Shoplifting (student visa, criminal record)?

Question

hi

i was caught shoplifting few years back, and now my fear is that i may have a permanent criminal record, and im afraid this might affect my student visa status, now im on the verge of applying for a either a PR or others..

the thing is that when i was caught, the police did come and asked a few questions but they didnt take me to a police station, what happened is that the shop took photos, but not fingerprints, and i was banned in the store for 9months i think, what the police did is they let me pay for the item (which i did!) and they said i would receive a penalty notice fee, which i did pay as well ($300)..when i asked the police officer if this would affect my student visa and if i would have a permanent criminal record, he said no because its a firt time offence, now its been a few years and i fear that the officer might be wrong or either my memory is hazy about what he clearly said..

any help would be appreciatted

Answer 1

if you didn't get booked into a real jail and go to court for this, there is no permanent record.

Answer 2

if they didn't take an actual report and it was just a slap on the wrist, i wouldn't worry too much about it.

i would suggest not doing stuff like that though when you are on a student visa.

Answer 3

If you were not finger-printed and arraigned before a judge (given a chance to plead guilty or not-guilty) and convicted --then don't worry -- you have no criminal record, permanent or otherwise.

What happened is a civil matter -- strictly between you and the store.