People who are applying to enter Canada as permanent residents, visitors, foreign workers or international students are generally required to provide a police clearance certificate from their country of origin showing that they have not been convicted of any criminal offenses. An individual who would normally be deemed inadmissible due to criminality or serious criminality may be eligible to enter Canada if they are found to be rehabilitated under either deemed rehabilitation or individual rehabilitation.

What is deemed rehabilitation?

There are two broad categories of deemed rehabilitation, which are based on the likely sentence that would be imposed if the crime were committed in Canada.

Category 1: indictable offenses

If you were convicted of an offense outside of Canada that would be punishable by less than ten years of imprisonment if committed in Canada, you may qualify for deemed rehabilitation in the following circumstances:

• You completed your sentence at least ten years ago
• In the last ten years, you have not been convicted in Canada of any offenses, or outside of Canada of any offenses deemed by Canada to be an indictable offense
• In the ten years before that, you have not been convicted in Canada of a summary offense, or outside of Canada of an offense deemed to be a summary offense

Category 2: summary offenses

If you were convicted outside of Canada of two or more acts that would be deemed to be summary offenses, you may qualify for deemed rehabilitation if the following apply:

• • You completed your most recent sentence at least five years ago
  • In the last five years, you have not been convicted in Canada of any offenses, or outside of Canada of any offenses deemed by Canada to be an indictable offense
  • In the five years before that, you have not been convicted in Canada of more than one summary offense, or outside of Canada of an offense deemed to be an indictable offense, or more than one offense deemed to be a summary offense

What is individual rehabilitation?

Deemed rehabilitation is not available to people who are inadmissible to Canada due to serious criminality, since the time since completion of the sentence is not a strong enough indicator of rehabilitation. In some circumstances, such individuals may qualify for individual rehabilitation.

The following conditions apply:

• • • The applicant completed their sentence at least five years before applying
    • The applicant can demonstrate rehabilitation through proof of strong ties to the community, a stable lifestyle and solid vocational skills
    • The applicant can show that the criminal offense was not part of a pattern