Having a DUI or other criminal convictions on your record can mean being denied entry by Canadian border authorities unless you go through specific procedures well in advance of your planned trip. This comes at a cost financially and in terms of the time required to prepare your applications.
This article discusses the costs involved in overcoming Canadian inadmissibility due to a DUI record through three main routes – Temporary Resident Permits, Criminal Rehabilitation, and Deemed Rehabilitation. We also set out how a Canadian immigration attorney could simplify the process, as well as the additional fees that may arise from these services.
Entering Canada with DUI Convictions
A DUI conviction on your record makes you criminally inadmissible to Canada, so you would not be allowed to enter Canada without special permission. The three main ways of overcoming this inadmissibility are by obtaining:
A Temporary Resident Permit: A temporary permission to enter Canada for a specific, compelling reason. TRPs come in single or multiple-entry variants and expire once the designated period has come to an end. The compelling reason must outweigh the potential risk you might pose to Canadian society.
Criminal Rehabilitation: A more permanent solution for entry to Canada with a DUI which “wipes the slate clean” once granted. To be successful, you must prove you now have a steady life and are not at risk of reoffending while in Canada. To apply, at least 5 years must have passed since you completed the sentence for your crimes.
Deemed Rehabilitation: An automatic form of rehabilitation that occurs with the passage of time. If you were convicted of drunk driving or intoxicated driving before December 2018, you will automatically become admissible to Canada once 10 years have passed since you completed your sentence. If you were convicted after this date, this option no longer applies due to changes in Canada’s impaired driving laws. This process is free of charge.
Misrepresentation
Getting into Canada with a DUI or criminal record can be tough, but don’t be tempted to lie about previous convictions. Doing so is a criminal offense in and of itself, and you risk being denied entry at the Canadian border and being excluded for a further 5 years if you are caught in the act of misrepresenting your circumstances with respect to your criminal history.
The chances of hiding past criminal convictions and successfully entering Canada are also extremely low. Information sharing agreements between Canadian immigration authorities and the US government mean border officials can do extremely thorough background checks on anyone who presents at a Port of Entry.
Temporary Resident Permit Costs
The cost to submit an application for a Temporary Resident Permit is currently CAD $229.77 (about USD $160). This has recently increased from a fee of CAD $200.
This money goes directly to the Canadian government and is meant to cover the costs of processing the application.
TRP Fee Waiver
There are certain cases where the Temporary Resident Permit processing fee can be waived. This could apply to you if you served no jail time for your offense and have done nothing else that would make you inadmissible.
Criminal Rehabilitation Costs
The Criminal Rehabilitation application fee is higher than for the TRP route if you have been convicted of more serious criminality – this means for offenses with a maximum potential punishment of up to 10 years imprisonment. It is, however, a much more permanent solution to criminal inadmissibility issues.
The standard application fee is the same for a TRP – CAD $229.77, and for cases involving serious crime it’s CAD $1,148.87.
Immigration Lawyer Costs
An application for a TRP or Criminal Rehabilitation is often quite complex. It requires a lot of detailed work, diligent checking, and double-checking to ensure you have the right evidence documents together and in the right order. An immigration lawyer can help guide you through this process, ensuring everything gets filed correctly on the first try, and you don’t experience any unnecessary delays in receiving the final determination.
Costs for this kind of service from a qualified and experienced immigration lawyer vary widely depending on the circumstances of each individual case but tend to range from CAD $750 to CAD $3000.
How Dogen Law Can Help
If you would like to enter Canada but have a criminal record that could make you inadmissible, seeking guidance from a Canadian immigration law firm can help to clarify the options available in your unique circumstances.
At Dogen Law, we have extensive experience helping clients navigate the various legal pathways to visit or immigrate to Canada. Our team offers competitively priced services to assist you with applications for Temporary Resident Permits and Criminal Rehabilitation to help you overcome criminal inadmissibility to Canada.
Get in touch today by completing our online assessment to see if you are eligible.
FAQs – Quick Answers
Can you get into Canada with a DUI conviction?
Yes – in one of three ways. Either by obtaining a Temporary Resident Permit, Criminal Rehabilitation, or Deemed Rehabilitation. TRPs can be applied for straight after you receive a conviction, and criminal rehabilitation requires 5 years to have passed since you have completed your sentence.
In the case of Deemed Rehabilitation, 10 years must have passed since you completed your sentence if the offense was committed before December 2018. If your DUI arrest came after that, you cannot be deemed rehabilitated due to a change in Canada’s DUI laws.
If you have multiple DUIs, you would also not be eligible to be deemed rehabilitated and would have to pursue one of the other two options.
How much does a Canadian entry waiver cost?
A ‘Canadian Entry Waiver’ usually refers to what is officially known as a Temporary Resident Permit. It comes with an application fee of CAD $229.77, which is non-refundable, even if the permit is denied.
If you choose to employ the services of a qualified Canadian immigration lawyer to assist with your application, those fees would have to be paid in addition to the application fee.
Can I go to Canada if I had a DUI 5, 10, 15 years ago?
If you have a single DUI from before December 2018, you can be Deemed Rehabilitated by the passage of time 10 years after completing your sentence. If you have more than one criminal offense on your record or got a DUI conviction after December 2018, you would not be eligible for Deemed Rehabilitation and would instead have to obtain a Temporary Resident Permit or Criminal Rehabilitation.
TRPs can be applied for straight after conviction, but the Criminal Rehabilitation application process requires 5 years to have passed since you completed your last sentence.
How much does it cost to hire an immigration lawyer in Canada?
For assisting with an application for a Temporary Resident Permit or Criminal Rehabilitation, lawyer fees vary widely depending on your unique circumstances but are generally between CAD $750 and CAD $3000.
