Enter Australia with a criminal record You may need to provide a police clearance from your country and your other countries of residence to us. You will not pass the character test if you hold a substantial criminal record. If you don't pass the character test, you will not get
You have a substantial criminal record. This includes a prison sentence of 12 months or more, or sentences that add up to 12 months or more. In this instance, a suspended sentence is still considered to be a prison sentence. There is a risk that you would engage in criminal conduct while in Australia.
If you have criminal convictions in any other country (including Australia), when you arrive in Australia you must declare your criminal convictions, regardless of how long ago the convictions occurred. This declaration is made on your incoming passenger card as part of the immigration clearance process.
You will need to present a criminal history report and a consular officer will determine your eligibility during the visa application process. If you try to travel to the US without a visa you could be refused entry.
Having a criminal record does not automatically mean you will not meet the good character requirement. Each case is assessed on its merit. It is in your interest to provide full and accurate details in your citizenship application. You have the right to dispute your police check result if you believe it is incorrect.
How far back do criminal record checks go? In Victoria a criminal record is available for: ten years from the time of sentencing if you were 18 years or over when you were sentenced. five years from the time of sentencing if you were under 18 years at the time of sentencing.
This period is known as the 'waiting period' or 'crime-free period' and is generally 10 years where a person was dealt with as an adult and 5 years otherwise (3 years in NSW). This legislation is commonly referred to as 'spent convictions' legislation.
By law, we must cancel your visa if you are serving a sentence in a prison full-time for an Australian crime, and you have: been sentenced to death, imprisonment for life or imprisonment for longer than a year. been convicted of a sexually based crime involving a child by an Australian or foreign court.
Federal offenders subject to Commonwealth parole orders and/or licences must obtain written permission from a delegate of the Attorney-General before they may travel overseas.
We will decline your application for a residence visa (unless a special direction is given) if you have been: convicted of an offence and were sentenced to a prison term of 5 years or more. convicted in the last 10 years of an offence and were sentenced to a term in prison of 12 months or longer.
The refusal can be made on the basis of a number of factors including ineligibility, a lack of evidence or documentation, character issues, health issues and fraudulent documents. Here are some of the most common reasons for Australia visa rejection to be mindful of.
When a person is removed or deported from Australia, there may be restrictions on their rights to return. There could be a permanent ban on re-entry or a ban on applying for a visa for a specified period of time.
The Scheme covers a conviction for a less serious federal, state, territory or foreign offence when one of the following applies: the conviction is spent. the individual has been granted a pardon because they were wrongly convicted. the conviction has been quashed.
In most cases, individuals with a criminal record will not be eligible to enter the USA unless they have secured a criminal waiver of inadmissibility along with a relevant US visa.
The CDA database is the only legitimate search resource of its type for criminal and civil court list / attendance records for all Australian States and Territories. Our records come from the daily courts lists published by each court in Australia. Registering an account is needed before any searches can be conducted.
Spent and unspent convictions
If you're still in your rehabilitation period following a criminal conviction, your conviction is unspent. Any custodial sentence over two and a half years stays unspent.
If you are on bail and subject to conditions, you will generally not be allowed to travel overseas. This can however be overcome by making a bail variation application to the Court. Police and the Court will usually be reluctant to allow you to travel overseas while you are on bail.
Being able to travel overseas whilst on a section 12 suspended sentence of Imprisonment depends on two things: Any conditions that you are supposed to abide by that would prevent you from leaving, or, that you would not be able to fulfil for a period of time whilst you left.
You must not leave Australia without permission from the State Parole Authority.
A police check will display all disclosable court outcomes. All criminal charges will be displayed, including suspended sentences, any findings of guilt, pending court charges, convictions that led to served sentences, and all other criminal convictions that are not classified as 'spent convictions'.
These include checks that investigate an individual's criminal history, citizenship status, qualifications, references, previous employment, professional memberships, security clearance, working with children, and more.
Australian employers can conduct several types of criminal background checks. The Australian Federal Police conducts National Police Checks that reveal potential employees' past criminal history.
In Australia, spent convictions are criminal records that are no longer able to be used against a person. This means that they will not appear on a criminal history check and cannot be used to deny a person employment or housing.
If you receive a conviction when you are under 18 years old, and you are not dealt with as an adult, then this conviction will be spent after 5 years of you not being in any more trouble within any Australian State or Territory. Any conviction as an adult is spent after 10 years.
A conviction could mean that you are classed as permanently ineligible to travel to the USA, however, you may be able to apply for a waiver of permanent ineligibility from the Department of Homeland Security.