Frequently Asked Questions

With each U.S. state, the process usually involves making an application to a court where they review the available evidence to see if you're rehabilitated and eligible. This often involves getting both court records and criminal records for the state. Most states also require that you notify the prosecutor or other agency so that they can contest the application.

Each U.S. state works differently. This can be in the form of what records can be expunged, waiting periods for eligibility (1 year, 3 years or 5 years), or whether all existing fines are paid. For example, some states allow DUIs to be expunged, whereas others don't.

Work visas and employment authorizations are known as work permits in Canada. A work permit is a document issued by officials of the Canadian Government that allows a foreign individual to work at a specific job for a specific employer.

Close relatives of a Canadian citizen or a Canadian permanent resident.More particularly, to qualify under the Family Sponsorship category, the sponsored person(s) must be related to the Canadian sponsor in one of the following ways:

• Spouse, common-law partner, or conjugal partner; or
• Parent or grandparent; or
• Dependent child; or
• Orphaned, unmarried, and under 18 years of age brother, sister, nephew, niece, or grandchild; or
• Intended adopted child under 18 years of age; or
• One other relative, if the sponsor has no relative listed above and no relatives who are Canadian citizens or Canadian permanent residents.

While a study permit authorizes international students to pursue their studies while in Canada, a Temporary Resident Visa (TRV) allows a person to enter Canada. Depending on the country of citizenship, an international student may need a TRV for entry.For overseas applications, applicants from countries whose citizens require TRV in order to enter Canada will be issued a TRV automatically if the application for a study permit is approved. These applicants do not need to submit a separate application for a TRV and there is no separate fee. The same applies to applicants from countries whose citizens need an Electronic Travel Authorization (eTA) in order to enter Canada by air.

A refugee is a person who fears persecution if they go back to their country of nationality. Fear of persecution usually means a serious chance of physical harm or detention or some other form of cruel and unusual punishment. In some cases, discrimination or harassment could be considered serious enough to amount to persecution.

Canada Immigration (Permanent Resident) Visas may be issued to federal and Quebec skilled workers, provincial nominees, people who have studied and/or worked in Canada, and business persons under Canada's economic immigration categories. Close family members of Canadian citizens and permanent residents may be issued Canada Immigration Visas through family sponsorship. Finally, Canada issues permanent resident visas to qualified asylum seekers and certain individuals on humanitarian and compassionate grounds.

You can usually apply for Canadian rehabilitation five years after a sentence ends. People who have been convicted of a crime outside of Canada are usually inadmissible to enter Canada. But, the Canadian government has procedures in place for those individuals to regain admissibility and enter the country. Specifically, non-Canadians can apply for criminal rehabilitation, also known as Canadian rehabilitation.Criminal rehabilitation may happen one of two ways. You may be deemed rehabilitated if it has been more than a decade since you finished serving your sentence. However, in order to expedite the process and overcome your inadmissibility sooner, you can apply for rehabilitation after only five years.Five years must have passed from when you committed the crime and from when you finished serving your sentence, including your time on probation. If it has been less than five years for either, you may be able to come to Canada on the basis of a Temporary Resident Permit.If you are not a Canadian citizen but your criminal conviction happened inside the country, you are not eligible for criminal rehabilitation. You must request a Record Suspension, also known as a pardon, from the Parole Board of Canada.There are specific guidelines that must be followed during the process of applying for criminal rehabilitation in Canada. If you want to immigrate to the country or come for business or vacation purposes, it may be a worthwhile option. Learn more about removing barriers of entry into Canada now and in the future.