Petitioner with a felony

[JanRo08 0]

Hi all VJ members:

I'm new here and would like get the advice, suggestion, help..etc from members of the VJ forum. My question is, I would like to know what affect it would have on the K1 petition process, if the Petitioner has a non-violent crime felony conviction.

[Inky 1,111]

Hard for people to give accurate advice or suggestions when they dont know what the felony is or what happend with the conviction.

[belinda63 3,039]

Depending on the crime it could have devastating consequences or none. Assuming it is not a drug, prostitution, sex slave, domestic violence, child abuse, etc crime probably no affect on the petition but without knowing the exact conviction it is hard to say.

[Zen Den 18]

Hi all VJ members:

I'm new here and would like get the advice, suggestion, help..etc from members of the VJ forum. My question is, I would like to know what affect it would have on the K1 petition process, if the Petitioner has a non-violent crime felony conviction.

it depends on the felony, how long ago it was committed etc. this is why in the application, the petitioner is required to indicate the details. if it's a non-violent crime and the one and only crime committed and was committed many years before, you can imagine that it won't have as much effect compared to one that's recent, serious, and one of many committed =)

[JanRo08 0]

Thanks to those who replied. The crime was actually a misdemeanor non-violent (domestic violence) that was almost 10 years ago. The sentenced was a suspended jail time and mandatory counseling. I noticed on part C or I-129F that it listed it with all the other violent crime.

[JimVaPhuong 4,863]

Thanks to those who replied. The crime was actually a misdemeanor non-violent (domestic violence) that was almost 10 years ago. The sentenced was a suspended jail time and mandatory counseling. I noticed on part C or I-129F that it listed it with all the other violent crime.

Yep, it's covered by the IMBRA. You'll need to get all of the court and police records, as indicated in the I-129F form instructions.

The purpose of the IMBRA is not to deny petitioners with a criminal history, but to protect beneficiaries from unknowingly hooking up with US citizens who might abuse them. The bulk of the IMBRA law is about disclosure - informing the beneficiary about the criminal history of the petitioner so that they aren't entering a relationship with someone they don't know much about. It's also about requiring International Marriage Brokers (IMB's) to collect this information from Americans, and to disclose it to foreigners before initiating contact between them. That's why they ask if you met through an IMB. If so, they'll check to make sure the IMB complied with the law. In any case, Department of State will make sure your fiancee gets a copy of your criminal records before the interview.

The only time the IMBRA requirements are used to deny a petition is if the petitioner has a conviction which falls under the IMBRA, and they are also asking for a waiver of the multiple filing limitations. They may deny the petition, in that case. If this is your first I-129F petition then they won't deny it because you have a conviction which falls under the IMBRA. They just require the records so that they can be given to your fiancee.

[Astoria08 0]

The only time the IMBRA requirements are used to deny a petition is if the petitioner has a conviction which falls under the IMBRA, and they are also asking for a waiver of the multiple filing limitations. They may deny the petition, in that case. If this is your first I-129F petition then they won't deny it because you have a conviction which falls under the IMBRA. They just require the records so that they can be given to your fiancee.

This was also our understanding before, and why we didn't send a waiver with our petition. Our petition was denied. My fiancé has, in the past, been convicted of 4 DUI's and 1 drug possession, but since our K1 petition was his first, we believed we didn't need to submit a waiver. We were wrong, apparently. The denial letter stated that his multiple convictions have made him ineligible to petition for an I-129f for me, and we didn't give them any reason to waive ineligibility, so they couldn't approve the petition. We are still confused, to this day, but have decided to move on. We are getting married in my country and will file a CR1 instead. We've gone over form I-130, and nowhere is IMBRA mentioned in it, so they shouldn't be able to deny an I-130 petition, not based on his convictions, at least.

To JanRo08, my advice, based on experience, is to send a waiver with your petition. Maybe it's not necessary in your case, but it wouldn't hurt.

[JimVaPhuong 4,863]

This was also our understanding before, and why we didn't send a waiver with our petition. Our petition was denied. My fiancé has, in the past, been convicted of 4 DUI's and 1 drug possession, but since our K1 petition was his first, we believed we didn't need to submit a waiver. We were wrong, apparently. The denial letter stated that his multiple convictions have made him ineligible to petition for an I-129f for me, and we didn't give them any reason to waive ineligibility, so they couldn't approve the petition. We are still confused, to this day, but have decided to move on. We are getting married in my country and will file a CR1 instead. We've gone over form I-130, and nowhere is IMBRA mentioned in it, so they shouldn't be able to deny an I-130 petition, not based on his convictions, at least.

To JanRo08, my advice, based on experience, is to send a waiver with your petition. Maybe it's not necessary in your case, but it wouldn't hurt.

Having criminal convictions which are covered by the IMBRA does not make the petitioner ineligible to submit a petition. USCIS cannot use their discretion to deny a petition for this reason, so there would be no waiver you could have requested. I've read the IMBRA act more times than I'd like to admit, and I'm fairly certain about this.

The IMBRA imposes three requirements on the petitioner. First, if they've committed any crime that is covered by the act then they are required to provide all police and court records related to the crime. Second, if they met through an IMB then they are required to provide information about the IMB. Third, if they've had another I-129F approved within the past two years, or they've ever submitted two or more I-129F's, then they are not eligible to submit another I-129F without asking for a waiver of the multiple filing limits. In THAT event, USCIS can use their discretion to deny the waiver if the petitioner also has committed crimes which are covered by the act.

The disclosure requirement cannot be waived. The multiple filing limits can. Are you sure you weren't denied because you didn't provide all of the required court and police documents?

[Ontarkie 14,280]

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