Many people who have been charged with a conditional or absolute discharge whether it was for theft, assault, pot possession or other criminal offences, believe that their criminal record is automatically removed over a period of time.
THIS IS WRONG
We get countless phone calls from people who are shocked that their criminal record still shows up when a criminal background check is done for employment or at the US Border.
Its true, a conditional or absolute discharge should be removed automatically at the federal level (though about 10% of the cases fall through the cracks), but they still remain at the local level until a file destruction is done.
Surprisingly, DHS (Department of Homeland Security) can uncover criminal charges at the local police level and they have been turning people away at the Canada-US border. We know, because people are calling us daily about their woes at the border.
The good news is that if you have a conditional or absolute discharge or if your criminal record has been dismissed, withdrawn or acquitted, we can apply for a file destruction to remove your fingerprints, photos, and police and court records from public record.
You may also view our video on Youtube to see exactly what a withdrawn charge looks like on a criminal reocrd check at minute 1.07 in the video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hTGz2eWhTpY
If you have already been stopped at the US Border and been turned away, then you require a US Entry Waiver to re-enter. At Pardons Canada we help people to complete File Destructions and US Entry Waivers.
If you have any questions regarding this topic or about Pardons and US Entry Waivers email us at info@pardons.org or call 1-877-929-6011.
