Can i still visit Canada if i have a record under the first offender act in Ga?
I was young and stupid living with an abusive boyfriend at the time ,when the next door neighbor called the cops and my ex boyfriend heard the knocks he told me that if i let him go to jail i would be on my own with our two boys i was scared cause i didn't have any family around because of him and i was scared of what he could have done to me and the kids.Saw him once hitting his mom . He got me arrested and i know he did it because he already had other records. That was my first and last encounter with the law ,when i got out after 8 hours and told him that i would say the truth when the court date comes he end up beating me up in front of my son and tried to rape me so i tried to run and called 911 that night he tried to choke me with the cable of the phone before the cops arrive .Still by the time my court date came i took a deal plea because i was affraid of him coming after me .So i got charge for simple assault and reckless conduct under the first offender act of ga in the us :( i get so upset when i think back about this whole mess and feel so ashame even though it's been 10 years ,now i am back in school trying to finish my degree and hopefully have the chance to become a nurse .Under the first offender act i was put in probation for 12 months and paid some fines and was told if i behave and get through it i would be considered as not having any conviction or lose any civil right and that is exactly what i did . Can i visit Canada? Thanks for answering . http://www.ms-firm.com/first_offender_act_in_georgia.html No it was not a felony . I would really like to know how does Canada handle the first offender act from the US .
Other - Canada - 4 Answers
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1 :
To the best of my knowledge, if you were not charged with a felony, you should be able to enter Canada. Do yourself a favor and call the Canadian authorities and ask I do not know which agency you should call.Good luck. Have a wonderful day.
2 :
I'm sorry but your long winded drawn out rambling dissertation provides too little information for a coherent answer. No matter what your story is, if you have any criminal record, you will not be permitted to even visit Canada unless you can obtain a pardon.
3 :
Here are the things for which you will be denied entry. Drugs, Sex Offenses. Weapons and Violence. A criminal record in itself is acceptable. It is not a question they always ask and even some of those type of offenders slip through.
4 :
Ok, let's sweep all of the bad information that has been given here and start anew... Canadian Immigration law doesn't care that you were charged under the first offenders act or that it was a misdemeanor or any of that. All that the Canadian system is concerned with is what you would have been convicted of had the offense been committed in Canada. There are two severities of punishments in Canadian criminal law, summary and indictable. These are similar to "misdemeanor and felony. If you were convicted of two crimes, which if committed in Canada, equated to summary offences not occurring out of the same instance, you would be denied entry into Canada. If you were convicted of one crime, which if committed in Canada, equated to an indictable offense, you would also be denied entry. Assault in Canada is what's known as a hybrid offense. It can either go summary of indictable. Canadian immigration law ignores this and will always look at a hybrid offense as if it were an indictable. That means, your conviction in the USA for simple assault would equate to assault in Canada and you would be "inadmissible". Fortunately, it is of a less severe nature and after 10 years you would be "deemed rehabilitated" and allowed into Canada so long as you had no other convictions on your record. Now, from what you said at the end, your conviction may have been what's known as "adjourned in contemplation of dismissal" or ACD for short. This means that if you complete the probationary period and do not commit anymore offenses, the conviction is dismissed. Under Canadian immigration law, this would not be held against you AFTER the conviction was dismissed. Either way, you shouldn't have any problem assuming it WAS 10 years ago. If you received a pardon, you would also be allowed into Canada. If you were under 18 at the time the offense occurred, you would also be allowed into Canada. Enjoy the CORRECT information.
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