Criminal Records Act (R.S.C., 1985, c. C-47)

Short Title

Marginal note:Short title

1 This Act may be cited as the Criminal Records Act.

Interpretation

Marginal note:Definitions

• 2 (1) In this Act,

  Board

  Board means the Parole Board of Canada; (Commission)

  child

  child means a person who is less than 18 years of age; (enfant)

  Commissioner

  Commissioner means the Commissioner of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police; (commissaire)

  Executive Committee

  Executive Committee means the Executive Committee of the Board referred to in subsection 151(1) of the Corrections and Conditional Release Act; (Bureau)

  Minister

  Minister means the Minister of Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness; (ministre)

  pardon

  pardon[Repealed, 2012, c. 1, s. 109]

  period of probation

  period of probation means a period during which a person convicted of an offence was directed by the court that convicted him

  • (a) to be released on his own recognizance to keep the peace and be of good behaviour, or

  • (b) to be released on or comply with the conditions prescribed in a probation order; (période de probation)

  possession

  possession means possession within the meaning of subsection 4(3) of the Criminal Code; (possession)

  record suspension

  record suspension means a measure ordered by the Board under section 4.1; (suspension du casier)

  sentence

  sentence has the same meaning as in the Criminal Code, but does not include an order made under section 109, 110, 161 or 320.24 of that Act or subsection 147.1(1) of the National Defence Act; (peine)

  service offence

  service offence has the same meaning as in subsection 2(1) of the National Defence Act. (infraction d’ordre militaire)

• Marginal note:Termination of period of probation

  (2) For the purposes of this Act, the period of probation shall be deemed to have terminated at the time the recognizance or the probation order that relates to the period of probation ceased to be in force.

• (3) [Repealed, 1992, c. 22, s. 1]

Parole Board of Canada

Marginal note:Jurisdiction of the Board

• 2.1 (1) The Board has exclusive jurisdiction and absolute discretion to order, refuse to order or revoke a record suspension.

• Marginal note:Employees of Board

  (2) The powers, duties and functions of the Board related to an application referred to in subsection 4(3.1) shall be exercised by employees of the Board or any class of its employees.

Marginal note:Quorum

• 2.2 (1) An application for a record suspension shall be determined, and a decision whether to revoke a record suspension under section 7 shall be made, by a panel that consists of one member of the Board.

• Marginal note:Panel of two or more persons

  (2) The Chairperson of the Board may direct that the number of members of the Board required to constitute a panel to determine an application for a record suspension, to decide whether to revoke a record suspension under section 7 or to determine any class of those applications or make any class of those decisions shall be greater than one.

Effect of Record Suspension

Marginal note:Effect of record suspension

2.3 A record suspension

• (a) is evidence of the fact that

  • (i) the Board, after making the inquiries referred to in paragraph 4.2(1)(b), was satisfied that the applicant was of good conduct, and

  • (ii) the conviction in respect of which the record suspension is ordered should no longer reflect adversely on the applicant’s character; and

• (b) unless the record suspension is subsequently revoked or ceases to have effect, requires that the judicial record of the conviction be kept separate and apart from other criminal records and removes any disqualification or obligation to which the applicant is, by reason of the conviction, subject under any Act of Parliament other than

  • (i) section 109, 110, 161, 320.24, 490.012, 490.019 or 490.02901 of the Criminal Code,

  • (ii) section 259 of the Criminal Code, as it read immediately before the day on which section 14 of An Act to amend the Criminal Code (offences relating to conveyances) and to make consequential amendments to other Acts comes into force,

  • (iii) subsection 147.1(1) or section 227.01 or 227.06 of the National Defence Act,

  • (iv) section 734.5 or 734.6 of the Criminal Code or section 145.1 of the National Defence Act, in respect of any fine or victim surcharge imposed for any offence referred to in Schedule 3, or

  • (v) section 36.1 of the International Transfer of Offenders Act.

Application for Record Suspension

Marginal note:Application for record suspension

• 3 (1) Subject to section 4, a person who has been convicted of an offence under an Act of Parliament may apply to the Board for a record suspension in respect of that offence, and a Canadian offender, within the meaning of the International Transfer of Offenders Act, who has been transferred to Canada under that Act may apply to the Board for a record suspension in respect of the offence of which he or she has been found guilty.

• Marginal note:Transfer of offenders

  (2) For the purposes of this Act, the offence of which a Canadian offender within the meaning of the International Transfer of Offenders Act who has been transferred to Canada under that Act has been found guilty is deemed to be an offence that was prosecuted by indictment.

Procedure

Marginal note:Restrictions on application for record suspension

• 4 (1) Subject to subsections (3.1) and (3.11), a person is ineligible to apply for a record suspension until the following period has elapsed after the expiration according to law of any sentence, including a sentence of imprisonment, a period of probation and the payment of any fine, imposed for an offence:

  • (a) 10 years, in the case of an offence that is prosecuted by indictment or is a service offence for which the offender was punished by a fine of more than five thousand dollars, detention for more than six months, dismissal from Her Majesty’s service, imprisonment for more than six months or a punishment that is greater than imprisonment for less than two years in the scale of punishments set out in subsection 139(1) of the National Defence Act; or

  • (b) five years, in the case of an offence that is punishable on summary conviction or is a service offence other than a service offence referred to in paragraph (a).

• Marginal note:Ineligible persons

  (2) Subject to subsection (3), a person is ineligible to apply for a record suspension if he or she has been convicted of

  • (a) an offence referred to in Schedule 1; or

  • (b) more than three offences each of which either was prosecuted by indictment or is a service offence that is subject to a maximum punishment of imprisonment for life, and for each of which the person was sentenced to imprisonment for two years or more.

• Marginal note:Exception

  (3) A person who has been convicted of an offence referred to in Schedule 1 may apply for a record suspension if the Board is satisfied that

  • (a) the person was not in a position of trust or authority towards the victim of the offence and the victim was not in a relationship of dependency with him or her;

  • (b) the person did not use, threaten to use or attempt to use violence, intimidation or coercion in relation to the victim; and

  • (c) the person was less than five years older than the victim.

• Marginal note:Offence referred to in Schedule 3

  (3.1) A person who has been convicted only of an offence referred to in Schedule 3 may apply for a record suspension in respect of that offence before the expiration of the period referred to in subsection (1).

• Marginal note:Other offences including at least one offence referred to in Schedule 3

  (3.11) A person who has been convicted of an offence referred to in Schedule 3 and other offences may only apply for a record suspension after the expiration of the period referred to in subsection (1), without taking into account any offence referred to in Schedule 3.

• Marginal note:Expiration according to law of sentence

  (3.2) A person is ineligible to make an application for a record suspension referred to in subsection (3.1) or (3.11) until after the expiration according to law of any sentence imposed, other than the payment of any fine or victim surcharge, for any offence referred to in Schedule 3.

• Marginal note:For greater certainty

  (3.21) For greater certainty, subsection (3.2) does not apply to fines and victim surcharges imposed for both an offence referred to in Schedule 3 and for other offences, in which case a person is ineligible to make an application for a record suspension referred to in subsection (3.11) until after all fines and victim surcharges have been paid.

• Marginal note:Fee not payable

  (3.3) Despite anything in an order made under the Financial Administration Act, a person who makes an application for a record suspension referred to in subsection (3.1) is not required to pay any fee for services provided by the Board in respect of that application if the person has been convicted only of an offence referred to in that subsection.

• Marginal note:Onus — exception

  (4) The person has the onus of satisfying the Board that the conditions referred to in subsection (3) are met.

• Marginal note:Onus — person referred to in subsection (3.1)

  (4.1) The person referred to in subsection (3.1) has the onus of satisfying the Board that the person has been convicted only of an offence referred to in that subsection.

• Marginal note:Information — application referred to in subsection (3.1)

  (4.11) For the purpose of an application referred to in subsection (3.1), the Board may not require a person who makes the application to provide a certified copy of information contained in court records in support of the application unless the certified verification of the applicant’s criminal records and information contained in the police records or Canadian Armed Forces records provided in support of the application are not sufficient to demonstrate that the person has been convicted only of an offence referred to in Schedule 3 and that the only sentence imposed for that offence was payment of a fine or victim surcharge or both.

• Marginal note:Onus — person referred to in subsection (3.11)

  (4.12) For the purpose of subsection (3.11), a person referred to in that subsection has the onus of satisfying the Board that the person has been convicted of an offence referred to in Schedule 3.

• Marginal note:Amendment of Schedules 1 and 3

  (5) The Governor in Council may, by order, amend Schedule 1 or 3 by adding or deleting a reference to an offence.

Marginal note:Exception — long-term supervision

4.01 The period during which a person is supervised under an order for long-term supervision, within the meaning of subsection 2(1) of the Corrections and Conditional Release Act, is not included in the calculation of the period referred to in subsection 4(1).

Marginal note:Record suspension

• 4.1 (1) Subject to subsection (1.1), the Board may order that an applicant’s record in respect of an offence be suspended, without taking into account any offence referred to in Schedule 3, if the Board is satisfied that

  • (a) the applicant, during the applicable period referred to in subsection 4(1), has been of good conduct and has not been convicted of an offence under an Act of Parliament; and

  • (b) in the case of an offence referred to in paragraph 4(1)(a), ordering the record suspension at that time would provide a measurable benefit to the applicant, would sustain his or her rehabilitation in society as a law-abiding citizen and would not bring the administration of justice into disrepute.

• Marginal note:Record suspension — person referred to in subsection 4(3.1)

  (1.1) In the case of an application referred to in subsection 4(3.1), the Board shall order that the applicant’s record in respect of that offence be suspended if the applicant has been convicted only of an offence referred to in that subsection and has not been convicted of a new offence under an Act of Parliament, other than an offence referred to in that subsection.

• Marginal note:Exception to revocation

  (1.2) A record suspension ordered under subsection (1.1) may not be revoked by the Board under paragraph 7(b).

• Marginal note:Onus on applicant

  (2) In the case of an offence referred to in paragraph 4(1)(a), the applicant has the onus of satisfying the Board that the record suspension would provide a measurable benefit to the applicant and would sustain his or her rehabilitation in society as a law-abiding citizen.

• Marginal note:Factors

  (3) In determining whether ordering the record suspension would bring the administration of justice into disrepute, the Board may consider

  • (a) the nature, gravity and duration of the offence;

  • (b) the circumstances surrounding the commission of the offence;

  • (c) information relating to the applicant’s criminal history and, in the case of a service offence, to any service offence history of the applicant that is relevant to the application; and

  • (d) any factor that is prescribed by regulation.