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entry to america

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mona liza | 14:30 Tue 02nd Oct 2007 | Travel
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me, my boyfriend and our 2 kids are going to america, but my boyfriend has a criminal record, will he be turned away when we get there or if we apply for a visa what are the chances of getting one, i just don't know what to do. any suggestions welcomed
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Why didn't you read the list of questions already answered on this subject before you hit submit?

In short, it is generally accepted that you can enter the US using the visa waiver programme
cnt . . . criminal record or not
This question has only been asked 300 times previously lol

Just enter on the visa waiver programme (fill in the form on the plane) and dont list any convictions US customs have no direct access to UK records
I would suggest, however, that you consider the type of convictions he has and whether there were any international warrants involved. If so, he may already be on that lovely american exclusion list. And as a matter of point for those who may not know, if an individual's activities were of such notoriety to have caused public attention, especially in the media, the individual may already have received a complimentary name addition to the US files anyway!

There's an american phrase that goes something along the lines of: L.A. on vacation - leave on probation! I'd be verrry careful with the decisions you make, especially if it concerns intentionally making false statements to the american government! The tend not to be as forgiving as we are...

Fr B
Following on from VillageVicar's post - if you have an even vaguely Islamic-sounding name, your papers and files are much more likely to receive closer scrutiny. They're a little over-cautious that way.
Basically unless your boyfriend is an internationally renowned criminal you will be okay lol
Reverand Funk, I wouldn't be too sure of that. There's an individual at Grosvenor Square whose sole job is to do daily 'listings' of convictions and what is called 'PA's' which is Public Awares.' I'm not certain if that's the correct description, but it's part of their NSA programme. That's not to suggest that every petty thief and bad cheque writer makes it to their list of 'friends,' but depending on the gradient count of severity and national security interest, some do end up there... so caution is always the best medicine.

Then, of course, there's the other side of the coin...my favourite adage: It is much easier to get forgiveness than it is to get permission!

Bon voyage!

Fr Bill
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Moral_turpitude

If you go to the above link and find the word "web site" after US State department's - I think this link gives the definitive answer on what is considered to be moral turpitude:

Interpretation of Moral Turpitude
The actual definition of moral turpitude is a lot narrower than many people think, and there is a full definition available for immigration purposes from the US State department's web site. The following is based mainly on material from that source.


http://www.travel.state.gov/visa/visa_1750.htm l


http://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/html/uscode0 8/usc_sec_08_00001182----000-.html

Exception Clause (i)(I) shall not apply to an alien who committed only one crime if�
(I) the crime was committed when the alien was under 18 years of age, and the crime was committed (and the alien released from any confinement to a prison or correctional institution imposed for the crime) more than 5 years before the date of application for a visa or other documentation and the date of application for admission to the United States, or
(II) the maximum penalty possible for the crime of which the alien was convicted (or which the alien admits having committed or of which the acts that the alien admits having committed constituted the essential elements) did not exceed imprisonment for one year and, if the alien was convicted of such crime, the alien was not sentenced to a term of imprisonment in excess of 6 months (regardless of the extent to which the sentence was ultimately executed).

continued...
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(B) Multiple criminal convictions
Any alien convicted of 2 or more offenses (other than purely political offenses), regardless of whether the conviction was in a single trial or whether the offenses arose from a single scheme of misconduct and regardless of whether the offenses involved moral turpitude, for which the aggregate sentences to confinement were 5 years or more is inadmissible.
(C) Controlled substance traffickers
Any alien who the consular officer or the Attorney General knows or has reason to believe�
(i) is or has been an illicit trafficker in any controlled substance or in any listed chemical (as defined in section 802 of title 21), or is or has been a knowing aider, abettor, assister, conspirator, or colluder with others in the illicit trafficking in any such controlled or listed substance or ch

(ii) is the spouse, son, or daughter of an alien inadmissible under clause (i), has, within the previous 5 years, obtained any financial or other benefit from the illicit activity of that alien, and knew or reasonably should have known that the financial or other benefit was the product of such illicit activity, is inadmissible.

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(D) Prostitution and commercialized vice
Any alien who�
(i) is coming to the United States solely, principally, or incidentally to engage in prostitution, or has engaged in prostitution within 10 years of the date of application for a visa, admission, or adjustment of status,
(ii) directly or indirectly procures or attempts to procure, or (within 10 years of the date of application for a visa, admission, or adjustment of status) procured or attempted to procure or to import, prostitutes or persons for the purpose of prostitution, or receives or (within such 10-year period) received, in whole or in part, the proceeds of prostitution, or
(iii) is coming to the United States to engage in any other unlawful commercialized vice, whether or not related to prostitution,
is inadmissible.
(E) Certain aliens involved in serious criminal activity who have asserted immunity from prosecution
Any alien�
(i) who has committed in the United States at any time a serious criminal offense (as defined in section 1101 (h) of this title),
(ii) for whom immunity from criminal jurisdiction was exercised with respect to that offense,
(iii) who as a consequence of the offense and exercise of immunity has departed from the United States, and
(iv) who has not subsequently submitted fully to the jurisdiction of the court in the United States having jurisdiction with respect to that offense,
is inadmissible.
So if someone was fined for under age drinking 40 years ago will they be okay without a visa.

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