Criminal Code

s. 787 General Penalty (Summary Conviction)

General penalty

Sentencing & Discharges

Maximum sentence: 2 years less a day and a fine of up to $5,000 (default summary conviction penalty)
Classification: Not an offence

Last verified: June 2026 · Source: laws-lois.justice.gc.ca

The law says

Criminal Code s. 787

Verify on justice.gc.ca

(1)Unless otherwise provided by law, every person who is convicted of an offence punishable on summary conviction is liable to a fine of not more than $5,000 or to a term of imprisonment of not more than two years less a day, or to both.
(2)If the imposition of a fine or the making of an order for the payment of money is authorized by law, but the law does not provide that imprisonment may be imposed in default of payment of the fine or compliance with the order, the court may order that in default of payment of the fine or compliance with the order, as the case may be, the defendant shall be imprisoned for a term of not more than two years less a day.

Amendment History (4)

R.S., 1985, c. C-46, s. 787
R.S., 1985, c. 27 (1st Supp.), s. 171
2008, c. 18, s. 44
2019, c. 25, s. 316

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Immigration

Where this offence sits under IRPA

This section is not an offence. It sets the default penalty for any summary offence when the law names no other penalty. The default is a fine of up to $5,000 or up to two years less a day in jail, or both. It has two effects on admissibility. First, one summary conviction does not by itself create criminality under IRPA s.36(2)(a) for a conviction in Canada, or s.36(2)(b) for one outside Canada. Those grounds need an indictable offence, or two offences that do not arise from a single event. Second, the ceiling of two years less a day means a summary sentence can exceed six months. A term of more than six months actually imposed is serious criminality under s.36(1)(a), whatever the offence was.

This is how the law sorts the offence, not a reading of any one record. An officer decides each case.