HELP! I have to Overcome Criminal Inadmissible to Travel to Canada!
Have you recently been denied entry into Canada at a port of entry, or had your visitor visa application denied? Have you learned recently that your criminal record will affect your ability to visit Canada? If so, you must deal with your inadmissibility before you will be permitted to enter the country. It is also very useful to know that if you have an issue with criminal inadmissibility, there are different ways you can overcome this. Often, people wish to enter Canada for very good reason, perhaps to visit relatives who are sick or to celebrate familial weddings. It would be a shame to be forced to miss these events because you are inadmissible to Canada and were unaware of the avenues available to overcome this issue. If you are inadmissible to Canada but would still like to enter Canada, your options are to submit an application for criminal rehabilitation or apply for a temporary resident permit. Therefore, throughout this article, we will discuss what each of these applications entails, and how to apply for each.
What Is A Temporary Resident Permit? What Is Criminal Rehabilitation?
First and foremost, BOTH a temporary resident permit and an application for criminal rehabilitation only make you admissible to enter Canada. NEITHER of these documents gives an individual permission to actually enter Canada for any length of time. If you wish to travel to Canada, you must determine whether you are from a visa-exempt or a non-visa exempt country, and apply for the necessary travel documents accordingly. As a traveler from a non-visa exempt country, you will need a visitor visa. On the other hand, if you are a traveller from a visa-exempt country, you will only need an Electronic Travel Authorization (eTA).Ultimately, it is important to understand that along with a temporary resident permit or an approved application for criminal rehabilitation, you will also need a valid visitor visa or eTA to be permitted to enter the country.
Differences Between A Temporary Resident Permit and An Application For Criminal Rehabilitation?
First, a Temporary Resident Permit can be used to overcome a variety of reasons one may be inadmissible to Canada. Whereas, an application for criminal rehabilitation is only useful to overcome criminal inadmissibility. You could be inadmissible to Canada because of a health or financial issue or, because you have misrepresented yourself in the past and are banned from travelling to Canada, or even because you have an inadmissible family member. Any of these things, a temporary resident permit can be used to overcome.
Individuals who are inadmissible on grounds of criminality but are also inadmissible because they have a chronic health issue which makes them as such could end up going through both of these application processes in preparing for just one trip. They may overcome their criminality permanently using an application for criminal rehabilitation, but they will still require a temporary resident permit to deal with the medical inadmissibility. At the same time, if you are not eligible for criminal rehabilitation, or only wish to overcome your criminality temporarily, you may apply for a temporary resident permit to cover both of these issues.
Finally, an application for criminal rehabilitation is a permanent solution to criminal inadmissibility, while a temporary resident permit only overcomes your issues of inadmissibility for the time specified in the permit.
Can I Apply For A Temporary Resident Permit?
Anyone can apply for a temporary resident permit; it is whether or not you can present a compelling case which will determine whether or not you truly have a chance of being granted a temporary resident permit. Temporary Resident Permits are meant to be granted in instances when individuals are requesting to enter the country for compelling reasons, when there is strong reason to believe they do not pose a risk to Canadian society. To
Can I Apply For Criminal Rehabilitation?
Firstly, it is important to understand the difference between minor and major criminality. A minor offence is one which carries less than a 6 month jail term, or less than a $5000 fine. A serious offence is one which carries more than a 6 month prison sentence, or more than a $5000 fine.
To apply for criminal rehabilitation, the minimum period of time which must pass depends on the crime(s) you have committed. To be eligible for individual rehabilitation, at least 5 years must have passed since the completion of all sentencing conditions if the applicant was convicted of a serious offence. If you are applying for criminal rehabilitation, it is okay to be convicted of an offence which carries a prison sentence of more than 10 years. It is useful to know, that the same waiting period of 5 years applies for all individuals being considered for criminal rehabilitation, though, you may have to work harder to show you are rehabilitated. In other circumstances, if you have been convicted of two or more minor offences, are still eligible to apply for criminal rehabilitation once 5 years has passed since the completion of all sentencing provisions.
Contact Akrami and Associates
Both of the processes explained here can be very overwhelming, and it is very important that you have taken all the aforementioned information into consideration to increase the likelihood you are permitted entry into Canada. If you are trying to figure out the most effective way to overcome your inadmissibility, but are having trouble understanding your specific situation, we understand these can be incredibly confusing matters to navigate, and are always here to help! In fact, it is highly recommended that you seek out professional and experienced help prior to submitting a Temporary Resident Permit or a Criminal Rehabilitation, as the processing fees are non-refundable, along with your time. Here, at Akrami & Associates, we work and have experience with many different immigration matters. We have helped many of our clients overcome their criminal inadmissibility by applying for a Temporary Resident Permit and/or a Criminal Rehabilitation. If you believe that you may be eligible to apply, please feel free to contact Akrami & Associates at our office at 416-477-2545 for more information or if you would like to book a consultation with an immigration professional for more advice.
At Akrami & Associates, there is always a way!