Yes, a person with a felony conviction can go to Alaska. No federal or state law bars someone with a felony record from visiting or moving there, and domestic travel within the United States remains a constitutional right that a criminal record alone does not take away. The real questions are how you get there, whether you are under supervision, and which Alaska rules on firearms, voting, benefits, and registration will apply once you arrive.
Flying or Taking the Ferry Directly
A felony conviction does not keep you off a domestic flight or an Alaska Marine Highway ferry. The TSA screens for security threats, not criminal history, and no background check runs when you walk through an airport checkpoint for a domestic flight. You need a valid ID that meets REAL ID requirements starting in 2025, and that is it.
The one thing that can go wrong is an open warrant. If anything prompts law enforcement at the airport to run your name, an active felony warrant will surface. Clear any unresolved legal matters before you travel.
If you want to skip Canada entirely, your options are a direct flight from a U.S. airport or the Alaska Marine Highway ferry out of Bellingham, Washington, which reaches Alaskan ports without a Canadian customs stop.
Driving or Cruising Through Canada
Alaska shares no land border with another U.S. state. If you drive the Alaska Highway or take a cruise that stops at a Canadian port, you have to clear Canadian customs, and that is where felony convictions become a real obstacle. Canada treats most felony convictions as grounds to deny entry, even old ones. Canadian border officers have access to U.S. criminal databases, and a conviction that lines up with a Canadian indictable offense can get you turned around.
There are three ways to overcome criminal inadmissibility to Canada:
- Deemed rehabilitation. If at least ten years have passed since you completed your entire sentence, including probation and parole, and the offense would carry less than ten years’ imprisonment under Canadian law, Canada may consider you automatically rehabilitated with no application. You cannot have other indictable convictions.1Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada. Rehabilitation for Persons Who Are Inadmissible to Canada Because of Past Criminal Activity
- Individual rehabilitation. Available once at least five years have passed since you completed your sentence. A Canadian immigration officer decides whether you have been rehabilitated and are unlikely to reoffend. It takes several months and requires court documents and police certificates.2Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada. Overcome Criminal Convictions
- Temporary Resident Permit. If you need to cross before you qualify for rehabilitation, a TRP can grant entry for a specific purpose and period. You need a compelling reason and approval is not guaranteed.3Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada. Find Out if You Are Inadmissible
If You Are on Parole or Probation
If you are currently under supervision, you cannot simply leave. Traveling or relocating without your supervising officer’s explicit permission is a violation that can put you back in custody. Every state, including Alaska, participates in the Interstate Compact for Adult Offender Supervision (ICAOS), which is the formal mechanism for moving your supervision from one state to another.
Under ICAOS, your current state sends a transfer request to Alaska. Alaska must accept the transfer if you meet certain criteria: more than 90 days of supervision remaining, a valid supervision plan, substantial compliance with your current terms, and either existing residence in Alaska, family there willing to help, or secured employment.4Interstate Commission for Adult Offender Supervision. Rule 3.101 – Mandatory Transfer of Supervision If you do not meet those criteria, a discretionary transfer is still possible, but Alaska can decline.
Alaska charges a $100 application fee for people applying for an interstate transfer from within the state.5Interstate Commission for Adult Offender Supervision. Fees The whole process from application to approval typically runs weeks to months. Do not move before the transfer is approved.
Firearms Once You Are There
Alaska is known for permissive gun laws, so this is where people most often get into trouble. Felons face serious firearm restrictions under both state and federal law, and the federal rules are stricter than the state’s.
Under Alaska law, a person convicted of any felony commits a class C felony by knowingly possessing a firearm capable of being concealed on their person. The same statute also makes it illegal for a felon to live in a home where a concealable firearm is present, unless they get written authorization from a court or the head of the local law enforcement agency.6Justia Law. Alaska Statutes Title 11 Chapter 61 Section 11.61.200 – Misconduct Involving Weapons in the Third Degree
Federal law reaches further. Under 18 U.S.C. § 922(g)(1), anyone convicted of a crime punishable by more than one year in prison is prohibited from possessing any firearm or ammunition. That includes rifles, shotguns, and long guns that Alaska’s state statute does not cover.7Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 USC 922 – Unlawful Acts A felon caught with a hunting rifle in Alaska may not face state charges under AS 11.61.200, but federal prosecution under § 922(g) is on the table. Do not assume Alaska’s narrower state law is the whole picture.
The practical effect is that felons cannot hunt in Alaska with a firearm, even though no Alaska law specifically bars felons from holding a hunting license. You could legally hold the license and still illegally possess the gun. Bow hunting remains an option.
Sex Offender Registration on Arrival
If you were convicted of a sex offense or child kidnapping in any jurisdiction and you travel to or move to Alaska, you must register with the Alaska Sex Offender Registry by the next working day after you become physically present in the state.8Justia Law. Alaska Statutes Title 12 Chapter 63 Section 12.63.010 – Registration of Sex Offenders and Child Kidnappers That window is short. Failing to register is a separate crime, and the rule applies even to short visits.
Voting Rights
Alaska takes voting rights away from people convicted of a felony involving moral turpitude. The category is broad and includes assault, theft, robbery, sexual offenses, drug distribution, burglary, arson, forgery, and perjury, among others. If your felony falls into this category, you lose the right to vote from the date of conviction through the date of your unconditional discharge, meaning completion of your entire sentence including probation and parole.9Justia Law. Alaska Statutes Title 15 Chapter 05 Section 15.05.030 – Loss and Restoration of Voting Rights
Once you are unconditionally discharged, voting rights restore automatically. No pardon or court order is needed. You simply re-register. The Alaska Department of Corrections is required to tell people about the registration process at discharge.
Permanent Fund Dividend Eligibility
Alaska’s Permanent Fund Dividend (PFD) is a draw for new residents, and felony convictions affect eligibility year by year rather than permanently. You are ineligible for the PFD for any year in which you were sentenced for a felony during the qualifying year (the previous calendar year) or were incarcerated for any part of the qualifying year as a result of a felony. A misdemeanor incarceration also disqualifies you if you have a prior felony or two or more prior misdemeanors.10Justia Law. Alaska Statutes Title 43 Chapter 23 Section 43.23.005 – Eligibility Once you complete your sentence and are no longer incarcerated, you become eligible again the following qualifying year, assuming you meet Alaska’s other residency requirements.11Alaska Department of Revenue. Eligibility Requirements
The point people miss: the disqualification is tied to the qualifying year, not to your record generally. An old felony conviction does not permanently bar you from the PFD if you were not sentenced or incarcerated during the relevant year.
Jobs, Benefits, and Clearing Your Record
Alaska has no blanket ban on hiring people with felony convictions and no comprehensive statewide “ban the box” law for private employers. Employers and licensing boards have discretion to weigh whether your record matters for the job. Fields involving vulnerable populations, financial trust, or public safety tend to scrutinize criminal history more closely, and each licensing board sets its own standards. Government jobs and anything requiring a security clearance will involve a background check.
On food assistance, Alaska modified the federal lifetime SNAP ban for people with drug felony convictions through its 2016 criminal justice reform legislation. People with drug felonies can apply for SNAP if they are complying with parole and substance abuse treatment requirements. People with non-drug felony convictions were never subject to the SNAP ban. For federally subsidized housing, each public housing authority sets its own admission policies within federal guidelines, and certain convictions, particularly drug-related or violent offenses, can make placement harder.
Alaska allows some convictions to be set aside under AS 12.55.085. If a court originally suspended the imposition of your sentence and you successfully completed probation, the court can set aside the conviction and issue a certificate to that effect. You are ineligible if your conviction involved a violent crime, sexual offense, arson, weapons use during the offense, or if you have prior felony convictions.12Justia Law. Alaska Statutes Title 12 Chapter 55 Section 12.55.085 – Suspending Imposition of Sentence A set-aside does not erase the conviction. It can help with employment and licensing, but the conviction still counts as a prior if you are charged with a new crime. Alaska does not offer full expungement of adult felony convictions, so a set-aside is the closest option for eligible offenses.