How to Apply for Criminal Rehabilitation in Canada
Apply on form IMM 1444 once at least 5 years have passed since your whole sentence ended, including probation. You send the form, court records, police certificates and fee receipt by mail or courier to the visa office responsible for your region. An officer reviews the file, and the local office manager or, for more serious offences, the Minister decides.
$246.25
IRCC’s fee for non-serious criminality
$1,231
IRCC’s fee for serious criminality
Over a year
How long IRCC says these applications can take
IMM 1444
The application form
IRCC sets the fees and says they are not refundable, whatever the decision. The Fee Calculator shows both tiers.
Who needs criminal rehabilitation?
Criminal rehabilitation is one of several routes that may address a criminal inadmissibility. Others can include deemed rehabilitation under IRPR s.18, or a record suspension or acquittal under IRPA s.36(3)(b).
Deemed rehabilitation needs no application, but an officer checks it. It applies in narrower situations: typically a single non-serious offence with 10 years since the sentence was completed, or two or more summary-equivalent offences after 5 years. It does not apply to serious criminality, so this application is the route for it.
| Tier | IRPA section | Maximum for the equivalent Canadian offence |
|---|---|---|
| Non-serious criminality | IRPA s.36(2) | Under 10 years, such as theft under $5,000 |
| Serious criminality | IRPA s.36(1) | 10 years or more, such as impaired operation on or after December 18, 2018, assault causing bodily harm, or drug trafficking |
The tier follows the maximum penalty for the equivalent Canadian offence, not the sentence you received. It sets the fee; the form is IMM 1444 either way.
IRCC says that with a pardon outside Canada you may still be inadmissible. The visa office tells you whether the pardon is valid in Canada.
The rule
Approved Criminal Rehabilitation (CR) removes the grounds of criminal inadmissibility for convictions and acts outside Canada.
When can you apply?
You can apply once at least 5 years have passed since you completed every part of your sentence: fines paid, probation ended, licence reinstated, and any other condition the court ordered. For an act with no conviction, the 5 years run from the act.
You must also not have been convicted of a later offence. IRPR s.17 sets this condition, apart from contraventions and offences under the Young Offenders Act.
If less than five years have passed, IRCC says you can fill out the form and check “For Information Only”. An officer will then decide if you can get special permission to come to Canada temporarily.
How do you apply?
Fill in the forms
The application is form IMM 1444, with the IMM 5507 document checklist. Add IMM 5476 if you use a representative, and the IMM 5939 checklist if you are an applicant in the USA.
IMM 1444
Gather the documents
Gather court documents showing each offence, the conviction date and the sentence, your official criminal record, and proof that every part of the sentence is complete. The IMM 5507 checklist asks for a police certificate from each country where you lived six consecutive months or longer since age 18; for the United States, that means one from each such state plus one from the FBI. Documents not in English or French generally need a translation.
Pay the fee
Pay online and attach the printed IRCC receipt to the application.
$246.25 or $1,231
Send it to the visa office
Send the application by mail or courier only, to the visa office responsible for your region. If you live in Canada, guide 5312 says to mail it to the Canada Immigration Centre responsible for your area. With a visitor visa, study permit or work permit application, IRCC says you can submit everything together at the nearest Visa Application Centre.
Give biometrics if asked
Guide 5312 says biometrics, your fingerprints and photo, are needed if required. IRCC then sends a biometric instruction letter after you submit, and you give them at a collection point, usually a visa application centre.
Biometrics $85
Wait for the decision
An officer reviews the file and makes a recommendation. IRCC advises you of the decision in writing.
Over a year
What does it cost, and how long does it take?
- Non-serious criminality
- $246.25, for offences equivalent to IRPA s.36(2).
- Serious criminality
- $1,231, for offences equivalent to IRPA s.36(1).
- Biometrics, if required
- $85 a person. A family maximum may apply when people apply together.
- The wait
- IRCC says these applications can take over a year, and gives no separate estimate by type of file.
A pending application does not authorize entry. Travel before a decision would need a temporary resident permit, which an officer issues only for compelling reasons and at their discretion.
IRCC’s rehabilitation pages describe no port-of-entry route for this application. At a port of entry, a US resident can ask an officer to assess deemed rehabilitation, and a traveller can ask an officer to consider a TRP. Both are at the officer’s discretion.
Who decides, and what does approval change?
For less serious offences, the manager of the local office usually decides. For more serious offences, the Minister decides. IRCC weighs the number and seriousness of the offences, your behaviour since, your evidence of rehabilitation, and your explanation of the offences and why you are not likely to re-offend.
If IRCC approves the application:
- The grounds of criminal inadmissibility are removed for the offences assessed.
- You would generally not need a TRP for future visits based on that history.
- You still have to meet the usual requirements for a temporary or permanent resident, such as the medical, financial and misrepresentation rules (guide 5312).
- Keep the approval letter and carry a copy when you cross into Canada. You remain subject to examination at every entry.
- The approval covers your criminal history as disclosed and assessed. A new conviction after approval can create a fresh inadmissibility that it does not cover.
Which free tool checks your own case?
- Criminal EquivalencyHow foreign offences line up with Canadian law
- Admissibility ExplorerThe IRPA admissibility grounds, one question at a time
- Fee CalculatorCurrent government fees, itemized
Free, with no account. What you enter in a tool stays in your browser.
What do people ask?
What is criminal rehabilitation in Canada?
Criminal rehabilitation is an application under IRPA s.36(3)(c) that, in IRCC's words, removes the grounds of criminal inadmissibility for the offences outside Canada you disclose. Once it is approved, those offences no longer make you inadmissible, and you generally no longer need a Temporary Resident Permit for visits. Deemed rehabilitation never covers serious criminality, so this application is the route for it. The Criminal Rehabilitation page gives the full overview.
How much does it cost to apply for criminal rehabilitation in Canada?
IRCC's processing fee is $246.25 for non-serious criminality and $1,231 for serious criminality. The tier follows the maximum penalty of the equivalent Canadian offence, not the sentence you received. Biometrics, where required, add $85 per person. IRCC says fees are not refundable regardless of the decision. The Fee Calculator shows both tiers.
Where do I send my application for criminal rehabilitation?
A separate application goes by mail or courier only to the visa office responsible for your region. With a visitor visa, study permit or work permit application, IRCC says you can submit everything together at the nearest Visa Application Centre. If you also need an eTA, IRCC says you have to submit a separate rehabilitation application before you apply for the eTA. IRCC's pages describe no port-of-entry route for this application. The TRP vs Criminal Rehabilitation guide compares the routes.
What is the application for criminal rehabilitation form IMM 1444?
IMM 1444 is IRCC's Application for Criminal Rehabilitation, the form you file to overcome criminal inadmissibility for offences outside Canada. You list every offence, even ones pardoned or expunged abroad, with the conviction and sentence completion dates and the exact offence names from your court records. The IMM 1444 entry on the Immigration Forms page links the official form.
Can I apply for criminal rehabilitation if I am currently on probation?
No. You cannot apply until every part of the sentence is finished, including probation, fines and any licence suspension. IRCC says at least five years must have passed since the end of the sentence, and guide 5312 says probation is part of the sentence. For an act with no conviction, the five years run from the act. The Rehabilitation Calculator counts the years from your dates.
I have two DUIs from 2018 and 2020. When can I apply for criminal rehabilitation?
The 5-year clock runs from the day you completed every condition of the most recent sentence, including fines, probation and licence reinstatement. Both DUIs are assessed together in one application, and a DUI committed on or after December 18, 2018 is serious criminality. The DUI and Canada Entry guide explains the tiers.
How long does criminal rehabilitation take to process?
IRCC says these applications can take over a year. There is no guaranteed timeline, and IRCC gives no separate estimate by type of file. A pending application does not authorize entry, so travel before a decision needs a Temporary Resident Permit. Guide 5312 says an incomplete application may be returned, which delays it. The Temporary Resident Permit page explains that option.
What is the difference between deemed rehabilitation and criminal rehabilitation?
Deemed rehabilitation applies by operation of law in narrower cases, typically a single non-serious offence with at least 10 years since the sentence ended, and needs no application, though an officer confirms it at entry. Criminal rehabilitation is the application you file on IMM 1444, generally 5 years after the sentence ends. It is the route for serious criminality, which deemed rehabilitation never covers. The Rehabilitation Calculator shows which one your dates reach.
Part of:Criminal recordCriminal rehabilitation
- TRP vs Criminal Rehabilitation: Which Do You Need?
- Denied Entry to Canada: What to Do Next
- Expunged Record & Canada Entry
The textbook on this subject
Volume 1: Entering Canada $79
Six IRPA inadmissibility grounds (s.36 and s.38 to s.42), explained with the official text cited.
Follow on Facebook to hear when the library opens (opens in a new tab)Official sources
This page is based on law and policy published by the Government of Canada.