Most people assume a criminal record means they cannot enter Canada at all. In fact, you may still be able to visit: eTA just is not the route. A “yes” to the criminal-history question on the eTA form does not refuse you on the spot — the file leaves the automated lane that clears most applicants within minutes and goes to an officer to be read by hand. That review can still end in a refusal, and when it does, two routes deal with the inadmissibility itself rather than working around it: a temporary resident permit, which sets it aside for one trip, and criminal rehabilitation, which clears it for good. A visitor visa and deemed rehabilitation also come into it, and both are covered further down — but these two are where most people’s real decision sits, so this article starts there.
If you have a criminal conviction on your record, an eTA application will very likely go to manual review, and there is no appeal process for a refused eTA. So before you submit, it is worth spending twenty minutes here to understand which of the two doors applies to you: submitting without knowing that only closes one door without opening the other. If you are ready to apply for a Canada eTA and know your history genuinely will not trigger a review, make sure your situation is clear first.
One case deserves naming on its own, because the people it affects are usually the last to expect it: impaired driving. The problem is a mismatch between two legal systems. Where the conviction happened, a first offence may sit near the bottom of the scale — a penalty paid, a licence back after a few months, a record most employers never ask about. Canadian immigration law grades it far higher. A change that took effect in December 2018 raised impaired driving to the tier Canada calls serious criminality, with a maximum penalty of ten years attached to it even on a first conviction. The practical effect is twofold: an offence dated on or after that change can render someone inadmissible, and it sits above the threshold where the passage of time resolves things on its own — so waiting it out is not a strategy here. That is precisely the situation the two routes below were built for. Where the conviction predates the change, the assessment can differ; that is a question for IRCC or an immigration lawyer to answer on your specific dates, and not one this article can settle for you.
What ‘inadmissibility’ means and how it triggers eTA rejection
Inadmissibility is the legal status that sits behind the refusal. It means you are not permitted to enter Canada under the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act. The practical consequence is that a visa, an eTA, and entry at the border can all be denied on the same grounds.
The eTA application asks you to declare criminal history and previous refusals. If you answer truthfully and a disqualifying record exists, the application is refused. If you answer untruthfully, you create a misrepresentation finding that follows you into every future application: and that is genuinely harder to overcome than the original offence.
An important distinction: inadmissibility does not mean permanently barred. It means you need a different route than eTA, and in most cases that route exists. The question is which one applies to your situation and how long it takes.
For context on what happens after a refusal lands in your inbox, the article on what to do after a Canada eTA refusal covers the immediate next steps.
The two doors: a temporary resident permit, or criminal rehabilitation
Here is where the branching actually matters. Which door applies to you depends mainly on one thing: how long ago your sentence ended.
Door 1: Temporary Resident Permit (TRP)
A TRP is not a rehabilitation and it does not resolve your inadmissibility. It authorizes one named trip and nothing beyond it, granted at an officer’s judgement while the inadmissibility stays on the record, untouched. This is the door available when it has been less than five years since your sentence ended — before you are even eligible to apply for rehabilitation — or when an officer judges that your reason for travelling outweighs the risk. Even for a minor record, you still have to show the trip is genuinely justified; a TRP is not granted automatically just because you asked.
Because a TRP is discretionary and tied to one visit, it does not carry forward. A new trip after your permit expires generally means asking again, and the officer reassesses the justification each time — the earlier approval is not a standing pass.
Door 2: Criminal rehabilitation
If at least five years have passed since the end of your criminal sentence — and that means the full sentence: any custody, any probation, any fine actually paid, and any licence suspension actually served — you can apply for individual rehabilitation. Approval means the inadmissibility is formally resolved, permanently, not just for one trip. After that, an eTA or visitor visa application proceeds without the criminal history as a live obstacle.
To qualify, you need to show that you have been rehabilitated and are highly unlikely to commit further offences. The application goes by mail or courier to the visa office responsible for your region. It cannot be submitted online. Processing typically takes over a year. That is not a pessimistic estimate; it is the realistic one, and planning around it matters.
One sequence point that catches people: you must receive rehabilitation approval before applying for an eTA. Applying for the eTA first, while rehabilitation is pending or unapproved, will result in the eTA being refused.
A related route, deemed rehabilitation, can resolve some older or less serious cases automatically without a formal application — but it turns on the specific offence classification, and it is exactly the kind of borderline question worth confirming with a lawyer or the visa office before you rely on it rather than applying for a TRP or formal rehabilitation.
Timeline and cost reality for each path
| Situation | eTA eligible? | Can apply for visitor visa? | Need rehabilitation? | Realistic timeline |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Criminal conviction, sentence ended 5+ years ago | No (until resolved) | Yes, or may be deemed rehabilitated | Possibly not, check deemed rehab criteria | Visitor visa processing varies; deemed rehab assessment can be done before applying |
| Criminal conviction, sentence ended less than 5 years ago | No | Yes, or consider TRP | Not yet eligible for individual rehab | Visitor visa or TRP processing varies |
| Previous visa refusal (not misrepresentation) | No | Yes | No, but refusal history must be disclosed | Processing varies depending on application completeness |
| Previous refusal involving misrepresentation | No | Possible, but more difficult | No, but misrepresentation is its own inadmissibility ground | Longer; legal advice strongly recommended |
| Medical inadmissibility | No | Possibly, with medical exam | Not applicable, different process | Depends on medical exam results; exam results valid for 12 months |
Visitor visa processing times vary based on application completeness, volume, and how easily your information can be verified. Building in several months is prudent; building in weeks is not.
Mistakes that get people turned away or set further back
Applying for an eTA without resolving inadmissibility first. The refusal is recorded and there is no appeal. A refused eTA application is recorded in your immigration history.
Assuming a foreign pardon clears the path automatically. A record suspension or discharge from another country does not automatically resolve inadmissibility in Canada. Whether it is valid in Canada depends on the specific country and the nature of the pardon. This needs to be confirmed with the visa office serving your country of residence before you apply for anything.
Applying for an eTA while a rehabilitation application is still pending. The rehabilitation has to be approved first. Submitting an eTA application in parallel, hoping one of them works out, results in the eTA being refused and the rehabilitation timeline being unaffected.
Underestimating how far back the record check goes. A conviction from fifteen years ago in another country is not invisible. Assume it is known.
Leaving the visitor visa application until the last few weeks before travel. Visitor visa processing does not include biometrics time, and biometrics appointments are not always available immediately. If you need a visitor visa, start the process months before your intended travel date, not weeks.
When to consult an immigration lawyer (and when you must)
For a straightforward criminal inadmissibility with a clear timeline (sentence ended, five-plus years elapsed, single offence), you can often navigate the visitor visa or rehabilitation process without legal help. The forms are detailed but workable.
There are situations where legal advice is not optional. If your previous refusal involved a finding of misrepresentation, get legal advice before submitting anything. Misrepresentation findings are serious and can affect future applications. If you were previously deported, you may need an Authorization to Return to Canada before any other application is relevant, and that process requires careful handling.
The difference between a lawyer being useful and a lawyer being necessary usually comes down to whether the inadmissibility is clear-cut or contested. When it is contested (when you disagree with the grounds, when the record is ambiguous, when misrepresentation is involved) professional advice pays for itself.
If your situation involves dual citizenship and you are unsure which passport to use for any application, the article on applying for a Canada eTA with dual citizenship is worth reading before you proceed.
Action Steps
Identify your inadmissibility category. Criminal conviction, previous refusal, misrepresentation, or medical: each one has a different path. Do not proceed until you know which applies.
If criminal inadmissibility: calculate your timeline. When did your sentence (including probation) end? If five or more years have passed and the offence carries a maximum Canadian prison term of under ten years, check whether deemed rehabilitation applies before doing anything else.
If deemed rehabilitation may apply: confirm the offence classification with a lawyer or the visa office before applying for an eTA or visitor visa. This step costs relatively little and can save the application.
If you need individual rehabilitation: submit that application by mail or courier to the responsible visa office first. Do not apply for an eTA until you have written confirmation of approval. Build over a year into your planning.
If the visitor visa route is appropriate: gather your valid passport (at least six months of remaining validity), prepare to pay the processing and biometrics fees, and book a biometrics appointment early. It sits outside the main processing time.
If misrepresentation or security grounds are involved: consult an immigration lawyer before submitting any application. This is the one case where the sequence matters most and the consequences of getting it wrong are hardest to reverse.
Once rehabilitation is confirmed or a visitor visa is approved: check your eTA status if an eTA application is part of your path, and verify that all passport details on any application match your travel document exactly before you book flights.