About 500,000 New Zealanders can now shake off the stigma of having a criminal conviction as the Clean Slate Bill comes into force today.
The new law allows people to have their crime history concealed if it has been seven years since they have offended and their convictions were for
minor offences that did not involve a jail term.
If a person re-offends, the historic offences go back on the record for another seven years.
Justice Minister Phil Goff said the law allowed people to put the mistakes of their youth behind them. "There are few people who can claim to have led totally blameless lives," he said.
"Those who were convicted many years ago for offences such as shoplifting have continued to be disadvantaged by those convictions."
But while the legislation wipes the slate clean for people in New Zealand, the convictions can still be disclosed in other countries because the law does not apply to overseas jurisdictions.
Act Party justice spokesman Stephen Franks had concerns about the legislation because he said it suppressed criminal records and forced forgiveness.
The best predictor of future offending was a criminal past, and the fear for one's reputation often urged people to "stay straight".
Mr Franks also said the law applied regardless of how many previous offences there were.
"The bill is about forcing forgiveness ... through compulsory ignorance."
Mr Goff said the act only rewarded people who had permanently changed their behaviour. Any further conviction, regardless of the sentence, ended a person's entitlement to clear their convictions until they met the criteria again.
He pointed out that the act only concealed convictions and did not wipe them.
Full criminal records would still be made available for police investigations, court proceedings, when applying for a firearms licence, or for sensitive types of employment such as the care of children or national security.
The legislation will automatically apply, but people will still need to check if they meet the eligibility requirements.
