Chamber of Deputies approves lifetime record for sex criminals

Sex criminals and perpetrators of other violent crimes will probably have a lifetime record in a registry that will prevent them from working with children. The introduction of the so-called ‘child certificate’ was approved on Friday by the Chamber of Deputies, as part of the government's reform of criminal law, which is intended to reduce recidivism or limit the number of prisoners. The draft is awaiting consideration by the Senate.

The approved form of the certificate assumes a hundred-year record in the register of facts important for working with children. Teachers and employees of institutional or protective education facilities, pediatricians and health workers, workers in the social and legal protection of children, and workers in social services will not be allowed to have a record in the register if they are in direct and regular contact with children. The hundred-year record applies to people who commit a crime with an upper limit of at least five years in prison. Perpetrators of less serious crimes with a lower upper limit of a five-year sentence would not be allowed to work with children for twenty years. It will not be possible to shorten the period.