Disclosure of convictions in Scotland

From 30 November 2020, criminal convictions in Scotland will be spent sooner.
A criminal conviction is regarded as spent when sufficient time has elapsed for it to be considered no longer relevant when applying for a job. A job applicant therefore has the right, introduced in 1984, generally not to disclose a spent conviction. The idea is that a youthful indiscretion does not blight a person’s whole life. There are some exceptions, such as where the applicant would work with children or vulnerable adults, or in health work.

The provisions are also relevant in other areas, such as applying for insurance.

Under the Management of Offenders (Scotland) Act 2019, the periods are significantly reduced. About one third of Scottish men have a criminal conviction.

A six-month custodial sentence becomes spent after 2½ years rather than 7 years.
A fine is spend after 12 months rather than 5 years.

The law makes no changes to rules for sentences of four years or more, nor does it change the scope of exceptions.

Further details can be downloaded from https://www.legislation.gov.uk/asp/2019/14/notes/division/3/2. [20.08/27]