German
Criminal Law

The consequences of a conviction by a German criminal court

One of the results of a conviction by a German criminal court can be the loss of the right of the free movement within the country borders.

A person entering the Ground of the German Federal Republic after a loss of the freedom of movement or the residential rights is committing a felony. After a period of about 5 years a person coming from the countries of the European Union can apply to get a right to enter Germany.

The law enforcement authorities in Germany can look through the conviction files from every country of the European Union. The aim is to set up a central European register which can deliver information about previous convictions of in every member country of the European Union. Until then the proceedings leading to the information about the convictions in the other countries of the European Union can take too much time if started too late, so that the court and the prosecution authorities will not see, if someone has been already convicted of a crime or even the same type of a crime before. This can be crucial for the length of a sentence or the eventual parole.