Source: etias.org
[Beginning first half of 2025] Criminal records can prevent you from being allowed to travel to the Schengen Zone. Any travellers applying for ETIAS for a short stay in Europe are likely to have their ETIAS application declined if they have committed a serious crime. Applications from people with minor offences will usually be approved for an ETIAS and granted entry to the 26 ETIAS countries.Any of the following serious criminal offences in the last ten years will need to be reviewed and likely to be declined:
Terrorism (in the last 20 years)
Sexual exploitation of children
Trafficking of human beings
Trafficking of drugs
Murder
Rape
And if it’s been more than 10 years, then it’s likely a go? Any idea if the various forms of 1203.4 type of dismissals make a difference?
Welcome to the global police surveillance state.
This is only going to get worse the more things become electronically digitized.
I’m reminded of a saying I heard once, “This world is a prison.”
In the online FAQs about this process it appears that convictions older than 10 years will not be held against someone.
Then you read further into the nitty-gritty and see this: “Spent convictions will not usually impact travelling to Europe, unless the offence included over 30 months’ of imprisonment.”
In other words, spent convictions which landed someone in prison for more then 30 months will still likely result in an automatic denial.
But, it does sound like they have a system for processing beyond that, starting with applying for a waiver/visa through the country you wish to visit directly.
For me, with a nearly 30-year-old conviction and a good record since, I’d apply for the waiver and have hopes of getting approval. Probably a good idea to involve an immigration attorney in the country first though to make sure all your ducks are in a row.
I’m involved in a similar process where I am now, and slowly working my way towards (hopefully) permanent status. There is hope.
I don’t remember “sexual offenses with minors” being on that list before. If that’s the case, most people on the registry will be impacted by Etias. And I’m willing to bet they include no contact pornography offenses, given that western countries falsely consider that offense a sex crime against a child vs a cyber crime. And if that definition doesn’t cover it, Etias will have it covered under ‘sexual exploitation’ Just like it’s defined in some US states
My conviction was roughly 24 years ago, so Im not worried.