Hi,

I'm very confused about which one to get. On one hand I read that RCMP is better because it's a Canada Wide search (and it avoids the 3 municipal checks I would need)but requires fingerprinting first, then application for a criminal check. When I called the 613-998-6362 number and they say there is a 150 day wait time on Criminal Checks (and I KNOW I don't even have a criminal record),

On the other hand, I look @ Toronto's Police Services and they use the same database as the RCMP and they DON'T require fingerprints, of course they also don't state how long it will take for the criminal check.

So which service do I use that will take the least amount of time? I'm 3 months away from my wedding date!

Thank you,

I don't know about there.
Here (Kingston) I walked into the local RCMP offices, and right on the wall is a sign that says Certificate for Visa's $25. The woman took my info, no fingerprints, and handed me my CPIC in 5 minutes.
I've also gone down to the local police station, paid $20, and went back the next day to pick up my CPIC for work.

Same thing, just different places, if you don't have a criminal record, you don't need fingerprints as far as I know.

On the top of mine it says RCMP, and Canadian Police Certificate, for visa applicants, doesn't say criminal record check, maybe your asking for the wrong thing?

I think Lance and Liz are in Toronto, they might be able to give you local info.

sneaking back in here.

On the checklist it does say Police Certificate! That's a good thing

It doesn't matter which does it RCMP or local police. The check is called a CPIC check and all enforcement agencies in Canada use the same thing. You do not need to be fingerprinted for a CPIC check. Try calling the RCMP again. Do you have a local detachment you can call? A CPIC check takes less than 5 minutes to run. The wait will depend on how busy the office is that you request it from and when they can get around to doing it. 150 days sounds like the time it takes if you had to get fingerprinted for security clearance and I believe for immigration purposes you only have to get fingerprinted if you do have a criminal record.

If you're in Toronto, go to the Commissionaires. Takes 5 days for a Canada wide check. Just tell them it's for U.S. immigration and you need a full name check (canada wide). Think it cost me $35.

http://www.commissionaires-greatlakes.ca/

You don't need fingerprints if you do not have a criminal record. Just a name check. The Commissionaires actually gets the RCMP to do the check.

For Toronto:
15 Toronto St, Suite 302 (Yonge & King)
8:00am - 4:30pm
Bring two forms of gov't ID (One with photo-id) OHIP card not accepted
416-363-9072
5 business days avg for p/u
$35 + GST = $37.10

For Mississauga:
6200 Dixie Rd (Dixie & 401)
8:00am - 3:30pm
Bring two forms of gov't ID (One with photo-id) OHIP card not accepted
905-564-7210
5-8 business days avg for p/u
$35 + GST = $37.10

Click to view attachment

How aggravating is that? Days between Kingston and the GTA......UGH

Liz, your's looks like a real certificate (pretty) Mine is just a sheet of white paper. Salright though, it's the same thing

did you get a pic on yours too?

If you saw the yellow certificate in person, it looks like a kid did it on their computer. Mine is the yellow one too. The ink in the printer was all streaky and the photo they took, I'm still wearing my winter coat and scarf!

I didn't get a pic.....you guys, stop that!!

I have the right one and I'm sticking with that!

I had always thought the police clearance was faster than 150 days if you have no criminal record

I know I have the right one, and like I said, 5 min's or the next day if the local station receptionist is busy.

AND Laura got the same one, same place and they took hers

Don't worry Tinker, mine's the same as yours.

I walked into my local RCMP detachment and was done in a half hour. Cost $45, but meh.

They're different all over the place. Some with photos, some not. Some yellow, some white. Some 1/2 size, some full sheet. All I know is that mine looks really ghetto.

Ya Mr Constable man pulled out his digital camera and took a picture of me as I sat in the chair.. kinda shocked and not at all prepared =)

Just don't do the RCMP one where you send it away to Ottawa. Mine was just mailed out yesterday, and I applied for it 3 months ago. They mixed up my name and my gender (they called me a "Mr" and had my last name wrong and were trying to run the check on the wrong person.)
Local ones are much quicker..and generally when they see you in person they don't mess up your gender. I hope.

Heh, mine was done with a webcam attached to her camera! I asked if I should take off my coat and scarf and she said no.

Liz, is that why you didn't show us your pic?

Misa, cause she didn't expect a Beaver to take off it's coat, sheesh

I had the web cam picture taken also, and even thought the RCMP said it would be at the time I think 140 days as of January ?? I called the Consulate March and told them that my NOA 2 would expire before the RCMP were done, the Consulate said no problem as the RCMP told them it would be further 6 months and the consulate said I should be getting mine in August I did receive the certificate about three days after speaking to the Consulate and on the 79th day after it was mailed in. Just remember that all dates given are exaggerated for their benefit.
I forgot to add that I did the full fingerprint thingy they do

Sorry but I just found that extremly hillarious

It was DAMN COLD OUT when I got it done. It was during one of the cold snaps in February... I think it was something like -20 C out that day! Brrr...

yup I went to local police station where I live in MTL , to my suprice the officer told me they can do it but hes gona save me some cash in telling me I would be better off goin to St - Jean to the RCMP they can do it billanguel , waiting period 15 - 20 min cost 25 bucks , as for the police office there it woulda been , waiting period up to 3 weeks resive it in mail , document only in french , cost 65 , so I lookd at him told him well thank you but you just lost your self a costumer , lol he said he knew that was comin and good luck , lol

maybe........................

Hi .. just noticed that your timeline reads that you got your NOA2 for your I129f on 05/17/07 and that you have wedding plans for October?? and going through Montreal??? .. I'm really sorry to point this out but you may want to check out the timelines for interviews in Montreal ... I received my NOA2 December 13, 2006 and my interview is coming up July 18th .. have you received and sent back to them package 3 yet?

I got my NOA-2 on December 8 and I'm looking at hopefully October the month you are planning for your wedding as the time for my interview. You would have better luck going through Vancouver

all I know is that when I got the letter from Montreal, they were very specific in stating the police check had to be from the RCMP. then again, that was a few years ago. *shrug*



Vancouver is really cracking down on case transfers, so methinks they are stuck with Montreal.

If you look at the police check that I added in my earlier post, it does say it's from the RCMP..

and I went to the commisionaires station in markham to do it.. =)

right, because in some places the commissionaires take care of it for the RCMP. Where I lived, there is no such thing as the commissionaires, only RCMP or the local police precinct.

Damn, mine is really ghetto. White sheet of paper, no picture.

same as mine! No picture, no fee either!

You didn't have to pay?! I paid $42 for my ghetto no-picture ink-jet sheet of paper!

I'll be joining this club .....

Had mine done in Calgary... Went in to the RCMP office, asked for a PRC for US Immigration purposes, had it in hand 10 minutes later, and the best part... free!!!

Scott.

PS: No picture but stamped with a seal that imprinted the paper.

my husband had his police check done by the MP's........he got 2 copies. It met all the criterea and Montreal accepted it for the k-3 but the NVC sent an RFE. Not sure what to do now. We really dont wanna wait for the Ottawa delay......thinking/wondering if hopping over to London or Windsor might be a better plan for getting a quicker result. HOWEVER......the RFE says former resident's can only get the Ottwaw issued copy but Im not sure if it applies here or not

I went to the MP's at Greenwood NS and as usual they were clueless,lol Guess their cluelessness worked in my favor,lol

Hi everyone,

I am new to this forum and am so grateful I found it!

I went down to the Vancouver Police Department today to get my Canada-wide criminal record check, which I should receive in a month's time.

I hear the USCIS is verrry anal about having all your paperwork in exact order and exactly the way they require it.

So I went to the RCMP website to see if I should be requesting my Canada-wide criminal record check from the RCMP instead of the VPD. That's where I get confused.

On the list of paperwork I need to get (provided by our lawyer), I can have the CPIC done by either the local PD or RCMP, right?

By the way, in case anyone is interested, the VPD will do the record check for you from the age of 16 till now no matter which city you have lived in, so you don't need to have them done in each municipality.

TIA!

Jay the Canasian and Bee the Amurkin

I personally got my police certificate from the RCMP detachment in Vancouver, and they were very nice and prompt - only took 30 minutes and $42 and I was out the door. That police certificate is also Canada-wide. I'm sure as long as it covers the country it doesn't matter where you order it from.

Welcome to the forum!

The check you get should be fine. Doesn't matter where it's from as long as it confirms that you aren't in the national records something or other (essentially that it was a Canada wide check).

They can be pretty anal about stuff but with the police check, you're good as long as it was Canada wide.

Since you have time, make sure you get your long form birth certificate. You'll need that at the interview. It's the one that has both your parents name on it. And short form, wallet sized one will not suffice.

At my interview yesterday she was confused when looking at my police clearance. I had it done from our downtown police station ... she thought that it was just for Hamilton but I had to show her where it said on the form that it was nation wide.

Thank you for this additional info, misa. It doesn't apply in my case as I was born in another country.

My mother is so great. She went to the hospital where I was born and told the staff she needed my birth certificate as she had lost it herself. The hospital only kept birth records in their system from the early 90s on, so they told her she could go down to the basement where ALL hospital records were kept and find mine herself. So the birth records are kept in boxes according to month and year. Of course, mine was misfiled in the wrong month AND wrong year. Of course! But she eventually got a few copies of it and had a current ob-gyn stamp and sign it.

You can access old records yourself in the hospital basement! Gotta love the old school way of doing things, eh?

Love that mother of mine.

that's crazy!

ppl can just go down there and mess things all up or steal someone else's!!!!!!!

Bingo! Old school way of doing things. Ie honesty is the best policy. Nowadays, don't even think of punching your PIN in the ATM without looking over your shoulders.

I wish us city folk weren't so cynical and suspicious nowadays, but it's true. Silly robbers and thieves.

So just to make sure I have this straight - I've been living in Toronto for the last 5 years and was planning on getting my police check done here BUT I lived in Hamilton for the 5 years before that. Do I need to get one done from both Toronto and Hamilton or will Toronto be Canada-wide and suffice?

Thanks!

A Canada-wide name check done in Toronto will be sufficient.

I read some where that USCIS will only except clearance checkes from RCMP! Might want to check it otu for sure!!!

lmao!! This police cert is a WEEKLY question on VJ!! RCMP or your LOCAL police Force is FINE!! As long as it is Canada wide! What else can I add? Oh yes, they all differ in appearance, fee, time to get it in ur hands, etc etc For Mtl the validity period is 1 yr!

Yes it is, however at least now we really REAlly REALLY know the answer to this question

ah yeah....That's why I had to run back to the RCMP last week to redo the CPIC I got in March..

Please elaborate!?

POLICE RECORDS
Inside Canada: Applicants who are physically present in Canada should contact their local police service or Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) office regarding criminal record check procedures. Applicants may obtain a certificate of no conviction issued by any Canadian police service so long as it notes that Canadian Police Information Centre (CPIC) or the national criminal records repository was searched using the applicant’s name and date of birth. Applicants should ensure that the search includes all names that they have previously used, including maiden names, prior married names, or names used before Canadian naturalization. (Note: Because records checks based on name and date of birth only are sometimes less thorough than those based on fingerprints, U.S. diplomatic offices reserve the right to request that certain applicants obtain fingerprint-based searches from the RCMP.)

Applicants who have been convicted of a crime in Canada must contact their local RCMP office to obtain a “Certified Criminal Record Check,” which lists an applicant’s criminal history, indicating the section of the Canadian Criminal Code under which the applicant was charged, the disposition of the case, and the penalty imposed, if any. Obtaining a Certified Criminal Records Check requires submission of a fingerprint chart; the RCMP could take between two and twelve months to process a request for a Certified Criminal Record Check. (Note: If a namecheck by a police agency reveals a conviction record, that agency may be unwilling to issue a certificate and may refer the applicant to the RCMP for a Certified Criminal Record Check.)

Canadian pardons have no effect under U.S. law. Applicants who have been convicted of a crime in Canada that was subsequently pardoned must contact an RCMP office to obtain both a Certified Criminal Record Check and copies of their pardoned criminal record. Additional information is available online at: http://www.rcmp.ca/crimrec/finger2_e.htm#Obtain.

Outside Canada: Applicants who are not physically present in Canada must obtain a Certified Criminal Record Check by sending a duplicate set of fingerprints (taken by a local police force) to the RCMP. Fingerprint submissions must include the following:

· rolled and flat impressions of all ten fingers taken with black ink (may use a standard FD-258 FBI fingerprint card)

· full name, date of birth, and sex of the applicant

· the name and address of the police agency taking the fingerprints

· the signature of the official taking the fingerprints

· the reason for the fingerprint submission (U.S. visa)

· the processing fee of CAD 25.00 or USD 18.00, payable to the "Receiver General for Canada" by certified check or money order.

Fingerprint submissions should be sent to: RCMP, Civil Fingerprint Screening Services, P.O. Box 8885, Ottawa, ON, K1G 3M8. Additional information is available online at: http://www.rcmp.ca/crimrec/finger2_e.htm#Obtain.

Special note for applicants who reside or resided in Newfoundland and Labrador: The RCMP did not operate in Newfoundland before April 1, 1949. Therefore, applicants who were age sixteen or over in 1949 and who resided anywhere in Newfoundland and Labrador for six months or longer after reaching the age of sixteen must obtain a Good Conduct Certificate issued by the Royal Newfoundland Constabulary (RNC). Applicants should inquire at RNC offices in St. John’s, Corner Brook, Churchill Falls, or Labrador City, or may contact the RNC at: Headquarters, Royal Newfoundland Constabulary, 1 Fort Townshend, St. John’s, NL, A1C 2G2, tel: 709-729-8000.

http://travel.state.gov/visa/reciprocity/C...er/C/Canada.htm