How long will my criminal record last if I do not apply for a pardon?
Short answer
In Canada, a criminal record does not disappear on its own with time: apart from the exceptions set out in the law, a conviction stays in the National Repository of Criminal Records for as long as no record suspension has been granted.
In detail
This is a very widespread belief, and it is false: there is no period after which a conviction automatically disappears. The Criminal Records Act sets up an application process — the record suspension — precisely because removal is not automatic.
There are, however, real exceptions. Discharges are removed automatically from the RCMP file after one year (absolute) or three years (conditional), under section 6.1. Youth records are subject to the limited access periods set out in section 119 of the YCJA.And special regimes exist: since 1 August 2019, a conviction for simple possession of cannabis committed before 17 October 2018 qualifies for an expedited, no-fee record suspension, without waiting the usual period (Bill C-93). This is not an expungement: the record is set aside, not erased. Expungement falls under a different Act and targets historically unjust convictions.
For an ordinary adult conviction, on the other hand, the passage of time only opens up the right to apply for a suspension: 5 years after the expiration of the sentence for a summary conviction offence, 10 years for an indictable offence.
What to document
For each file, note the date of the expiration according to law of the sentence — the end of imprisonment, the end of probation, payment in full of the fine and of the victim surcharge. Keep the proofs of payment. It is that date, and not the date of the conviction, that determines your eligibility.
Put your facts in writing, free. Writing your version down early, keeping your documents dated and preparing your questions for a lawyer: the tool is there to document, never to advise.
Open the application Up to 3 files, no card · see the plans
Official sources
- Criminal Records Act, ss. 4 and 6.1 — Justice Laws Website
- Criminal records — Royal Canadian Mounted Police
Related questions
- Do I have to answer police questions?
- Does the police have to tell me why I am being arrested?
- How long can the police hold me before I go before a judge?
- Can the police take my fingerprints if I have not been convicted?
- Do I have the right to a free lawyer right away when I am arrested?
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What this page is not
This is general legal information about the law of Quebec and Canada, dated and sourced. It is not legal advice, not a strategy, and not a prediction about the outcome of a case. In Quebec, only lawyers and notaries may give legal advice (Act respecting the Barreau du Québec, ss. 128 and 133). Laws and amounts change: the official source always prevails over us.