Hong Kong Ordinances

REHABILITATION OF OFFENDERS ORDINANCE - SECT 2

Protection of rehabilitated individual

(Past version on 11/07/2002).
(Past version on 27/05/2002).
(Past version on 30/06/1997).

(1) Where-

   (a)  an individual has been convicted in Hong Kong (before or after the
        commencement of this Ordinance) of an offence in respect of which he
        was not sentenced to imprisonment exceeding 3 months or to a fine
        exceeding $10000; (Amended 24 of 1993 s. 22)

   (b)  he has not been convicted in Hong Kong on any earlier day of an
        offence; and

   (c)  a period of 3 years has elapsed without that individual being again
        convicted in Hong Kong of an offence, then-

        (i)    subject to section 3(3) and (4), no evidence shall be
               admissible in any proceedings which tends to show that that
               individual was so convicted in Hong Kong;

        (ii)   any question asked of that individual or any other person
               relating to, or any obligation imposed on that individual or
               any other person to disclose, that individual's previous
               convictions, offences, conduct or circumstances shall be
               treated as not referring to that conviction; and

        (iii)  that conviction, or any failure to disclose it shall not be a
               lawful or proper ground for dismissing or excluding that
               individual from any office, profession, occupation or
               employment or for prejudicing him in any way in that office,
               profession, occupation or employment.

(1A) Where-

   (a)  an individual has been convicted in Hong Kong (before or after the
        commencement of this Ordinance) of an offence under section 19, 20,
        21, 22 or 23 of the Societies Ordinance ( Cap 151) in respect of an
        unlawful society within the meaning of section 18 of that Ordinance-

        (i)    in circumstances in which that unlawful society is, or is
               deemed to be, a triad society under that last mentioned
               section; and

        (ii)   in respect of which he was not sentenced to imprisonment
               exceeding 3 months or to a fine exceeding $10000 but has
               subsequently renounced his membership of the triad society
               concerned under section  26G (1) of that Ordinance;

   (b)  he has not been convicted in Hong Kong on any earlier day of an
        offence;

   (c)  a period of 3 years has elapsed from the date of the conviction
        without that individual being again convicted in Hong Kong of an
        offence;

   (d)  he has made a written request to the Triad Renunciation Tribunal
        established under section 26A of the Societies Ordinance ( Cap  151)
        or, where sections 26A and 26B of that Ordinance are not in operation
        under section 26N of that Ordinance, to the Triad Renunciation
        Secretariat established under section 26BA of that Ordinance, to issue
        a certificate under section 26I(3) of that Ordinance to the
        Commissioner of Police that he has renounced membership of the triad
        society concerned and the date on which he renounced his membership;
        and

   (e)  he has provided such information, including his fingerprints, as may
        be required by the Commissioner of Police to enable his conviction
        record to be verified and for this purpose, a police officer may take
        or record the individual's fingerprints and the fingerprints so taken
        or recorded shall be destroyed or delivered to the individual as soon
        as reasonably practicable after his conviction record has been
        verified, then-

        (i)    subject to section 3(3) and (4), no evidence shall be
               admissible in any proceedings which tends to show that that
               individual was so convicted in Hong Kong;

        (ii)   any question asked of that individual or any other person
               relating to, or any obligation imposed on that individual or
               any other person to disclose, that individual's previous
               convictions, offences, conduct or circumstances shall be
               treated as not referring to that conviction; and

        (iii)  that conviction, or any failure to disclose it shall not be a
               lawful or proper ground for dismissing or excluding that
               individual from any office, profession, occupation or
               employment or for prejudicing him in any way in that office,
               profession, occupation or employment. (Added 10 of 1996 s. 3)

(1B) Where an individual pays or is ordered to pay a fixed penalty, or any
additional penalty, under the Fixed Penalty (Traffic 
Contraventions) Ordinance ( Cap 237), the Fixed Penalty (Criminal 
Proceedings) Ordinance ( Cap 240), the Fixed Penalty (Public Cleanliness 
Offences) Ordinance ( Cap 570) or the Fixed Penalty (Smoking Offences) 
Ordinance ( Cap 600), then- (Amended 24 of 2001 s. 21; 26 of 2008 s. 19)

   (a)  subject to section 3(3) and (4), no evidence shall be admissible in
        any proceedings which tends to show that that individual has so paid
        or has been so ordered to pay;

   (b)  any question asked of that individual or any other person relating to,
        or any obligation imposed on that individual or any other person to
        disclose, that individual's previous convictions, offences, conduct or
        circumstances shall be treated as not referring to that payment or
        order to pay; and

   (c)  that payment or order to pay, or any failure to disclose it shall not
        be a lawful or proper ground for dismissing or excluding that
        individual from any office, profession, occupation or employment or
        for prejudicing him in any way in that office, profession, occupation
        or employment. (Added 10 of 1996 s. 3)

(2) The period of 3 years mentioned in subsection (1)(c) or (1A)(c) shall be
reckoned from the date on which the individual was sentenced for the offence
mentioned in subsection (1)(a) or (1A)(a), as the case may be, save that, in
the case of an individual sentenced to detention in a training, detention or
rehabilitation centre, that period shall be reckoned from expiry of the period
of supervision following release from that detention. (Amended 11 of 2001 s.
17)

(3) The payment or recovery of a fixed penalty, or any additional penalty,
under the Fixed Penalty (Traffic Contraventions) Ordinance ( Cap  237), the
Fixed Penalty (Criminal Proceedings) Ordinance ( Cap 240), the
Fixed Penalty (Public Cleanliness Offences) Ordinance ( Cap 570) or the
Fixed Penalty (Smoking Offences) Ordinance ( Cap 600) is not a conviction for
the purposes of subsection (1) or (1A). (Replaced 10 of 1996 s. 3. Amended 24
of 2001 s. 21; 26 of 2008 s. 19)

(4) For the purposes of subsection (1)(a) or (1A)(a)-

        (a)	"imprisonment" (監禁) does not include detention in a reformatory 
school, in a detention centre, in a place of detention, in a training centre
or in a rehabilitation centre; (Amended 11 of 2001 s. 17)

   (b)  a sentence of imprisonment or a fine shall be such a sentence, whether
        or not it is suspended or postponed;

   (c)  an individual is not sentenced to imprisonment where he is detained as
        a consequence of failing to pay a fine; and

   (d)  conviction of an offence in respect of which an individual is not
        sentenced to imprisonment exceeding 3 months or to a fine exceeding
        $10000 includes convictions in the same proceedings or on the same day
        of more than one offence in respect of which he is not sentenced to an
        actual term of imprisonment exceeding 3 months (irrespective of
        whether the term or terms of imprisonment are wholly or partly
        consecutive or concurrent) or to fines exceeding $10000 in total.
        (Replaced 10 of 1996 s. 3)

   (e)  (Repealed 10 of 1996 s. 3)

(4A) For the purposes of subsection (1)(a), "offence" (罪、罪行) does not
include an offence of contravening section 20(2) or 24 of the
Societies Ordinance ( Cap 151) or of contravening section 19, 20(1), 21, 22 or
23 of that Ordinance in circumstances in which the unlawful society is, or is
deemed to be, a triad society. (Added 10 of 1996 s. 3)

(5) For the purposes of this section and sections 3 and 4,

"proceedings" (程序) means any proceedings in Hong Kong by any court, body
or person having power to determine any application by, or any question
affecting the rights, privileges, obligations or liabilities of, any person or
to receive evidence affecting the determination of any such application or
question.

(6) For the purposes of subsections (1)(i), (ii) and (iii) and

(1A)(i), (ii) and (iii) and section 3, a conviction shall include-

   (a)  the offence which was the subject of that conviction;

   (b)  the conduct or circumstances constituting that offence; and

   (c)  anything relating to that conviction which, if disclosed, would tend
        to show that the individual committed, was charged with, was
        prosecuted for, was convicted of or was sentenced for the offence
        which was the subject of the conviction.

(7) For the purposes of subsection (1B)(a), (b) and (c) and section  3 , a
payment or an order to pay shall include-

   (a)  the offence or contravention which was the subject of that payment or
        order to pay;

   (b)  the conduct or circumstances constituting that offence or
        contravention; and

   (c)  anything relating to that payment or order to pay which, if disclosed,
        would tend to show that the individual committed, was charged with,
        was prosecuted for, was convicted of or was sentenced for the offence
        or contravention which was the subject of the payment or order to pay.
        (Added 10 of 1996 s. 3) (Enacted 1986) (Amended 10 of 1996 s. 3)

"imprisonment" (監禁)

"offence" (罪、罪行)

"proceedings" (程序)