The National Post reports in its Friday, Aug. 2, edition that Canadians with criminal records for simple pot possession can now apply for a pardon free of cost and with no mandatory five-year wait -- but they will have to finish their sentence first. A Canadian Press dispatch to the Post reports that Justice Minister David Lametti announced Thursday Bill C-93, adopted last June, has come into force. Canadians with records for possessing up to 30 grams of marijuana will no longer have to wait five years after completing their sentence to apply for a pardon, nor must they pay the usual $631 fee to apply. However, anyone still serving a sentence for simple pot possession will have to wait. A pardoned conviction will not appear on the Canadian Police Information Centre -- or CPIC -- database, which is used by United States border officials, but a pardon will not erase information about Canadians already in U.S-controlled databases.