Last updated 23 September 2024

Generally, it is not necessary to reveal a criminal conviction in a job or licence application unless specifically asked to do so in accordance with specific provisions of the Criminal Law (Rehabilitation of Offenders) Act 1986 (Qld) (CLRO Act). Examples where an applicant may be asked to reveal any criminal convictions include where the person in question is seeking admission to a profession, where the applicant is seeking to become a police officer, teacher or lawyer. Most licence application forms do not require minor traffic violations to be disclosed.

A person is not obliged to disclose a conviction if no conviction was recorded in the end. Similarly, a person need not disclose the fact that they were charged with an offence if the charge was dropped or dismissed, if they were acquitted, or if the conviction is set aside or quashed (5 CLRO Act).

A person who has had a conviction recorded may deny that conviction (under oath, affirmation or otherwise) if:

  • the sentence that resulted from the conviction was non-custodial, or was for a term of 30 months imprisonment or less
  • enough time has passed
  • the person has not broken the law again since they were convicted.

The time that must pass after which a person may deny their conviction (called the ‘rehabilitation period’) will depend on the type of offence.

For Queensland offences, the rehabilitation period is:

  • ten years if the person was convicted in the Supreme or District Court as an adult
  • five years in any other case (except for when restitution has been ordered, in which case the rehabilitation period is only until the restitution has been paid).

For Commonwealth offences, the rehabilitation period is:

  • five years if the person was convicted as a child
  • ten years in all other cases.

Even if a person’s rehabilitation period has passed, there are many exceptions that would still require a person to disclose a previous conviction, for example where a court is making an order about a person or where a person is applying for a job that requires previous convictions to be disclosed (e.g. when applying to become a police officer, teacher or lawyer).