Meeting Statutory Waiting Periods

There are two types of required waiting periods: a waiting period to apply for the first time after a conviction and a waiting period to reapply after you have previously applied for and been denied clemency by the Board of Pardons.

Waiting to Reapply

People who have applied for any type of clemency before can reapply five years after the denial of the clemency application for that crime.

If five years has not passed, people can request to reapply early to the Commission, but the Commission and the Board will only allow the person to reapply early if they can show new and substantial information that was not and could not have been previously considered by the board or commission.
Waiting to Apply the First Time

People that are no longer serving a criminal sentence are eligible to apply for pardons five years after they finish their sentence. This means the person is no longer incarcerated or on probation, parole, or supervised release.

People who are still serving a criminal sentence are eligible to apply for commutations five years after they are convicted (pled guilty or were found guilty), or after they have served half of their sentence, whichever comes first.

If the waiting period is not over, people can request a waiver of the initial waiting period, but the Commission and the Board will only allow the person to apply early if they can show an unusual situation and special need to apply early (for example, the conviction is making immigration, adoption, or getting a job hard). The Commission must review waivers to apply early and make a recommendation of whether to grant or deny the waiver to the Board of Pardons.

People who were convicted before August 1, 2023, of a violation of Minnesota Statutes § 609.19, subdivision 1, clause (1), under the theory of liability for crimes of another and meet the additional eligibility criteria listed in Minnesota Statutes § 638.12 subdivision 2 (b) are not subject to the waiting period for a pardon.