RCMP Fingerprints for waivers, processing (wait) times?

Boposted 8 years ago

Hi,

Does anyone have a general idea on RCMP fingerprint check processing times, whether you had one done at the police station or thru a company.

I kind of get the realization depending on the criminal record it could be as fast as a couple of weeks, to a standstill of nearly a year.

A simple guideline would be helpful ... this is my 1st waiver I am applying for and this forum has got some great tips and ideas on how to get it done myself instead of paying like thousands of dollars.

RCMP website says 120 days is the normal standard.

Thanks for the help!!

Replies (recent first):

#39 Yes I have one charge/conviction on my record and the rcmp results stated that. Had the prints done at commissionaires and rcmp results in my mailbox in 10 business days. I am on the east coast of Canada.

Becca replied 5 years ago   #43

They all come regular mail, so there should not be a massive difference. Brampton Ottawa SHOULD be a bit faster than Ottawa out west, but maybe there are other factors at play as well. I agree very inconsistent.

JOHN ROGERS replied 5 years ago   #42

@John Rogers #41..it is all over the place, never consistent..I tell my clients always, 6-10 weeks for criminal records and 2 weeks for no record...If I had to put a more defined time..I would say 3 to 4 weeks....rarely do I get them sooner..

Michelle replied 5 years ago   #41

Ken we get a ton of our own prints but we also get some other prints back, and its taking about 2 weeks at most for no record and 3 weeks at most if the record is there. The odd one goes longer but we even have some in 3-4 business days. Could it be the distance from BC from Ottawa vs us in the GTA?

Michelle? Whats your fingerprinting time?

JOHN ROGERS replied 5 years ago   #40

@Sephh123 #27....Before I advise the best course for you..I need to know what your court documents say for charge and sentence disposition? Interesting that CPIC comes back clear...did you receive a Absolute or Conditional Discharge? I am very curious as too what is going on...Thanks!

Michelle replied 5 years ago   #39

Becca, does your conviction show up on your prints? Or does it say that there is no record? Just curious.... Prints are averaging about 30 days to come back for our clients that have their convictions showing. Prints that do not show the conviction are coming back 7 to 10 days for us.

K SCOTT replied 5 years ago   #38

Just got my fingerprints back. 10 business days total.

becca replied 5 years ago   #37

Fingerprints are still very fast. I am telling people waivers can be obtained in 5 months very easily, 4 months at best. Anyone waiting for 8-10 months is not getting good service. Do NOT wait for court documents unless you have Arson or something weird as a conviction.

Hand in your waiver ASAP...then send away for the court documents in CASE they ask for them. 1 out of 20 applicants in my office gets this request.

If you are with a company and you are waiting for your package, call them and ask them for your forms ASAP...don't wait for court documents, they are just dragging their feet.

JOHN ROGERS replied 6 years ago   #36

@John Rogers

All right John. You are right. Have a great day.

Hats Boots Hat replied 6 years ago   #35

Hats Boots Hats Boot...this is my real name with my real Cell phone. I run a real waiver business with a real office and real clients. No deception. I put these facts in writing and I can back up every claim.

No one has no idea who you are, so you have no accountability or credibility. Your saying very vague general statements about "always being honest", does that also mean that when you find $20 you add it to your taxable income?

Your statements are naive and unhelpful. People want to know real facts, not philosophical musings about honesty.

JOHN ROGERS replied 6 years ago   #34

@John Rogers.

What I stated is pretty much true. You can continue to decieve people.

Honesty is the best policy. Do things the proper way and avoid hastles..

Hats Boots Hats Boot replied 6 years ago   #33

Hats boots hats...thats a lot of words, but many of them are very inaccurate. If you don't KNOW about something, its better not to comment. People are looking for help and advice, and many of your comments are completely false and inaccurate.

You may want to start with "much of this is just opinion".

JOHN ROGERS replied 6 years ago   #32

@Sephh123 & friens9999

You should never lie to border officials but if you tell the truth, you risk being denied entry or worse, being thrown in jail. A Canadian Pardon is not recognized by US authorities and Canada doesn't recognize any US expungements, presidential pardons, state pardons or vindicatons. I believe this is a sort of payback from both sides for not recognizing each other's pardons. Other countries also don't recognize Canadian Pardons. A Canadian pardon is only good for Canada.

The US is even more strict about criminal records than Canada or any other country for that matter. Each state has different judicial systems, so it's hard to navigate through the system without a lawyer, who will bleed you dry. Criminal reform is underway however and laws over there are changing on the state level. However, the US federal government doesn't really believe in rehabilitation and it's very hard to get a pardon from them. Bottom line, don't get arrested.

The US federal immigration laws supercede all state laws, so if you have a criminal history elsewhere, might as well just apply for their "money-grab" waiver to show them you are not a danger to society. People should be thankful there is a US waiver because they can frankly deny all people with a criminal history. Obviously, they know that will hurt tourism.

Not all border officials are trained lawyers or law-makers to know their own country's penal code or immigration rules. They are given the right to refuse anyone if they think they are a threat. The more they refuse because of security concerns, the more chances of getting a promotion. This is what happens in a panicked world with terrorism paranoia.

Sadly, if you had a simple brush with the law in Canada, your traveling days are almost done. However, you can still travel to most countries without being asked about your past for now. Enjoy it now before it's too late.

But I believe the US has started a trend of barring people with criminal histories or health concerns. As you can see, many countries are following the US model including Canada, Australia, UK, New Zealand and probably soon Japan, China and the EU. The electronic visa system is coming and most countries who use it already ask for your health or criminal history. Also, most countries are fingerprinting tourists or new residents, so most likely Canada will reveal your record if asked by a foreign government even if you have a canadian pardon. I believe Harper signed this into law.

Most countries now share info on their citizens or are signing deals to do so. This is why country leaders visit other foreign officials but the tell us it's for economic reasons. Your passport doesn't guarantee right of entry. You don't know what is shared about you to foreign governments or what your passport reveals about you. They will never tell you the truth obviously. Not even lawyers can answer that for you. If you have an arrest warrant or are convicted or accused of a sexual or drug crime, then you are in Interpol which almost all countries have access to. Then, your traveling days are over. A Canadian Pardon will never erase that.

I would just be honest here. If you want to go to the US with a canadian criminal record, be honest and hope for the best. A canadian summary offence which means max penalty is up to six months imprisonment in Canada other than narcotics (yes marijuana is still a narcotic for US federal authorities), a canadian absolute discharge for an offence, a sealed canadian juvenile criminal record which means under the age of 18, a canadian peace bond (considered deferred adjudication in the US), dropped charges (most charges are dropped or withdrawn if accused enters peace bond), acquittals or a crime that is not of moral turpitude like a DUI conviction, general assault offence and having a weapon without a license charge should not bar you entry to the US. Note, a crime of moral turpitude is described as doing something against society's accepted morals. In other words, with evil intent. A part from driving drunk or not registering a firearm (we all know the US has no issues with guns), everything else is a crime of moral turpitude. General assault can get you a free pass because your emotions can make you slap or punch someone without necessarily wanting to harm them. Also repeated DUIs can also bar you entry if you spent more than 5 years in jail. Also, some things in Canada are not illegal like prostitution, this is a US crime however. Admitting to doing prostitution to US border officials will bar you entry.

I am not here to discuss about what should in reality be a crime of moral turpitude, I am just here talking about US law.

If I were you, I would try to get the proper documents, that is a US entry waiver, before going without being hastled if you have a canadian criminal record. If you have a pardon and never went before, try your luck. Make sure nothing shows up on the RCMP database before going. You can lie or answer their questions truthfully. I believe nobody can help you here. It all depends on the border official. Be respectful and honest, I believe this is your best policy.

It takes a group of people who happened to make mistakes in the past and have become model citizens to force governments to stop this new exaggerated frenzy. Just as with gay marriage and weed legalization, more voices need to be heard to stop this new barring policy. In the US, you have groups advocating for criminal reform but nobody seems to care about how a wrongful arrest or 911 call can make you inadmissible to another country.

Canada has a good system I believe with pardons. What needs to change is what is shown on that RCMP database. We don't really know what is shown even after a pardon is granted. People are not convicted sometimes (peace bonded, discharged, dropped charges) or acquitted but the info can be stored on the system forever even if people take steps to remove it. This can make someone inadmissable to the US. As stated earlier, a US border official can deny you entry even if you were acquitted if he belives you did the crime.

The present government is failing on its commitment to make changes on this matter. I can't blame them though because you have people out there believing everyone must be thrown in jail for stealing a piece of bread. Local canadian police forces also store non conviction information which is hard to erase. We don't know if this is shared with local US police agencies. Again, they will never tell you.

I don't believe politicians are interested in doing anything about criminal reform as more and more people are scarred about terrorism, governments are taking advantage of the situation, collecting all kinds of info on us. Nobody is talking about this and considers it normal. Those who dare say something about civil liberties being infriged upon are easily silenced. I believe I said too much.

This is what society has created.

Hats Boots Hats replied 6 years ago   #31

In Canada, dealing with Canadian authorities, telling the truth is good advice.

When dealing with Homeland Security, is it smart to always tell the truth when they do not follow suit?

For example, if you have a Pardoned record and have never been denied entry into the United States, is it fair that DHS thinks the Canadian Government is qualified to decided you should have a record, but not to forgive you for that same crime?

I get why Homeland Security does it, they want to decide based on THEIR values. I get it.

But in Canada we have Pardons. Since they won't 'respect' the Pardon, I do not think its smart to reveal you have one.

The difference will be thousands of dollars and a lot of hassle over a lifetime.

JOHN ROGERS replied 6 years ago   #30

Million dollar suggestion always tell the truth...Honesty is the best policy. If border guard ask you say yes.

friend9999 replied 6 years ago   #29

thanks for the reply john ,

You said to not mention i been arrested , say nothing shows up on CPIC and the border agent still ask me if i ever been arrested , should i lie and say no or do i tell the truth ?

Sephh123 replied 6 years ago   #28

If you have nothing showing on CPIC, then Homeland Security cannot see it. They have no access to court documents.

But, to be sure, do Fingerprints for the purpose of a Pardon/Record Suspension. If its the same result...then travel to the United States but NEVER mention you were ever arrested.

JOHN ROGERS replied 6 years ago   #27

I would of made my own thread but for some reason i get a message saying i don't have permission .

My question is related to this topic so here it goes

have a criminal record for possession of material to do fraud. Got 3 months house arrest .That was all done 2 years ago .

My problem is if i go to the court house i can print out my criminal record but whenever i send my prints to the RCMP to get my criminal record it comes back within a week saying i have no record . I tried this 3 times so far and always came back with no record

If i try to cross the US border for a weekend , will they see that i have criminal record or will it not show up since i'm assuming cpic = RCMP database ?

What's the worst case scenario if i show up by car at the border , the agent ask me if i have a record and i tell them what i have , can they impound my vehicle ? will they detained me ? will they simply deny entry and let me go home ?

Thanks

Sephh123 replied 6 years ago   #26

Fingerprints for waivers WITH a criminal record are about 2-3 weeks on average. If there is NO record they can be very fast. 3-10 days. This is a great time for fingerprints. We do a lot of fingerprints for all different reasons, contract security, citizenship, PR card. I have a good overview of how quick they are coming in.

JOHN ROGERS replied 6 years ago   #25

I got a reply from the RCMP in 9 days

Bazz replied 6 years ago   #24

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