There are no felonies in Canada, period. There might have been during the Imperial era, but even the Empire stopped using that term a long time ago.

Keep digging that hole.

http://www.nationalpardon.org/blog/n...-vs-indictable DUI is neither a felony nor indictable offense. As I noted to our resident CBSA official, Canada is applying a double standard.

He said: "How is this a safety or security issue ?" and what he meant was this thread is off-topic, being a Canadian Customs/immigration issue, and should have been posted elsewhere since it doesn't deal with airline/airport security or the TSA.

I also agree, I shouldn't have assumed everyone knows about this law. I, myself, only learned about it in 2008 or 2009.

Canada it the ONLY country on the planet I've completely written off ever visiting due to this reason. I am sure neither of us will miss each other in the slightest. I spend lots of travel dollars that I am sure they can live without. Canada has cultural and natural assets that I can live without.

No sense crying over it if me and Canada can't make a love connection.

Moral of the story. "Most" other countries are far more tourist friendly than Canada. Tourists should make their plans accordingly.

This section from the Canadian Immigration website seems to apply to your co-worker's situation:

http://www.cic.gc.ca/english/informa...des/5312E5.asp

"Rehabilitation for persons who are inadmissible to Canada because of past criminal activity (IMM 5312)

Coming to, or remaining in Canada without approval of rehabilitation

If you need to come to Canada, but cannot apply for rehabilitation because five years have not passed since the end of the sentence imposed or you are not eligible to apply for a pardon for convictions in Canada, you may ask an officer for special permission to enter or remain in Canada. Complete the Application for Criminal Rehabilitation, but check the box that states, “For Information Only.” Attach the documents outlined in the Document Checklist. After reviewing the form and looking at the nature of the offences, number of offences, when they happened and your current situation, the officer may:


At Canadian visa offices outside of Canada

advise that they do not recommend that you travel to Canada; or,
advise that you could apply for special permission (temporary resident’s permit) to enter Canada*.


At Ports of Entry (airport, marine or land)
(Contact your nearest Canadian visa office before travelling to Canada.)

advise that you will not be allowed to enter Canada and ask you to return immediately to your country of departure;
take enforcement action (arrest, detention and/or removal); or,
advise that you could apply for special permission (temporary resident’s permit) to enter Canada*.


In Canada

ask that you leave Canada voluntarily;
take enforcement action (arrest, detention, and/or removal from Canada); or
advise that you could apply for special permission (temporary resident’s permit) to remain in Canada*.

*There will be processing fees for applications for special permission to come into or remain in Canada. You will be advised of the processing fees at the time, or you can refer to our website for further details."


[end]

In the past, people have been successful getting in to Canada at the border by emphasizing they are a tourist and there to spend lots of money (no kidding). But you have to convince the Border Agent you are dealing with of this, and he has final discretion...period...even if you already have a Temporary Resident Permit or Certificate of Rehabilitation. He could just as likely send you home, as he did to the OP's co-worker.

Offences like impaired operation that may be prosecuted either summarily or by way of indictment are deemed (for immigration purposes) to be indictable offences, even if prosecuted summarily. You can call it a double standard if you like, but it's the law: paragraph 36(3)(a) of the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act.

And you're right about the word "felony" not being within the lexicon of the Canadian legal system.

I may be wrong, but I heard Israel is equally as strict in this regard. Other countries do not care as much and do not have ready access to the relevant US databases to check, including the entire EU. Of course, if you make a false declaration that you have no record when in fact you do, even if they can't check on the spot, you are still violating that country's laws and this could come back to haunt you.

Have to say, anybody trying to travel internationally with a criminal record should be very careful, this guy should have known better. Probably figured Canada was laid back about tourists from USA... However, as someone without a criminal record, I think this policy is a bit too strict. Just my opinion...

Agreed. My mom and I both have criminal records, and she is cruising in June from San Francisco to Alaska, with one international stop at Victoria on the way back. Her charge of trespassing is from the late 1970's, but it may not be in the FBI's NCIC database.

I, OTOH, have at least 11 misdemeanor convictions and a felony arrest, as well as multiple active arrest warrants from out of state, so I am not bothering to go with her. Plus I'd rather not be stuck on a ship for 10 days.

BTW, Canada only started really enforcing this law in the mid-2000's, after the US started turning away Canadians with records after 9/11. Tit for tat.

Back to my original post, any chances the insurance or CC company will cover this loss?

http://www.insurancesmartbook.com/tr...l_of_entry.htm

"Visa Rules For the USA - Beware - Travel Insurance May Not Cover Denial of Entry!"

"One good reason to make sure your visa is in order - and one that many travellers may not be aware of - is that if anything should go wrong travel insurance policies usually exclude claims for losses associated with failure to obtain necessary visas. Ignorance is no excuse - and being denied entry could cause a lot of unnecessary expense - not to mention crushing disappointment."

Re the credit card chargeback, usually you have to prove that the service was not rendered or the product was not delivered or was defective. In this case, the service was offered, but your friend was not fully eligible to take advantage of it due to his inadmissibility to Canada. IOW, the resort or travel agency offered the product in good faith and it's not their fault he was inadmissible. So I am assuming the chargeback would be denied.

The chance of any kind of redress appears low. Ultimately, this is a question that can only be answered by reading through the fine print on the insurance contract and the cardholder agreement of the credit card, though.

It should be fairly easy for the co-worker to locate the travel insurance contract which would list exactly what the insurance covers and under what circumstances. However, since the policy under which the co-worker was denied entry has been publicized by the Canadian immigration authorities, the U.S. State Department, the media and travel information websites such as this, it seems unlikely the policy will cover any expense arising out of failure to comply with the policy unless it is a particularly generous insurance policy.

Right, when they do it, it is about security (as they see it-- want to avoid that discussion), not about having a criminal record. Notice how, where it talks about whom the Israelis scrutinize, it does not mention those with a criminal record, unlike Canada-- it talks about other factors. Like I said before, having the power to run someone through a database is different than rejecting someone because of a criminal record, and I still don't see any evidence of that anywhere in the quote above.

Pretty much any summary offence in Canada can be prosecuted as an indictable offence, correct?

No. Some are strictly summary offences. Others are purely indictable. Others still are dual procedure or hybrid offences. It is these dual procedure or hybrid offences that are deemed indictable for immigration purposes.

1) Non-citizens do not have an automatic right to enter another country.

2) Countries are free to set policies that restrict non-citizens from entry.

3) DUI is a crime in most places in the world.

4) Criminals are not wanted in Canada nor in most countries.

5) Canada has a process to review admissibility for people that are normally inadmissible.