Members of the public with certain criminal convictions may now have their records cleared under the Criminal Records (Rehabilitation of Offenders) Act. 

This statement was issued by the Ministry of Justice and Legal Affairs. The statement went on to say that if you were convicted of simple cannabis possession being 56 grams of cannabis or less, 15 grams of resin or less or for cultivations where the sentence imposed was imprisonment for a term not exceeding 3 years, the conviction has already been expunged by law.

Other offences may also be cleared by applying using Form 1 and undergoing the respective rehabilitation or waiting time. Such offences include Non-custodial sentence; period of 3 years, imprisonment of 6 months or less; period of 5 years, imprisonment between 6–18 months, period of 8 years, imprisonment between 18 months–3 years; period of 10 years

If a conviction does not meet the criteria, a review can be requested from the Criminal Records (Rehabilitation of Offenders) Committee by submitting Form II to the Attorney General’s Office.

However, clearance is not allowed for serious crimes such as Murder or Manslaughter, Treason, Sexual offences, or Firearms and Ammunition offences as these are permanently recorded. Forms can be collected at the Criminal Records Department at the Charlestown Police Station on Nevis and the Basseterre Police Station in St. Kitts. For more information, contact the Ministry of Justice and Legal Affairs at 467-1013.