Visitor: I don’t have a criminal record in Canada but I did get charged in Tampa Florida back in 1978 on a one ounce bag of pot. I did pay a fine of $1200 with an one year probation. Ten years later after many trips into the USA I was asked this at the border & was refused entry because of this old pot offence. I had my Lawyer get me a pardon from the US offence since it was a misdemeanour and everything was fine for the next 25 years with many trips to the US. In 2011 when I was travelling I was asked this question again at the Ottawa airport by USA officials, refused entry, fingerprinted & photographed. How can I get a US waiver?
Pardons Canada: Since you do not have a criminal record in Canada you cannot get a pardon in Canada. However, as a Canadian Citizen with a criminal record in the US, you have been denied entry to the US so you will need a US entry waiver or I-192 to return to the US. The US waiver will be valid for a maximum period of five years after which you will need to get it renewed. To learn more about the process of obtaining a US waiver, visit https://www.pardons.org/traveling-to-us/