Can the Home Office see all old Cautions and Convictions ?

[Tuvoc]

In May 2013 the law was amended so that very old cautions and convictions would not be disclosed (apart from certain exceptions). So for example, a simple caution over 6 years old would not be disclosed on standard or enhanced checks.

But do the Home Office still see these ? I have read that they may have direct access to the PNC (police national computer), but also that they don't have the same level of access as the police themselves do. So, do the Home Office see everything, or just the filtered data ?

Of course you are now requried to disclose everything, and you must do so or risk your application being rejected. But I am curious on this point. Possibly the only people who can answer this are past or present UKBA employees.

What is the new filtering legislation about?

Previously, all convictions, cautions, final warnings and reprimands on the Police National Computer were disclosed on Standard and Enhanced DBS (formerly ‘CRB’) certificates until a person reached 100 years of age.

On the 29th May 2013, an amendment to The Police Act 1997 was implemented that allows certain minor offences to be removed or ‘filtered’ from the certificates.

[soma7474]

You have to disclose each and every thing in your application form.

so UKBA deal with you fairly.

[Amber]

The amendments of the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 and Police Act 1997 as a result of R (T & Others) v Chief Constable of Greater Manchester Police [2013] have no bearing whatsoever on Immigration and Nationality applications because:

1. Immigration and Nationality application are exempt from Rehabilitation time periods as per s.140 Legal Aid, Sentencing and Punishment of Offenders Act 2012 and

2. The Home Office do not use DBS certificates as they have direct access to PNC data.

Therefore, all previous convictions, cautions, reprimands and warnings at home or abroad should be declared whether 'spent' or 'filtered'.

[soma7474]

Amber is right

[Tuvoc]

2. The Home Office do not use DBS certificates as they have direct access to PNC data.

Yes, but do they have the exact same level of access as the police themselves do, and can they see everything that the police can see ? This is the bit I'm curious about.

Therefore, all previous convictions, cautions, reprimands and warnings at home or abroad should be declared whether 'spent' or 'filtered'.

Yes I agree that they must be declared. That seems to have been the sole purpose of the new September 2013 Form AN. The December 2012 form did not ask for it, even though it has been a requirement for a while now.

[Amber]

The Home Office have direct access to the PNC. They will see previous criminality and police investigations.

The PNC holds details of people who are, or were, of interest to UK law enforcement
agencies because they:
 have convictions for criminal offences
 are subject to the legal process, for example waiting to appear at court
 are wanted
 have certain court orders made against them
 are missing or have been found
 have absconded (escaped) from specified institutions
 are disqualified from driving by a court
 have a driver record held at the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA)
 hold a firearm certificate.