Terabite

Hello all fellow forumites and merry Xmas!

I have a question regarding my police record, (criminal that is, not the 1980's band!). I have 3 minor convictions which were for offences that were committed over 20 years ago. Nothing serious, no custodial, just small fines. I have submitted the police documentation to DIMA and provided a letter to further explain the circumstances. Knowing what these offenses were for I'm not worried that they will affect the visa.

My question is, are DIMA allowed (legally or otherwise) to disclose this information to my prospective employer, (I'm going over on a sponsored PR visa). As it was all a long time ago I would not think it is important for my prospective employer to know that I was a bit naughty when I was younger. Whilst I don't think they would reject the offer of employment, I do think it might prejudice their opinion of me.

If anyone has information on this I would love to hear from you.

Cheers.

Tera.

Alison1967

DIMIA probably won't be that interested as you have twenty years post incident good behaviour.

DIMIA wouldn't notify employers about this I wouldn't think, my friends husband had been quite a lad when young, disclosed everything and he's working as a bank manager over here now.

I found it laughable when I got a nurse post over here whilst only resident for a week I had to apply for a ozzie police check for my first week in oz, what with trying to get a job, a rental and the jetlag what could I have gotten up to.

Good Luck

Ali

Pollyana

Any information that is given to DIMA regarding police records is for their use alone. They are certainly not allowed to release UK police records to an Aussie employer.

Terabite

Alison / Pollyana, thanks very much for that information. I was hoping that was the going to be the case. I feel much happier now.

Merry Xmas to you both.

Cheers.

Tera

aries

Tera. You could always give Legal Aid a call for confirmation, it's a free service.

Terabite

Thanks aries, i'll give them a call on Wednesday.

Cheers.

Tera.

Pollyana

Legally, DIMA are not allowed to pass UK police records to anyone else. The piece of paper is your property, and you pass it to DIMA for the purposes of obtaining your visa. DIMA are bound by Australian privacy laws, and are not allowed to use information such as the police check for any purpose other than that for which it is intended.

Polly,
(ex-UK police, used to deal with Data Protection and Police checks)

aries

From my own experience over the past ten years with the public health service and Members of Parliament, privacy laws in Australia are not worth the paper they're written on. Abuse of information is more rife that most people can imagine, and I would not be convinced that the police are any different.

Government departments and agencies have a cover-up culture and go into damage control for themselves, and they will use whatever funding necessary (from the public purse) to ensure that their own interests are protected.

I would not take for granted that information cannot be abused, but checking your rights is certainly a good idea

The_Pom_From_Aus

May i put your mind at rest my friend, after 15 years of none committal of an offence of criminal magnitude, your details ARE wiped of the database in the UK.
Its as simple as that so keep quiet in this instance.
The freedom of information world wide prevents any others from obtaining this type of info.

regards

Arthur

Pollyana

Not strictly true. There are many offences over 15 years old which have not yet been deleted because they have not been brought to anyones notice in the last few years (since the weeding process started). Also, if there is more than one offence, it will stay on longer, and there are various other rules that affect the length of time something stays on record - type of offence, what sentence was laid down, etc.

Also, although an offence may not have to be declared for employment purposes, it does have to be declared for immigration purposes - where migration is concerned no offence is ever spent.
DIMA guidelines advise
Declare all convictions on the application form. Failure to declare information may result in the cancellation of your visa. Visa cancellation can mean detention and removal from Australia. A person whose visa is cancelled on the grounds of either a substantial criminal record, or past and present criminal conduct, is permanently excluded from Australia.

That bit however is correct Unless you are taking up a job where all convictions need to be declared (such as with children) then you need not mention to employers the convictions described in the original post.

Terabite

I'd just like to clarify that the reason these offences are still on my record is that there are 3 offences in total and so they stay on file for 20 years. If I had only committed 2 offences they would have been wiped from my record after ten years. Those are the rules.

Whilst the 3 offences were committed over 20 years ago the court date for the last offence was in March 1987. I suspect that if I applied for my police checks in April there would be nothing shown. Despite all that, I am still obliged to disclose all offences to DIMA no matter how long ago they were committed.

I have no problems disclosing my police records to DIMA, (which I have done), as they are petty offences and committed when i was very young and stupid.

My only concern was that I did not want my employer to find out as it may prejudice their opinion of me. The job is a professional position and one where people don't normally have police records.

With all the information you guys have given me I will probably call my Case Officer after the Xmas break just to reassure myself that he won't disclose this to my prospective employer who is sponsoring me. After all it sounds like he would be breaking the law if he did.

Thanks once again to you all.

Have a great Xmas eve and a on me.

In the words of the great Noddy Holder, "Merry Xmas Everybody"

Tera

Pollyana

Little hint you might liek to action int he future - approx next May, get a fresh police check done, and if the offences are still on there, contact the Commissioner, New Scotland Yard, and request their removal - there are so many offences requiring weeding that often things aren't removed unless they are requested or are spotted by police staff. The Commissioner will request that the record is reviewd and if - as you say - they are eligible for weeding, then they will be removed