Police Certificate

[Donna & Paul 4]

We got our NOA2 on December 8, 2011. My fiance, in the meantime, had sent off for his police certificate in England. He received it back in the mail today. On it appeared a conviction for theft which he committed 21 years ago. It was 21 years ago, he's gone on with his life, and forgotten all about the chicken nicking incident. He failed to report this on his portion of the I129-F. Now we are kind of freaking out. Neither of us intended to commit fraud of any kind. What do we do now?

I know that going forward he must disclose this, but will this cause us to be denied our K1 Visa?

[Donna & Paul 4]

Okay, I think we kind of freaked out about this when it's not a major issue. We are working through an attorney, who is not very informative about the process. They had us front load a lot of information to them on forms which we signed. I just downloaded the 129-F and realize we have not yet reported any of my fiance's criminal records to the USCIS. Please correct me if I'm wrong, but as long as he discloses this from this point forward we should be okay.

A bit of advice for others out there: don't waste your money on an attorney. I've gotten a lot more information and assistance here.

[goldylox 0]

Hi Donna

Sorry to hear that. Was he actually convicted and sent to prison or was it an arrest. I am filing for my daughter who was arrested for possession of fake ID. Which is on her arrest report as possession of stolen goods (Fraud). I spoke to an immigration lawyer because i was gong out of my mind about it, he told me as long as you tell them you should be fine, he said that they are looking for convicted criminals. So my guess is that you will be fine as long as you are honest about it. I am sure a few older members will have more knowledge on that matter. Good luck on your journey Donna x x

[Nich-Nick 3,354]

London embassy webpage for interview documents says:

Police Certificates for the United Kingdom:

If the ACPO states "No Trace" or "No Live Trace" or does not list in full your arrests/convictions/cautions, you will also be required to furnish copies of the court record(s) covering all charges of which you have been convicted, or which are presently pending against you, if relevant. Another way in which to provide this information is in the form of a Subject Access Statement.

Court and Prison Records:

Persons who have been convicted of a crime must obtain a certified copy of each court record and any prison record, regardless of the fact that he or she may have subsequently benefited from an amnesty, pardon or other act of clemency.

Court records should include:

Complete information regarding the circumstance surrounding the crime of which the applicant was convicted; and

The disposition of the case, including sentence or other penalty or fine imposed

Court and Prison Records for the United Kingdom:

Court Records, usually called a "Memorandum of Conviction" (MOC) in Great Britain and "Certificates of Conviction" in Northern Ireland, must be obtained from the clerk of the court(s) in which you were tried.

The subject acess statement is from ACPO and takes longer to receive than the police certificate took. Basically they need official documentation of the charges and results over your version of the story. Get these papers in hand before you send off the Readiness for Interview document (DS-2001).

Edited December 10, 2011 by Nich-Nick

[Donna & Paul 4]

To be honest I was stressing out about it because he'd filled out forms saying he'd never been convicted of a crime and sent them to our attorney. At this point, if I'm understanding correctly, we haven't reported any of his criminal history to the USCIS. That will be in the next step.

He was arrested and given a 1-year suspended sentence. I don't think the arrest and conviction will, in and of itself, be a cause for denial. My concern was that we had inadvertently committed some kind of fraud as I understand the utmost importance of being truthful during this process.

I'd hate to think that a youthful indiscretion would haunt us 20 some odd years later, but it could.

[Leatherneck 693]

Donna,

As long as you have not submitted the I-129f to USCIS you're fine, submitting a completed 1-129f without that information included could be considered a "material misrepretation."

But as I understand you, you have not done so. So take the time to gather the additional court documents you'll need to address the issue.

Beneficiaries with far more serious criminal issues have been approved, so no need to stress, a 21 year old theft conviction should be simple to overcome.

[Donna & Paul 4]

Donna,

As long as you have not submitted the I-129f to USCIS you're fine, submitting a completed 1-129f without that information included could be considered a "material misrepretation."

But as I understand you, you have not done so. So take the time to gather the additional court documents you'll need to address the issue.

Beneficiaries with far more serious criminal issues have been approved, so no need to stress, a 21 year old theft conviction should be simple to overcome.

I'm confused now. I have submitted the I-129F to the USCIS. We received our NOA1 on July 21 and then our NOA2 on December 8. I've gone back over all of the paperwork and I don't see where we've answered a question to the USCIS with regards to the beneficiary's criminal record as of yet. I looked over the actual I-129F form and the G-325A form. Neither of these asks questions about the beneficiary's criminal background. Have I missed something here? And if we have made a "material misrepresentation" how to we correct that?

[Nich-Nick 3,354]

I'm confused now. I have submitted the I-129F to the USCIS. We received our NOA1 on July 21 and then our NOA2 on December 8. I've gone back over all of the paperwork and I don't see where we've answered a question to the USCIS with regards to the beneficiary's criminal record as of yet. I looked over the actual I-129F form and the G-325A form. Neither of these asks questions about the beneficiary's criminal background. Have I missed something here? And if we have made a "material misrepresentation" how to we correct that?

It's going to be fine. Just take the right documents to the interview so they can give you an approval. Otherwise they will send you away to order them. You haven't made any misrepresentation yet. Here's your next process to get done asap.

Application forms: http://london.usembassy.gov/iv_15.html

Documents for the interview: http://london.usembassy.gov/interview_documents.html

And come ask your questions in the UK forum for London specific answers about the process going forward. http://www.visajourney.com/forums/forum/99-united-kingdom/

[Donna & Paul 4]

It's going to be fine. Just take the right documents to the interview so they can give you an approval. Otherwise they will send you away to order them. You haven't made any misrepresentation yet. Here's your next process to get done asap.

Application forms: http://london.usembassy.gov/iv_15.html

Documents for the interview: http://london.usembassy.gov/interview_documents.html

And come ask your questions in the UK forum for London specific answers about the process going forward. http://www.visajourney.com/forums/forum/99-united-kingdom/

Thank you, Nich-Nick. I didn't think we'd misrepresented anything as of yet, but then got confused with that reply. Appreciate the link to the UK forums as I sometimes find it difficult to navigate and find exactly what I'm looking for here. We thought once we got our NOA2 we'd have clear sailing, but were kind of knocked for a loop when his police certificate arrived and had that on it. We have now calmed down about it.

[Dan & Jenni 457]

Thank you, Nich-Nick. I didn't think we'd misrepresented anything as of yet, but then got confused with that reply. Appreciate the link to the UK forums as I sometimes find it difficult to navigate and find exactly what I'm looking for here. We thought once we got our NOA2 we'd have clear sailing, but were kind of knocked for a loop when his police certificate arrived and had that on it. We have now calmed down about it.

you are right... nowhere so far has asked for the beneficiaries criminal record so dont worry about that at all. (i had the same worries as you just after jenni sent off the I-129F so i checked and double checked all the forms). you are also right that it shouldnt be a problem as far as getting a visa goes.

im guessing the police certificate came back showing "no live trace"?? if you havent already done so then you need to get the subject access request (£10 and you apply for it through your local forces website normally) and the memorandum of conviction as well. the subject access request can take up to 40 days but i have heard that having just got a police certificate can speed that up a little.

[Mac An Lighiche 1]

I do not miss the stress of the k-1 that's for sure! Be as thorough as you can! Even if it takes more time a mistake is not worth it!

[merkin&regine 18]

We got our NOA2 on December 8, 2011. My fiance, in the meantime, had sent off for his police certificate in England. He received it back in the mail today. On it appeared a conviction for theft which he committed 21 years ago. It was 21 years ago, he's gone on with his life, and forgotten all about the chicken nicking incident. He failed to report this on his portion of the I129-F. Now we are kind of freaking out. Neither of us intended to commit fraud of any kind. What do we do now?

I know that going forward he must disclose this, but will this cause us to be denied our K1 Visa?

This is a complex case and the issuance of visa depends on the Consulates' descretion on how he interprets the law regarding this:

Sec. 212. [8 U.S.C. 1182]

(2) Criminal and related grounds.-

(A) Conviction of certain crimes.-

(i) In general.-Except as provided in clause (ii), any alien convicted of, or who admits having committed, or who admits committing acts which constitute the essential elements of-

(I) a crime involving moral turpitude (other than a purely political offense or an attempt or conspiracy to commit such a crime), or

(II) a violation of (or a conspiracy or attempt to violate) any law or regulation of a State, the United States, or a foreign country relating to a controlled substance (as defined in section 102 of the Controlled Substances Act (21 U.S.C. 802)), is inadmissible.

(ii) 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).

(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 2/ were 5 years or more is inadmissible.

What I'm pointing out here is if his crime involves "MORAL TORPITUDE" which for me is a very broad word which could cover a lot of COnvictions... What you can do is to ask a lawyer if your conviction involves moral Torpitude.

Good luck!

[merkin&regine 18]

To be honest I was stressing out about it because he'd filled out forms saying he'd never been convicted of a crime and sent them to our attorney. At this point, if I'm understanding correctly, we haven't reported any of his criminal history to the USCIS. That will be in the next step.

He was arrested and given a 1-year suspended sentence. I don't think the arrest and conviction will, in and of itself, be a cause for denial. My concern was that we had inadvertently committed some kind of fraud as I understand the utmost importance of being truthful during this process.

I'd hate to think that a youthful indiscretion would haunt us 20 some odd years later, but it could.

As What I have sent in my previous post, if you're fiance commitied this when he was less than 18 yrs old and this was 21 yrs ago.. you are definitely in the exemption.. Pls just take time to read the legal desciption on the grounds of inadmissability to US..

[Nich-Nick 3,354]

What I'm pointing out here is if his crime involves "MORAL TORPITUDE" which for me is a very broad word which could cover a lot of COnvictions... What you can do is to ask a lawyer if your conviction involves moral Torpitude.

Good luck!

London had a case of one of our VJ members 'Advocator' earlier this year with a crime 20ish years old. The interviewing officer said it did fall under CIMT as fraud, but granted the visa. Many with minor crimes on their record have been granted visas in London. At this point, all the OP can do is go to the interview and discuss it. A lawyer could only speculate on a decision as we are doing because the decision is at the consulate's descretion. If by chance it was a denial, then a lawyer could help prepare a waiver, but they would have to be denied first. It was 21 years ago and London has shown many times in the past that one minor crime with no time served is not a reason for refusal.

Edited December 11, 2011 by Nich-Nick