Trump is a convicted felon – will that affect his journey as president?

Topline

President-elect Donald Trump was formally convicted of a felony on Friday after being found guilty in May on 34 counts of falsifying business records. That status could impact his travel as president to dozens of countries that deny or restrict entry to potential visitors with a felony on their criminal record.

President Donald Trump exits Air Force One on January 20, 2021.

AFP via Getty Images

Important facts

Judge Juan Merchan granted Trump an “unconditional discharge” on Friday, meaning he will face no penalties for his crimes, including travel restrictions that New York state could have imposed with probation or other punishment.

But that doesn’t mean he’s exempt from the strict international travel restrictions that other countries have in place on criminals – including India, China, Canada and the UK, all of which have strict requirements for visitors with criminal records to be allowed in, if any.

Sixteen countries, including the United States, prohibit the entry of foreign nationals with felony convictions, and another 22 countries allow the law to kick out any visitor as soon as their criminal record is discovered, even if criminal records are not actively checked are at entry points, according to World Population Review.

Trump’s conviction means he can now formally appeal his conviction and seek to have it overturned, which he says he intends to do, and even without a successful appeal, it is possible that international leaders will make exceptions for a sitting president would.

Countries that could pose a problem for Trump to visit in his next term include Canada, which will host the G7 summit next year, as well as Israel, Japan, the United Kingdom, India, China and Argentina, all of which he is visiting attended his first term in office.

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Surprising fact

Trump would not be the first president to need a travel exemption. Former President George W. Bush had to apply for an exemption to enter Canada because of a 1976 drunk driving conviction.

Which countries deny entry to convicted criminals?

India, China, Japan, Iran, the United Kingdom, South Africa, Kenya, Argentina, Canada, Australia, Taiwan, Cuba, Israel, New Zealand and Macau, according to the World Population Review.

Which countries have “refusal when discovered” laws?

Indonesia, Brazil, Mexico, Ethiopia, Egypt, Philippines, Turkey, Tanzania, South Korea, Morocco, Ukraine, Malaysia, Peru, Nepal, Chile, Cambodia, Tunisia, Dominican Republic, United Arab Emirates, Hong Kong, Singapore and Ireland, according to the World Population Review.

Which countries did Trump visit in his first term?

Trump visited Saudi Arabia, Israel, Italy, the Vatican City, Belgium, Poland, Germany, France, Japan, China, South Korea, North Korea, Vietnam, the Philippines, Switzerland, Canada, Singapore, the United Kingdom, Finland, France and Argentina , Japan, Afghanistan, India and the West Bank between May 2017 and February 2020.

What other implications might Trump’s felony conviction have?

Trump is no longer legally allowed to own a gun now that he is a convicted felon and is required by state law to provide a DNA sample to New York’s crime database. Trump will still be able to vote under the laws of the state of Florida, where he has lived and been registered to vote since 2020. Trump will not be able to pardon himself because he was convicted on a state charge, not a federal charge.

Important background

A jury found Trump guilty of 34 counts after a week-long trial over a hush money payment from his ex-lawyer Michael Cohen to adult film star Stormy Daniels before the 2016 election. Trump compensated Cohen through a series of payments that misrepresented legal services, and he was convicted of falsifying business records. Trump is the first former or current president ever to be formally convicted of a crime.

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