Has anyone applied for rehabilitation for a crime commited over 5 years ago but under the necessary years for deemed rehabilitation.

Having received advice on here our immediate plans have been shelved and I am sick with worry

We are not trying to emigrate but we had planned a long holiday comencing in October.

According to Andrew this visit would be breaking the law because my husband has a drink driving conviction from almost 10 years ago.

We are UK citizens and would have been going under the visa waiver but not yet it seems!

I have spent the entire week researching this and I am sure that thousands upon thousands of tourists enter Canada every year ignorant to the fact that are deemed inadmissable and in theory could be denied entry at the airport.
Frightening isnt it:curse:

I have been to Canada numerous times and I have checked the wording on the current landing cards and it does not ask about any convictions so no lies would be needed for honest completion.

If questioned by an immgration officer ( highly unlikely for a middle aged couple with a return ticket, plenty of funds, booked hotels and insurance)BUT not impossible and you are asked about convitions and you say no then you could risk never being allowed entry again, horrific!!!!

We might at some future stage want to buy property in Canada for summer use so there is no way we are going to take any risks on this.

I have also researched possible short trips to the USA from Canada and the US would not be a problem. The question re convictions is asked on the landing card but drink driving is not moral torpitude so an honest answer would not bar entry.

My question is this ( have spent a whole week trying to find the answer on the immigration website but cant find an answer)

1. Can you visit Canada for a holiday whilst your application for rehabilitation is being considered( it says on the website that it can take over a year for processing).

2. Is there any discretion or leniency or is it based purely on set criteria?

3. It says in as many words that if there is a conviction less than 5 years old and you need to come to Canada before you are eligable to apply for rehabilitation then it can only be allowed in very limited circmstances , humanitarian grounds etc( so this would not include a holiday of course)
It says nothig about being allowed into Canada until an application for rehabilitation has been decided for someone who is eligible to apply?

4. re the over a year to wait for a decision is there anyway to get a faster decision, are more straight foward applications done much quicker than this, does anyone know if it would be quicker to send the application to London or Canada? or both?

5.we have the applied for all the required paperwork eg the Uk police check that will come back clean, letters from persons of standing to vouch for character etc will five letters suffice? and are these people ok?
A university lecturer, a charity founder, a civil servant with a degree, a retired naval officer and an Army major who was husbands commanding officer at the time of the offence and acompanied husband to court and vouched for his good character in court.

6.We are going to have to wait for all the police checks though( 40 days for UK) and husband also lived in Gibraltar for over 6 months and cyprus for over 6 months both of these were over 15 years ago but I understand we need need police checks for all country where he has lived for over 6 months?

Another real worry is he also spent over 6 months in Canada and that was within the 5 years since the conviction He certainly did not enter with any knowledge that he should not have been allowed in. His circumstances were different from an ordinary traveller. He arrived on a miltary flight travelling to BATUS medicine hat on military service and as far as he can remember all of the soldiers were simply waved through customs and his passprt has no stamp in it of entry into Canada.landing cards did not hve to be completed either.

7.He will also then have to get a police check for Canada which is also going to take some time( anyone know how long?)

8.I hope someone can reassure me that his military service visit falls out of the rules somehow and he is not going to be deemd to have broken the law already

10. circumsatnces of the crimes are thus
drink driving conviction 1998 - £500 fine, 12 month ban, but no points on the licence

car not crashed nobody hurt

Yesterday we got a copy of the court records and he has not one but two convictions on the same day and I am horrified!!!
the seond conviction is for criminal damage - £200 fine

the cirumstances are this he was trying to end a realtionship with a girl they had a huge row the window in her council house got smashed ( he swears it was an accident but he has been convicted so end of) he drove off in the heat of the moment and was stopped minutes later and found to be over the limit his reading was 73.

Dont get me wrong drinking and driving is very serious etc however as with these two mistakes( and none before or since) there is no dishonesty, no fraud, no violence, no illegal drugs, no harm to others, no time in prison, no probation etc is there a chance that his application might be fast traked or take much much less than a year. Also it is almost 10 years ago?

Is it worth writing to immigration with cirumstances of the crimes a copy of the court record a copy of his Army testimonial showing exemplary service for 22 years and the character letters saying the police are to follow nd ask that he be given permission to vist for a holiday until his claim for rehabilitation is deciced?
Cant send any employment references as we owned our own buiness since he retired from the Army 4 years ago

Any advice very much appreciated sorry for the long post but hopefully any replies will also help others
Thankyou

I find this a really bizzare situation. I cannot believe for a second that the immigration authority realistically expect that none of the thousands of visitors to Canada each year have no previous convictions. In addition to this how would they possibly police it!

Regular holiday makers would never have looked on the CIC website and I know for a fact that travel agents are unaware (a few of my friends are travel agents and they have even checked with their head office).

I have been following the same threads as you I believe and have been equally horrified by the answers. My OH (the subject of thread 'is speeding a crime') has entered and left Canada as a visitor several times totally unaware of this ridiculous rule.

I am clueless as to what to say to you other than my heart goes out to you in trying to sort this out. My OH has sent for his police check and we are assuming that if it comes back clear we are OK and if it doesn't we will 'have to find out all about 'rehabilitation'.

I will probably get my head shot off for saying this on here, but if my OH were planning a trip to Canada in the next few months we would probably just go anyway.

Good luck with whatever you decide.

Lynn

huge luck to you lynn
I have just read the guidance for rehabilitation for the 500th time this week and I think I am going to be sick


on the table where it talks about eligability for rehabilitation it says if 2 or more convictions outside of canada and if within cnada would be a summary offence ????????????? then you can never apply for rehabilitation what on earth does this mean serious help needed please!

Does this mean that if someone has never been in prison, never been dishonest, never been inolved in illegal drugs, never harmed anyone else and punishment was a total fine of £700 and a 12 month driving ban and has led an exemplary life everince for almost 10 years they can never enter Canada?

yet someone who has harmed others, been involved in drugs has been in prison, been dishonest and was convicted less than 6 years ago but only been convicted on one ocasion can enter Canada????

I know someone will say get a lawyer but I have a legal background and dont want to waste money on legal fees if we are in a hopeless situation
any advice very much appreciated
Thankyou

sorry forgot to put the link in re application for rehabilitation
http://www.cic.gc.ca/english/pdf/kits/guides/5312E.PDF

mrshamster, I am having the same problems, but this might be helpful.I received an e-mail from cic london. QUOTE-- Persons who have a criminal record are criminally inadmissible to Canada, unless they have been determined to be rehabilitated after an assessment by a Canadian Immigration Officer,OR in the case of a person who committed a crime IN THE UK,their sentence is considered SPENT under the UK Rehabilitation of Offenders Act,1974. Under this act,if you received a FINE with your ban your sentence is considered SPENT after 5 years. Search Google for NACRO and call them, very helpful organisation.