TRNC citizens can now request the deletion of their criminal records

A new law that allows TRNC citizens with previous records of crimes and conviction to request for the deletion of their records has been announced by authorities in north Cyprus.

The 'Deletion of Criminal Records (Amendment) Bill' was published in the Official Gazette and presented to the public on Tuesday March 11.

Within the scope of the bill, TRNC citizens who meet certain conditions will be able to request the deletion of their criminal records.

Regardless of the rules in other articles of the law, citizens of the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus who committed a crime under the Penal Code before the law came into force and were sentenced to a fine or a maximum of 1 year in prison may request the deletion of their criminal records, provided that 10 years have passed since the date on which their conviction became final, they have served their sentence and they have not been convicted of the same or any other crime during this period.

The person requesting the expungement of their criminal record must apply to the District Court in which they reside. If the court decides to expunge their criminal record, the criminal record in question will not be shown on the criminal record document issued to the person in question.

However, the deleted criminal record will continue to be included in the record kept by the Criminal Records Branch of the Judicial Police Department in accordance with the Internal Organization Regulation of the Police Organization.

The right to apply can be used only once within one year from the entry into force of this law.