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will i need a visa to travel to the usa as i have been convicted of drink driving and served 4 months in prison for it?
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will i need a visa to travel to florida on holiday for 2 weeks as i have been convicted of drink driving and served 4 months in prison as a result of it?
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(2 part post):
The US embassy website states that anyone who has ever been arrested (even if they were totally innocent of any offence) is ineligible to travel under the 'Visa Waiver Program'. (i.e. you must obtain a visa).
Contributors to this site frequently point out the following two things:
(i) the form which travellers fill in on the plane doesn't ask whether about whether you've ever been arrested. It asks whether you've ever been convicted of a 'crime of moral turpitude'. It's unlikely that drink-driving would be regarded as falling into this category, so you wouldn't actually have to lie on the form ;
(ii) US immigration official don't have direct access to UK criminal records, so it's quite possible that they might not know about your conviction. However, the UK does share some information with the USA. The problem is that nobody knows exactly what is passed on. (It's possible, for example, that the UK authorities might pass on details relating to any offence which resulted in a custodial sentence).
If you're a gambler by nature, you could try to get in under the Visa Waiver Program. Your chances of doing so might be fairly high but they can't be guaranteed. Otherwise you should apply for a visa.
The US embassy website states that anyone who has ever been arrested (even if they were totally innocent of any offence) is ineligible to travel under the 'Visa Waiver Program'. (i.e. you must obtain a visa).
Contributors to this site frequently point out the following two things:
(i) the form which travellers fill in on the plane doesn't ask whether about whether you've ever been arrested. It asks whether you've ever been convicted of a 'crime of moral turpitude'. It's unlikely that drink-driving would be regarded as falling into this category, so you wouldn't actually have to lie on the form ;
(ii) US immigration official don't have direct access to UK criminal records, so it's quite possible that they might not know about your conviction. However, the UK does share some information with the USA. The problem is that nobody knows exactly what is passed on. (It's possible, for example, that the UK authorities might pass on details relating to any offence which resulted in a custodial sentence).
If you're a gambler by nature, you could try to get in under the Visa Waiver Program. Your chances of doing so might be fairly high but they can't be guaranteed. Otherwise you should apply for a visa.
You should be aware that the visa application process is extremely lengthy. One person frequently posts here to say that he got his visa in a fairly short time (and that the US embassy didn't retain his passport during the application period) but I would still advise that you allow at least 5 months for the full application process (and not plan any foreign travel during much of that period). This is based upon the following:
(i) the police have up to 40 days to respond to your request for a copy of your criminal record. (You have to supply this to the US embassy. It will cost you a tenner) ;
(ii) the average waiting time to get an appointment at the US embassy is quoted, on their website, as about 2 weeks. (You pay $100 application fee plus another �10 for a courier to return your passport which, according to the website, is held at the US embassy while your application is under consideration) ;
(iii) the embassy website states that the minimum time before you'll hear the result of your application is '14 to 16 weeks'.
Further details of the application process are in my post here:
http://www.theanswerbank.co.uk/Travel/Question 289769.html
Chris
(i) the police have up to 40 days to respond to your request for a copy of your criminal record. (You have to supply this to the US embassy. It will cost you a tenner) ;
(ii) the average waiting time to get an appointment at the US embassy is quoted, on their website, as about 2 weeks. (You pay $100 application fee plus another �10 for a courier to return your passport which, according to the website, is held at the US embassy while your application is under consideration) ;
(iii) the embassy website states that the minimum time before you'll hear the result of your application is '14 to 16 weeks'.
Further details of the application process are in my post here:
http://www.theanswerbank.co.uk/Travel/Question 289769.html
Chris
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