Some people are not allowed to come to Canada. They are known as “inadmissible” under Canada’s immigration law.
There are many reasons you may not be allowed entry into Canada, such as:
- you are a security risk,
- you have committed human or international rights violations,
- you have been convicted of a crime, or you have committed an act outside Canada that would be a crime,
- you have ties to organized crime,
- you have a serious health problem,
- you have a serious financial problem,
- you lied in your application or in an interview,
- you do not meet the conditions in Canada’s immigration law, or
- one of your family members is not allowed into Canada.
For temporary and permanent residency, you will be asked to provide police certificates from the countries where you lived more than 6 months since the age of 18. This will help immigration officials determined if you are inadmissible.
If you have committed or been convicted of a crime, you have a few options. Depending on the crime, how long ago it was and how you have behaved since, you may still be allowed to come to Canada, if you:
- convince an immigration officer that you meet the legal terms to be deemed rehabilitated, or
- applied for rehabilitation and were approved, or
- were granted a record suspension or
- have a temporary resident permit.
Deemed Rehabilitation
Deemed rehabilitation, under Canada’s immigration law, means that enough time has passed since you were convicted. You may be deemed rehabilitated depending on:
- the crime,
- if enough time has passed since you finished serving the sentence for the crime, and
- if you have committed more than one crime.
In all cases, you may only be deemed rehabilitated if the crime committed outside Canada has a maximum prison term of less than 10 years if committed in Canada.
To be assessed, fill out an application for Rehabilitation but in Section A, check the box “for information only”. You can be assessed at the port of entry in Canada, but this is quite risky, especially if you are flying in.
You can check here how many years it takes to be deemed rehabilitated, depending on the crime or offense.
Individual Rehabilitation
You can apply for individual rehabilitation to enter Canada here. The Minister, or their delegate, may decide to grant it or not. To apply, you must:
- show that you meet the criteria,
- have been rehabilitated, and
- be highly unlikely to take part in further crimes.
Also, at least five years must have passed since:
- the end of your criminal sentence (this includes probation), and
- the day you committed the act that made you inadmissible.
If you are applying for permanent residence, you should submit a separate application for criminal rehabilitation before applying for permanent residence.
If you are applying for criminal rehabilitation along with your temporary resident (visitor visa, study permit or work permit) application, you can submit everything together and apply at the nearest Visa Application Centre.
If you are a foreign national who needs an Electronic Travel Authorization (eTA), you have to submit a separate application for criminal rehabilitation before you apply for your eTA. You can do so by following the procedures below. Once you have received confirmation of your rehabilitation, you may apply for an eTA. If you apply for your eTA before you receive your rehabilitation, your application will be assessed based on the information currently available, and may result in the refusal of your application.
If you are submitting a separate application for criminal rehabilitation you must complete the application and submit it directly to the visa office responsible for your region by mail or courier only. You must also pay a $200 processing fee.
Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) has introduced in December 2023 a target service standard of processing 80% of criminal rehabilitation applications within 30 days.
Record of Suspension or Discharge
If you received a record suspension or a discharge for your conviction in another country, check with the visa office that serves the country or region where you live. It will tell you if the pardon is valid in Canada.
Temporary Resident Permit (TRP)
If you are a national of a country that requires an Electronic Travel Authorization (eTA), you should check with your visa office about the procedure for submitting an application.
If you are a national of a country that requires a Temporary Resident Visa (TRV), you must include in your application all relevant documents to explain why you are inadmissible and the reasons for entering Canada. You could be called to an interview.
Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) has introduced in December 2023 a target service standard of processing 80% of Temporary Resident Permit (TRP) applications within 30 days
