Criminal record check for issuing a licence

When you apply for a licence, the OACIQ must carry out a criminal record check. This criminal record check is required to determine whether a further examination of your file by the Licence Issue and Maintenance Committee (LIMC) is justified.

The LIMC’s role is to determine whether public protection warrants the imposition of one of the measures set out in the Act. In accordance with section 37 of the Real Estate Brokerage Act, the LIMC may refuse to issue a licence or may impose conditions or restrictions thereon if the individual applying for the licence:

  • has previously been convicted of, or has pleaded guilty to, a criminal or ethical offence related to brokerage activities has already made an assignment of property or been placed under a receiving order pursuant to the Bankruptcy and Insolvency Act (R.S.C. 1985, c. B-3)
  • has previously had his licence revoked, suspended or made subject to restrictions or conditions by the OACIQ Discipline Committee, by another body in Québec responsible for overseeing and monitoring real estate brokerage, or by such body in another province or State (for example, you are the holder of a real estate broker's licence in Ontario and you have had your licence suspended by the Real Estate Council of Ontario)
  • is under tutorship or under a protection mandate

Note that if your criminal record check was carried out less than six months ago, we will refer to the previously obtained results. You will not have to undergo this check again for the issuance of a licence.

STEPS TO FOLLOW

Step 1 – Completing and sending your licence application

For the procedure to follow, consult the Application for licence issuance page.

Step 2 – For the procedure to follow, consult the Application for licence issuance page.

Upon receipt of your licence application, an email with "Mintz Background Check Invitation" in the subject line will be sent to you so you can complete the Mintz digital form.

Step 3 – Completing the Mintz digital form

The consent and information you provide in this digital form allow the OACIQ, under an agreement of personal information release, to ask our service provider to conduct a criminal record check, receive the results and analyze them. A 24-hour period is provided to receive the criminal record check results and issue your licence. It’s therefore your responsibility to complete the form upon receipt.

Any incomplete or inaccurate statement will result in a delay in the processing of your licence application and may incur extra costs. 

Likewise, your licence issuance may be delayed if you respond positively to one of the questions in the Declarations section of the licence issuance application or if the results obtained during your criminal record check are positive.

To avoid any inconvenience, please follow the few recommendations below:

1. Complete the digital form while respecting the boxes provided for this purpose;

2. FULLY complete all the sections that apply to your situation;

3. Section 2/7 - Criminal Record, enter:

  • All offences or criminal acts you have been or are found guilty of, even if you have already reported them to the OACIQ in the past or in your current licence application.
  • The EXACT WORDING of the offence, as formulated in the Criminal Code (R.S.C., 1985, c. C-46).

Tip: Use the article number of the offence to find its exact wording.

Here are a few examples of wordings: 

EXACT AND ACCEPTED WORDING
REFUSED WORDING
Operation while impaired
Impaired driving
Drinking and driving
Burst the bubble
DWI (driving while impaired)
Dangerous driving
Oncoming driving on the highway
Exceeding the speed limit by 50 km
Fraud over $5,000
Fraud
Breaking and entering
Failure or refusal to provide a sample
Refusal to cooperate
Unauthorized possession of firearm
Firearm
Carrying of firearms
Simple possession
Possession
Trafficking
Trafficking in substance and possession for purpose of trafficking
Drug trafficking
Traffic
Assaults
Threats
Attack
Theft over $5,000
Theft

 

  • The date of SENTENCE in the field "Date of sentencing". If you do not have one, you can enter the date of guilt.
  • The name of THE CITY where the case was heard in the "Court location” field.

4. Section 3/7 - eID Verification

At this stage, you will have to answer several identification questions, in accordance with the Equifax Canada eID identity verification process.

If you are unable to properly answer the identification questions, you will be redirected to a page where you will have to:

  • Download the consent form;
  • Print it;
  • Sign it by hand;
  • Scan it;
  • Scan copies of two ID documents;
  • Send them via the “Attach documents” section of the Mintz digital form.

Step 4 – File submitted to the LIMC

After analyzing your declarations and your criminal record, your case may be forwarded to the committee. If applicable, please read the article Licence Issue and Maintenance Committee.

To reach the Certification Department, call at 450-462-9800 or 1-800-440-7170, or email us at certification@oaciq.com.

Last updated on: September 16, 2024
Reference number: 204985