Received Ready for Visa email for my PR application but confused about a past reckless driving charge(no conviction)

[APcanada01]

Hi Friends,

I applied for PR application on 1st week of Dec 2019 after receiving an ITA in Sept 2019. I was living in United States at that time. On 31 Dec 2019 I was charged with reckless driving in Virginia driving at a higher speed than the defined limit.So this incident happened after I submitted all my documents for PR application. In Virginia reckless driving is a criminal offence. The court hearing for this charge was on May 2020. In the final disposition the judge reduced my charges to a speeding infraction (which is a traffic violation and not a criminal offence). So I was not convicted of any criminal offence. I paid the court fines after few days of the disposition.
After waiting for almost 2 and a half years I finally received the Ready For Visa email for my PR application few days back. The RFV letter asks for criminal charge/conviction on the “Change of circumstances” section. My representative said this is for any charge/conviction after issuance of PR so I don’t need to mention anything out here. He also said IRCC would have already pulled my US record and have still granted me a PR since it’s not a serious criminal offence and I wasn’t even convicted of the same. I know this question will come up again in the COPR letter and I have to fill it at the port of entry when I land in Canada. Can someone please guide me on what to do in this situation?

I want to land in Canada without facing any consequence of this criminal charge which was later reduced to a speeding infraction.

 

[APcanada01]

Can anyone please help me out with my above query

 

[Kayne]

You don't have any criminal convictions so do not complicate your situation unnecessarily. Follow your rep's advise and say no. You have no criminal record. Congrats on your new life in Canada.

 

[APcanada01]

You don't have any criminal convictions so do not complicate your situation unnecessarily. Follow your rep's advise and say no. You have no criminal record. Congrats on your new life in Canada.

Thanks a lot Kayne. This definitely helps

 

[Ponga]

Maybe you could get a second opinion. Having not seen the actual letter, I suggest this if there is a question asking if you have been charged or convicted after applying. If it does NOT, then no need to read further. I suspect that it may, but only you would know. I did find this:

STEP 1: Change in Circumstances:
Should any of the following circumstances apply to you or any accompanying family member,
you must inform this office immediately:
 Change in marital status, for example due to marriage, divorce, legal separation,
annulment or death of spouse;
 Change in family composition, for example due to adoption or birth of a child, including a
child born to your accompanying dependent child,
 Death of principal applicant, spouse, accompanying children, or death of sponsoring
relative;
 Change in health;
 You or any of your accompanying family members being charged or convicted of a
criminal offence
 Change in contact information: mailing address, e-mail address, or telephone number.
Your failure to inform us of any of these changes may result in the cancellation of your
permanent resident visa and may render you and your accompanying family members
inadmissible to Canada.




Since you were charged less than 1 month after submitting your PR application, it looks like you do need to disclose that you were charged, but not convicted, just to be open and transparent (and possibly face a rejected PR application). If I recall correctly, I was asked if I had been charged or convicted, post application, of anything when I attended my landing interview.

From the Google:
Depending on the exact wording, a misdemeanor reckless driving charge in the United States may be equivalent to the charge of "dangerous operation of a motor vehicle" in Canada. This hybrid infraction, found in section 249(1)(a) of the Canadian Criminal Code, may be an indictable offense punishable by up to ten years imprisonment, and as a result, any foreign conviction that equates to this crime can render a person inadmissible to Canada for life. In December 2018, Canada passed new impaired driving laws and as a result crimes such as reckless driving, hit and run, flight from a police officer, and operating with a suspended license are now considered serious criminality.
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Obviously, since your charge was lowered to a speeding ticket, you certainly want to make sure that IF the original charge shows up during your PR application process, that they also have the rest of the story- that the charge was reduced. They should, but again...if you are asked if you have been charged or convicted since your application was submitted, you have to say "yes". Otherwise, it's misrepresentation on your part.

Just my $0.02 of course.

 

[Ponga]

Hi Friends,

I applied for PR application on 1st week of Dec 2019 after receiving an ITA in Sept 2019. I was living in United States at that time.
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I want to land in Canada without facing any consequence of this criminal charge which was later reduced to a speeding infraction.

Any update on what you've decided to do?