forthwith becomes vacant.
- When disability ceases
(2) A person to whom subsection (1) [public office vacated for conviction] applies is, until undergoing the punishment imposed on the person or the punishment substituted therefor by competent authority or receives a free pardon from Her Majesty, incapable of holding any office under the Crown or other public employment, or of being elected or sitting or voting as a member of Parliament or of a legislature or of exercising any right of suffrage.
- Disability to contract
(3) No person who is convicted of
- (a) an offence under section 121 [frauds on the government], 124 [selling or purchasing office] or 418 [selling defective stores to Her Majesty],
- (b) an offence under section 380 [fraud] committed against Her Majesty, or
- (c) an offence under paragraph 80(1)(d), subsection 80(2) or section 154.01 of the Financial Administration Act,
has, after that conviction, capacity to contract with Her Majesty or to receive any benefit under a contract between Her Majesty and any other person or to hold office under Her Majesty.
- Application for restoration of privileges
(4) A person to whom subsection (3) [disability to contract] applies may, at any time before a record suspension for which he or she has applied is ordered under the Criminal Records Act, apply to the Governor in Council for the restoration of one or more of the capacities lost by the person by virtue of that subsection.
- Order of restoration
(5) Where an application is made under subsection (4) [application for restoration of privileges], the Governor in Council may order that the capacities lost by the applicant by virtue of subsection (3) [disability to contract] be restored to that applicant in whole or in part and subject to such conditions as the Governor in Council considers desirable in the public interest.
- Removal of disability
(6) Where a conviction is set aside by competent authority, any disability imposed by this section is removed.
R.S., 1985, c. C-46, s. 750; 1995, c. 22, s. 6; 2000, c. 1, s. 9; 2006, c. 9, s. 246; 2012, c. 1, s. 146.
[annotation(s) added]
Youth Criminal Records
Travelling to the United States with a Record
Section 212(a)(2) of the Immigration and Nationality Act renders persons ineligible for a visa to enter the United States on the basis of criminality.[1]
Persons convicted of offences of "moral turpitude", conspiracy to commit such offence, or any offence "relating to a controlled substance", are inadmissible.(s. 212(a)(2)(i))
This does not apply to any conviction for any offence with a maximum penalty of one year or less in jail and the sentence was no more than 6 months. (s. 212(a)(2)(ii)(II))
Likewise, a person convicted of an offence that occurred when the offender was under 18 years of age and more than 5 years have passed since the completion of any jail sentence, may still apply. (s. 212(a)(2)(ii)(I))
Acts of "moral turpitude" refers to any "act of baseness, vileness or depravity in the private and social duties which a man owes to his fellowmen, or to society in general, contrary to the accepted and customary rule of right and duty between man and man."[2]
This includes certain offences:[3]
- Fraud
- Assault (other than simple assaults)
- Arson
- Break and Enter
- Robbery
- Extortion
- Bribery
- Perjury
- Sexual Assault
- Kidnapping
- Manslaughter
- Murder
A pardon or suspension of convictions is not recognized by the United States for the purposes of entry.
A conditional discharge is not recognized and is still considered a conviction. However, an absolute discharge is not considered a conviction.
A withdraw of a charge, such as after the successful completion of diversion, will not render the person inadmissible.
Waiver
Under s. 212(h), the Attorney General may exercise discretion and waive the application of the inadmissibility for criminality in certain circumstances.