Spent Conviction Query

[Heisgood]

With six month to go for BC. I have started preparation for my final hurdle. I have two FPN issued by the court in 2006 and 2007.On both accounts I paid £60 and racked up 3 point on my license. The offences were breaking a traffic light and another for driving above speed limit. Both have been spent about a year ago as per 5yr rule. Is this an issue for British Citizenship?. I am prepared to declare it as per the form requesting spent and unspent conviction. Thanks.

[Amber]

With six month to go for BC. I have started preparation for my final hurdle. I have two FPN issued by the court in 2006 and 2007.On both accounts I paid £60 and racked up 3 point on my license. The offences were breaking a traffic light and another for driving above speed limit. Both have been spent about a year ago as per 5yr rule. Is this an issue for British Citizenship?. I am prepared to declare it as per the form requesting spent and unspent conviction. Thanks.

No, unless you went to court and were convicted - a summons, and the offences are ones of recklessness - even then it's unlikely to prove disastrous.

[Heisgood]

With six month to go for BC. I have started preparation for my final hurdle. I have two FPN issued by the court in 2006 and 2007.On both accounts I paid £60 and racked up 3 point on my license. The offences were breaking a traffic light and another for driving above speed limit. Both have been spent about a year ago as per 5yr rule. Is this an issue for British Citizenship?. I am prepared to declare it as per the form requesting spent and unspent conviction. Thanks.

No.

Thanks for your prompt response. Now I will be the slowest driver on the road for the next 6mths! Is there clear guidance around spent convictions on the HO website? And lastly is there a special section on the form to declare spent convictions? Thanks.

[Amber]

With six month to go for BC. I have started preparation for my final hurdle. I have two FPN issued by the court in 2006 and 2007.On both accounts I paid £60 and racked up 3 point on my license. The offences were breaking a traffic light and another for driving above speed limit. Both have been spent about a year ago as per 5yr rule. Is this an issue for British Citizenship?. I am prepared to declare it as per the form requesting spent and unspent conviction. Thanks.

No.

Thanks for your prompt response. Now I will be the slowest driver on the road for the next 6mths! Is there clear guidance around spent convictions on the HO website? And lastly is there a special section on the form to declare spent convictions? Thanks.

Spent convictions are those spent under the Rehabilitation of Offender Act 1974 (see http://www.yourrights.org.uk/yourrights ... spent.html) a fine would become spent (at the moment) after 5 years. However, for the purpose of naturalisation the Good Character requirement is what matters. In such case a non-custodial sentence would not create an automatic refusal after 3 years. However, for offences of recklessness i.e. excessive speeding can still be taken into account after 3 years and could potentially lead to a refusal however unlikely. In determining whether an applicant meets the "good character" requirement, caseworkers should not normally take into account fixed penalty notices, unless the applicant has received numerous fixed penalty notices in the last 12 months You must declare any spent and unspent convictions and anything else that may bring into doubt your character.

[Heisgood]

With six month to go for BC. I have started preparation for my final hurdle. I have two FPN issued by the court in 2006 and 2007.On both accounts I paid £60 and racked up 3 point on my license. The offences were breaking a traffic light and another for driving above speed limit. Both have been spent about a year ago as per 5yr rule. Is this an issue for British Citizenship?. I am prepared to declare it as per the form requesting spent and unspent conviction. Thanks.

No.

Thanks for your prompt response. Now I will be the slowest driver on the road for the next 6mths! Is there clear guidance around spent convictions on the HO website? And lastly is there a special section on the form to declare spent convictions? Thanks.

Spent convictions are those spent under the Rehabilitation of Offender Act 1974 (see http://www.yourrights.org.uk/yourrights ... spent.html) a fine would become spent (at the moment) after 5 years. However, for the purpose of naturalisation the Good Character requirement is what matters. In such case a non-custodial sentence would not create an automatic refusal after 3 years. However, for offences of recklessness i.e. excessive speeding can still be taken into account after 3 years and could potentially lead to a refusal however unlikely. In determining whether an applicant meets the "good character" requirement, caseworkers should not normally take into account fixed penalty notices, unless the applicant has received numerous fixed penalty notices in the last 12 months You must declare any spent and unspent convictions and anything else that may bring into doubt your character.

Thanks "D4109125" . None was reckless so hopefully I should be in the clear.

[Wokstar]

With six month to go for BC. I have started preparation for my final hurdle. I have two FPN issued by the court in 2006 and 2007.On both accounts I paid £60 and racked up 3 point on my license. The offences were breaking a traffic light and another for driving above speed limit. Both have been spent about a year ago as per 5yr rule. Is this an issue for British Citizenship?. I am prepared to declare it as per the form requesting spent and unspent conviction. Thanks.

Firstly, FPN is not a conviction. Hence, it cannot be spent or unspent.
Secondly, Form AN states in para 3.7
Note: We will carry out criminal record checks on all applicants. You must give details of all unspent and spent criminal convictions. This includes road traffic offences but not fixed penalty notices (such as speeding or parking tickets) unless they were part of a sentence of the court. This includes all drink-driving offences. This clearly says that FPN details need not be detailed as they not constitute the kind or criminal or civil judgment/ penalty that UKBA wants to know about.

So, the bottom line is that uncomlicated FPNs do not count, unless one is a prolific offender.

Therefore, no worries my friend.

[Amber]

With six month to go for BC. I have started preparation for my final hurdle. I have two FPN issued by the court in 2006 and 2007.On both accounts I paid £60 and racked up 3 point on my license. The offences were breaking a traffic light and another for driving above speed limit. Both have been spent about a year ago as per 5yr rule. Is this an issue for British Citizenship?. I am prepared to declare it as per the form requesting spent and unspent conviction. Thanks.

Firstly, FPN is not a conviction. Hence, it cannot be spent or unspent.
Secondly, Form AN states in para 3.7
Note: We will carry out criminal record checks on all applicants. You must give details of all unspent and spent criminal convictions. This includes road traffic offences but not fixed penalty notices (such as speeding or parking tickets) unless they were part of a sentence of the court. This includes all drink-driving offences. This clearly says that FPN details need not be detailed as they not constitute the kind or criminal or civil judgment/ penalty that UKBA wants to know about.

So, the bottom line is that uncomlicated FPNs do not count, unless one is a prolific offender.

Therefore, no worries my friend.

However, I don't believe the op was convicted at Court, I think they were just standard FPNs.

[Heisgood]

With six month to go for BC. I have started preparation for my final hurdle. I have two FPN issued by the court in 2006 and 2007.On both accounts I paid £60 and racked up 3 point on my license. The offences were breaking a traffic light and another for driving above speed limit. Both have been spent about a year ago as per 5yr rule. Is this an issue for British Citizenship?. I am prepared to declare it as per the form requesting spent and unspent conviction. Thanks.

Firstly, FPN is not a conviction. Hence, it cannot be spent or unspent.
Secondly, Form AN states in para 3.7
Note: We will carry out criminal record checks on all applicants. You must give details of all unspent and spent criminal convictions. This includes road traffic offences but not fixed penalty notices (such as speeding or parking tickets) unless they were part of a sentence of the court. This includes all drink-driving offences. This clearly says that FPN details need not be detailed as they not constitute the kind or criminal or civil judgment/ penalty that UKBA wants to know about.

So, the bottom line is that uncomlicated FPNs do not count, unless one is a prolific offender.

Therefore, no worries my friend.

However, I don't believe the op was convicted at Court, I think they were just standard FPNs.

To Clarify as I found the old documentation. They were issued by the magistrate courtas on my driver licenses paperwork it had the following:

Court Fine imposed £60 on each occassion
Offence code SP30 and TS10 respectively

SP30 Exceeding statutory speed limit on a public road.
TS10 Failing to comply with traffic light signals

As I said they took place in 2006 and I was fined by the magistrate court in 2007 via letters (Never set foot in a court and no plans to). After reading the relevant guidance this has been spent and also isn't in the excessive category so should not be an issue. I did not declare them for ILR as they were spent however with the new changes I will declare them on the form accordingly. I will also provide my new shinny counterpart with no points. Thanks for all the input, hopefully this will also help someone else approaching Everest, I mean BC.

Drivers on the brink of conquering what feels like Everest (BC) please drive carefully, no mobile phone, no driving through lights, drink driving ....and the list goes on else you may have to climb the mountain over again !