Non immagrant Visa for usa with a criminal record!

xMummyx

Dave not going anywhere else lol, this is our dream!

Just sent passport off so when that comes back [10days] im booking his interveiw

hbk619

HXDave wrote: »

would it not be worth going somewhere else other than USA, and saving your money?

and dont forget, if you are not 21 when you get there, you will not be able to consume alcohol either until you reach the magical 21 figure (and they are very very strict on this, and passports will need to be carried round at all times).

My friend worked in Florida over the summer and had alcohol bought for him... he drunk more than I did in the UK! Also, when I was in NYC last week an Irish guy selling comedy club tickets was recommending lots of bars that don't check ID. And an 18yr old friend got alcohol from a bar in April whilst out there.

Not that I'm suggesting anyone should - I didn't and wouldn't. But it's not as strict as you think. (Though I got served on the plane, where I honestly thought I'd be ID'd n didn't expect any booze but they just poured n gave it to me.. So slightly guilty :-\ )

whatajoke2

HXDave wrote: »

would it not be worth going somewhere else other than USA, and saving your money?

Hes still inadmiisable to the "main" places, Canada for 11 years, New Zealand for 10 years, Australia unless he gets a visa, Japan unless he gets a visa etc etc

He got 12 months, which is not a good figure for visa free travel.

Petty Offenses would also not kick in if it was considered a crime involving moral turpitude either.

If they want prison records you used to get them from the National Offender Management Service - for england and wales (cost was £10, delivery usually in 40 days).
If they want court records you get them from the sentencing court.

natters_2

I'm not sure wether it will be a yes or no as your oh has been in prison - but i had a conviction for assault in 1989 and had to go through the visa process recently - what happens is you ring for your appointment and pay your fee - they then send you an email with a link to a document that has to be filled in and you will also have to get a certificate from the police showing all offenses - it may say stepped down on it - this means spent convictions - on the online form you need to fill in all details of each conviction dates, fines, sentences etc - when you have done this you then have to send via email a copy of your passport and the police certificate - this along with the form you fill in gets you to the next step - they will email you again and either say sorry no visa or apply for your visa appointment. If you get to this stage you then have to fill in another form and print it off this you bring with you to the interview along with the police certificate and your passport. Make sure you have EVERYTHING they ask for or they won't let you have the appointment. When you get to the embassy you get a number from the reception - this will come up on a screen inside (a bit like waiting for your order in Argos!) - once your number is called you go to a window where they take all of your documents and fingerprint you - then you are told to sit back down and wait for the next stage - 3 to 4 hours later you will be called to another window where they will ask details of your offences and either issue you with a visa or refuse it - or give you a form with a refusal - but it will have a referal to homeland security to recommend a waiver - hubby got one of these and is still waiting to find out if he has been accepted - his appointment was in june - so be prepared for a long wait.

Hope that helps you decide if it's worth going for or not.

dzug1

natters wrote: »

I'm not sure whether it will be a yes or no as your oh has been in prison .

Prison in itself is not a problem unless the sentence was long - 5 years or more.

xMummyx

thank you for the advice people Iv just sent off his passport to get a new one, goinmg to apply for the police record when he gets paid and then ring up for an interveiw thing. Can i go in with him when he has his appointment or do i have to wait in the car/outside lol

whatajoke2

dzug1 wrote: »

Prison in itself is not a problem unless the sentence was long - 5 years or more.

That wouldn't make a difference I beleive. Any sentence longer than 6 months that is served, with a possible sentence of 1 year or more for a single offence, would.

Its 5 years possible sentence for multiple crimes.

If I remember correctly, any possible sentence over 365 has a deportation effect, any possible sentence of 365 days or more has an effect for tourists/immigration.

xMummyx wrote: »

goinmg to apply for the police record

What do you mean by a police record. If its an ACPO police Certificate then that does not contain the necessary information, all that would contain is what he was convicted of. (ie Assualt or whatever). The court record provides details of the offence, and is more relevant. However, the embassy requires an ACPO police Certificate and a prison record from you. Getting the court records would also help (if those details weren't on the prison record)

I don't know how ACPO got away with passing there piece of paper off as relevant, as most of the time it comes back as "no live trace" which is about as useful as a chocolate fireguard.

stressedtothelimit

xMummyx wrote: »

thank you for the advice people Iv just sent off his passport to get a new one, goinmg to apply for the police record when he gets paid and then ring up for an interveiw thing. Can i go in with him when he has his appointment or do i have to wait in the car/outside lol

I would recommened NOT going with him at all. They won't let you into the embassy unless you have an appointment. My DH goes alone.

Be warned though - you are not allowed to take anything into the embassy with you that is electrical - no phones/ipods, not even you car keys if they have a remote central locking fob on them. You have to go the chemist round the corner and hire a locked for you items.

DH's last 'appointment' took 6 hours from start to finish - its a joke in there!:eek:

matphil

Hi, do you mind if I ask a question on this thread.
My brother is about to book a holiday to Florida for next summer. Last November whilst out drinking he was attacked by someone. This person was sent to prison for 3 years for attacking him. However, as my brother was defending himself he hit this person and so was arrested and was later cautioned, no charges were given to him as the CCTV footage clearly showed that he had only defended himself.
As he was arrested and cautioned what should he apply for.

dzug1

matphil wrote: »

Hi, do you mind if I ask a question on this thread.
My brother is about to book a holiday to Florida for next summer. Last November whilst out drinking he was attacked by someone. This person was sent to prison for 3 years for attacking him. However, as my brother was defending himself he hit this person and so was arrested and was later cautioned, no charges were given to him as the CCTV footage clearly showed that he had only defended himself.
As he was arrested and cautioned what should he apply for.

The US Embassy advice is that he should apply for a B2 visa as he was arrested. The outcome of the arrest is irrelevant.

And a caution is effectively a conviction anyway - you admit you did whatever you were arrested for, they let you off going to court.