Pardon eligibility in Canada: waiting periods, when the clock starts and who can’t apply

By Pardeep S. Grewal, lawyer at Lawgical Law Corporation · Reviewed November 14, 2026

Published November 14, 2026

Pardeep S. Grewal is a lawyer at Lawgical Law Corporation, called to the BC bar in 2024, and a member of the Law Society of British Columbia.

Updated November 14, 2026: the Parole Board of Canada’s eligibility page and FAQ and Criminal Records Act ss. 4, 4.3 and Schedule 1 checked that day.

You can apply for a record suspension (pardon) once you have finished your whole sentence and a waiting period has passed. The waiting period is 3, 5 or 10 years. Which one applies depends on how the offence was prosecuted and, since March 2020, on the law in force when you committed your first offence. This guide shows how to work out your date, the things that move it, and who cannot apply at all.

Lawgical Law Corporation, a law firm in Surrey, Abbotsford and Vancouver, BC, prepares record suspension (pardon) applications for people with Canadian convictions, including clients whose record also affects immigration or US travel; this guide is by Pardeep S. Grewal.

Book a consultation about your record suspension (pardon) TapClick to open a short form. Our team will contact you to arrange a time.Short form, 4 quick fields Open form

Waiting periods by first offence date

The PBC stopped applying the 2010 and 2012 changes retroactively on March 19, 2020. It now assesses each application using the Criminal Records Act as it stood on the date of the applicant’s first offence. If you don’t know that date, the PBC will try to find it, but it helps to include it.

When does the waiting period start?

The waiting period starts after “the expiration according to law of any sentence, including a sentence of imprisonment, a period of probation and the payment of any fine” (Criminal Records Act s. 4(1)). In practice, that is the date the last part of the last sentence ended:

• Jail: the end of the full sentence, not your statutory release date or remission (s. 4.3).
• Conditional sentence or probation: the day it ended.
• Fines and victim surcharges: the day you paid in full. Victim surcharges imposed between October 24, 2013 and December 13, 2018 are not counted.
• Restitution and compensation: the day you paid in full. If the court can’t confirm the payment, the PBC asks you to call it, so keep receipts or a letter from the person or company you paid.
• Prohibition orders: a driving or firearms prohibition does not have to expire before the waiting period starts.

Summary or indictable?

Many Canadian offences are hybrid: the Crown chooses to proceed summarily or by indictment. For a record suspension, what counts is how your case was actually prosecuted, which is why each court must state the method of trial on the Court Information Form. Don’t guess from the name of the offence; get the court record.

Worked example

Example. A person was convicted of theft under $5,000, prosecuted summarily, for an offence committed in 2015. Probation ended in 2017, but the restitution order was paid in full only in March 2020. The first offence was after March 13, 2012, so the waiting period is 5 years, and it runs from March 2020, not 2017. The earliest application date is March 2025.

Who can’t apply for a record suspension?

• Schedule 1 offences. Schedule 1 of the Criminal Records Act lists sexual offences, mainly those involving a child. A person convicted of one cannot apply unless the Board is satisfied that a narrow exception applies (no position of trust, no violence or coercion, and an age gap of less than five years), using the Schedule 1 Exception Form. The list was last updated in July 2026.
• More than three serious indictable convictions. A person convicted of more than three offences prosecuted by indictment, each with a sentence of two years or more, cannot apply (s. 4(2)(b)).
• Convictions outside Canada. The Criminal Records Act covers convictions in Canada under federal law. Foreign convictions must be disclosed to the PBC, but a record suspension can’t be granted for them.
• Provincial offences and bylaws. Traffic tickets and other provincial offences are not covered by a record suspension.

When you don’t need one

• Absolute or conditional discharges (see absolute and conditional discharges).
• Charges that were withdrawn, stayed or ended in an acquittal: there is no conviction to suspend.
• A youth record, unless you were convicted again as an adult within the youth access period.
• Simple possession of cannabis alone: a separate process, with no waiting period and no fee.

How long does a pardon take?

The waiting period is how long before you can apply. Processing comes after that: according to the PBC, at least six months for summary offences and at least 12 months for indictable ones once the application is accepted, and up to 24 months if the Board proposes to refuse. Collecting the RCMP record and court documents comes first and adds months. The full process is in how to get a pardon (record suspension) in Canada.

When a lawyer is worth it

One lawyer, one file, every step:

• finding the date of your first offence, which decides which rules apply;
• reading each court record for the method of trial and the date every part of the sentence ended;
• checking whether a restitution order or fine changed the start date;
• checking whether Schedule 1 or the three-offence rule applies;
• planning around immigration or US travel deadlines, where they exist.

The waiting period is arithmetic once the facts are right. The facts are the hard part: old court files, hybrid offences, restitution paid in instalments and records from several courts. Applying a year early gets the application returned; misreading a date the other way costs you a year you didn’t need to wait.

Lawyers are members of a law society (in our case, the Law Society of British Columbia), which regulates the legal advice we give and our duty to you. Pardon companies are not law firms. If the Parole Board refuses a record suspension, the decision can be challenged by judicial review in the Federal Court, where a lawyer can represent you.

Common mistakes

• Counting from the conviction date instead of the end of the sentence.
• Forgetting an unpaid fine, surcharge or restitution order.
• Assuming every offence is treated as indictable, or as summary, from its name.
• Using today’s waiting periods for an offence committed before 2010 or 2012.

Frequently asked questions

How long do you have to wait to get a pardon in Canada?

3, 5 or 10 years after your whole sentence is finished, depending on how the offence was prosecuted and the date of your first offence. For first offences on or after March 13, 2012 it is 5 years for summary conviction offences and 10 years for indictable offences.

Does my record clear automatically after 7 years in Canada?

No. A conviction stays on your record until a record suspension is ordered. Only absolute and conditional discharges are removed automatically, after one and three years.

Do I have to wait for my driving prohibition to end?

No. The PBC says a prohibition order does not need to have expired before the waiting period begins, but the record suspension won’t end the prohibition.

Can I apply if I still owe a victim surcharge?

Usually not. Surcharges must be paid, except those imposed between October 24, 2013 and December 13, 2018, which the PBC does not count.

I have a conviction in another country. Can I get a Canadian pardon for it?

No. A record suspension covers convictions in Canada. You still have to disclose foreign convictions in your application.

Related guides: how to get a pardon (record suspension) in Canada, what a pardon costs, a DUI pardon, absolute and conditional discharges, record suspensions and immigration.

What should I do right now?

Write down, for each conviction, the offence date, the sentence and the date each part of it ended, including the date you paid any fine or restitution. The earliest offence date tells you which rules apply; the latest completion date tells you when you can apply.

Book a consultation with our lawyers in Surrey, Abbotsford or Vancouver, or online from anywhere.

Ready to book? Open the booking form ↑

Sources (official)

• Parole Board of Canada: Determining your eligibility for a record suspension or pardon
• Parole Board of Canada: Got a question about your application? (page dated November 10, 2026)
• Parole Board of Canada: Applying for a record suspension (page dated October 8, 2026)
• Criminal Records Act, s. 4 (waiting periods and ineligible persons)
• Criminal Records Act, s. 4.3 (expiration of a sentence)
• Criminal Records Act, Schedule 1 (last amended July 18, 2026)
• Parole Board of Canada: Applying for a cannabis record suspension

This article is general information, not legal advice. Every case depends on its own facts.