South Africa - Remove or Clear your Criminal History (Expungement)

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Procedure

Apply In-Person:

1. To Remove or Clear your Criminal History (Expungement), the applicant must go to the Department of Justice and Constitutional Development office in South Africa. Contact Link
2. The applicant must give a written application to the “Director-General” in the Department of Justice.
3. Make sure that you have all the documents that are mentioned in the “Required Documents” section of this page.
4. The written application and all the required documents must be submitted “in-person” to the “Director-General” at the Department of Justice office directly.
5. The applicant must fulfil all the eligibility requirements as per the Section 271B (1) of Criminal Procedure Act to apply for the expungement application.
6. The written application and the other documents will be verified and analysed by the Director-General.
7. If the Director-General feels satisfied with the application, then the application will be approved and forwarded to the Criminal Record Centre of the South African Police Service.
8. After approving, the “Director-General” will issue the “Certificate of Expungement” to the applicant.
9. If the application is denied or rejected for any reason, the applicant will be informed about the decision through post with the rejection statement and reason.
10. The process to obtain the Expungement certificate will take between 6 weeks and 6 months.
11. There is no fee to apply for Expungement application in South Africa.

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Required Documents

• Written Application form.
• Police Clearance Certificate confirming that there are no convictions in the name of the applicant. (From nearest Police Station)
• Proof that the applicant’s name has been removed from the National Register of Sex Offenders or the National Child Protection Register. (If there is any)
• A Confirmation letter or a Certificate must be obtained from the Director-General, If the person’s name has been included on the National Child Protection Register.

Office Locations & Contacts

DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE AND CONSTITUIONAL DEVELOPMENT
Address – 316 Thabo Sehume St &, Francis Baard St, Pretoria Central, Pretoria, 8000, South Africa.
Telephone No: +27123154654
Address & Contact Link
Location Link

Eligibility

The applicant can apply for Expungement certificate only under the circumstances such as, if:

• A period of 10 years has passed after the date of the conviction for that offence.
• The applicant has not been convicted and sentenced to a period of imprisonment without the option of a fine during those 10 years.
• The sentence was corporal punishment.
• The sentence was postponed or the applicant were cautioned and discharged.
• The sentence was a fine not exceeding r20 000.
• The sentence was imprisonment with the option to pay a fine (not more than r20 000) instead of serving the period of imprisonment.
• The sentence of imprisonment was suspended wholly.
• The sentence was correctional supervision in terms of section 276(1)(h) of the act.
• The sentence was imprisonment in terms of section 276(1)(i) of the act.
• The sentence was periodical imprisonment in term of section 276(1)(c) of the act.
• Proof is provided that the applicant’s name has been removed from the national register of sex offenders or the National Child Protection Register, if relevant.

Fees

• There is no fee to apply for Expungement application in South Africa.

Validity

• Once the Criminal history is removed or cleared, and the applicant is issued with the Expungement Certificate by the Director-General, it is valid forever. The previous criminal history will not reflect in the Police record.

Documents to Use

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Sample Documents

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Processing Time

• The process to obtain the Expungement certificate will take between 6 weeks and 6 months.

Related Videos

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Instructions

The applicant cannot apply for Expungement certificate in cases such as:

• If the applicant were condemned of a sexual offence against a child or a mentally challenged person.
• If the applicant’s name appears in the National Register for sex offenders or the National Child Protection Register
• If the applicant’s fine is over R20,000.00.
• If the applicant has been incarcerated for a serious crime without the option of a fine.

Required Information

• Name of the applicant
• Address
• Contact Number
• Email
• Previous Criminal Record history details

Need for the Document

• Obtaining the “Expungement Certificate” will help the applicant to carry on with life without a criminal record being an obstruction for opportunities such as employment, traveling, and so on.

Information which might help

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Other uses of the Document/Certificate

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e.g., Birth Certificate can be used as proof of identity.

External Links

• External Link
• External Link

Others

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