Petitioner - Criminal Record

[Anaar 2]

Hello,

 

My fiance was charged with assault of the third degree when he was 19 (more than 24 yr ago) due to finding his friend sleeping with his then gf, he pleaded no contest. He did community service and was ''deferred adjudication''

 

We are in the process to file the form I-129F. Does he need to provide any paperwork related to this? and what are the odds that this will make things more complicated for the k-1 approval? 

 

I'm so worried  

Edited December 9, 2022 by Anaar

[Mike E 11,723]

25 minutes ago, Anaar said:

Hello,

 

My fiance was charged with assault of the third degree when he was 19 (more than 24 yr ago) due to finding his friend sleeping with his then gf, he pleaded no contest. He did community service and was ''deferred adjudication''

 

We are in the process to file the form I-129F. Does he need to provide any paperwork related to this? and what are the odds that this will make things more complicated for the k-1 approval? 

 

I'm so worried  

See 

 

[Chancy 6,233]

3 hours ago, Anaar said:

We are in the process to file the form I-129F. Does he need to provide any paperwork related to this?

 

Yes, he needs to provide the arrest records and court documents along with the I-129F.

 

If you are so worried about this criminal record from decades ago, consider getting married and pursuing spouse visa instead.  Unlike the I-129F, the I-130 petition does not require the petitioner to disclose criminal records.

 

[STO Overland 137]

 

43 minutes ago, Chancy said:

If you are so worried about this criminal record from decades ago, consider getting married and pursuing spouse visa instead.  Unlike the I-129F, the I-130 petition does not require the petitioner to disclose criminal records

Paging @Crazy Cat

For his K1 v CR1

[Crazy Cat 39,261]

2 minutes ago, STO Overland said:

 

Paging @Crazy Cat

For his K1 v CR1

Every couple has their own priorities, and each couple must decide which visa is better for their situation.

K-1        
    More expensive than CR-1    
    Requires Adjustment of Status after marriage (expensive and requires a lot of paperwork)    
    Spouse can not leave the US until she/he receives approved Advance Parole (approx 6-8 months)    
    Spouse can not work until she/he receives EAD (approx 6-8 months)    
    Some people have had problems with driver licenses, Social Security cards, leases, bank account during this period    
    Spouse will not receive Green Card for many months after Adjustment of Status is filed.
    A K-1 might be a better choice when 18-21 year old children are immigrating also
    In some situations, marriage can affect certain Home country benefits, making a K-1 a better choice   
    A denied K-1 is sent back to USCIS to expire
    

CR-1
    Less expensive than K-1    
    No Adjustment of Status(I-485, I-131, I-765) required.    
    Spouse can immediately travel outside the US    
    Spouse is authorized to work immediately upon arrival.    
    Spouse receives Social Security Card and Green Card within 2 or 3 weeks after entering the US    
    Opening a bank account, getting a driver's license, etc. are very easily accomplished with GC, SS card, and passport.
    Spouse has legal permanent Resident status IMMEDIATELY upon entry to US.
   

 

[W199 264]

4 hours ago, Anaar said:

Hello,

 

My fiance was charged with assault of the third degree when he was 19 (more than 24 yr ago) due to finding his friend sleeping with his then gf, he pleaded no contest. He did community service and was ''deferred adjudication''

 

We are in the process to file the form I-129F. Does he need to provide any paperwork related to this? and what are the odds that this will make things more complicated for the k-1 approval? 

 

I'm so worried  

The K-1 instructions explain that CERTIFIED court documents and arrest records need to be provided.  But usually, not always, they are just looking for the certified cout documents simply to verify that the case is closed because these types of criminal convictions don't make you ineligible for a K-1.  They also want to verify you are honest and have declared all offenses. If the case is closed, you provided the certified court documents, didn't hide any arrests, etc.. then there should be no issue.  

[bck86 18]

8 hours ago, Chancy said:

 

If you are so worried about this criminal record from decades ago, consider getting married and pursuing spouse visa instead.  Unlike the I-129F, the I-130 petition does not require the petitioner to disclose criminal records.

 

I noticed that neither the petition nor the checklist ask about criminal records/court documentation for I-130; however, in the IR-1/CR-1 immigration guide on this website (link), it shows that you need to bring criminal records/court documentation to the interview under "Interview Forms/Items" (numbers 8 and 10). Is that the case?

 

This is unrelated to the OP (apologies), but I was considering withdrawing our K-1 petition, getting married, and going the CR-1 route. The problem is, I took a huge leap of faith because I only had one certified copy of a very old court case, and I sent it with the K-1 petition. I went to the courthouse to request additional certified copies, but they don't have any documentation on the case at all anymore, and they won't certify/sign anything stating that. I'm worried that if I withdraw the K-1, get married and file for CR-1, and they need court certified documentation, I'll be SOL since I sent the one and only certified copy away already.

Edited December 9, 2022 by bck86

[iwannaplay54 985]

1 hour ago, bck86 said:

I noticed that neither the petition nor the checklist ask about criminal records/court documentation for I-130; however, in the IR-1/CR-1 immigration guide on this website (link), it shows that you need to bring criminal records/court documentation to the interview under "Interview Forms/Items" (numbers 8 and 10). Is that the case?

 

This is unrelated to the OP (apologies), but I was considering withdrawing our K-1 petition, getting married, and going the CR-1 route. The problem is, I took a huge leap of faith because I only had one certified copy of a very old court case, and I sent it with the K-1 petition. I went to the courthouse to request additional certified copies, but they don't have any documentation on the case at all anymore, and they won't certify/sign anything stating that. I'm worried that if I withdraw the K-1, get married and file for CR-1, and they need court certified documentation, I'll be SOL since I sent the one and only certified copy away already.

Petitioner records not required or asked for during I130/IR process

[Just Paul 4,591]

Have the petitioner try to obtain, even via letter, a certified copy of the outcome.  I have had this come up before in my personal work history due to a contempt violation 20+ years ago showing up on my FBI record.  The court responded back with a letter bearing a seal stating they no longer had any record of it.  Never had a problem with that.

[Anaar 2]

Thanks for the replies.

 

Does he need to write a separate letter explaining in short what happened and why etc? I read online somewhere that it might be best but I would like to know your opinions?

 

He also had a graffiti offence when he was 15 yrs old, but it has been removed from his records so there's no paperwork to provide. Does he just needs to mention it on the I-129f form?

[Anaar 2]

On 12/10/2022 at 2:53 AM, Paul & Mary said:

Have the petitioner try to obtain, even via letter, a certified copy of the outcome.  I have had this come up before in my personal work history due to a contempt violation 20+ years ago showing up on my FBI record.  The court responded back with a letter bearing a seal stating they no longer had any record of it.  Never had a problem with that.

Thank you.

 

Does he need to write a separate letter explaining in short what happened and why etc? I read online somewhere that it might be best but I would like to know your opinions?

 

He also had a graffiti offence when he was 15 yrs old, but it has been removed from his records so there's no paperwork to provide. Does he just needs to mention it on the I-129f form?

[Cheesehead22 86]

On 1/17/2023 at 5:52 AM, Anaar said:

Thank you.

 

He also had a graffiti offence when he was 15 yrs old, but it has been removed from his records so there's no paperwork to provide. Does he just needs to mention it on the I-129f form?

All offenses including ones that happened as a minor need to be reported. If there is no record, explain the charge and the approximate date. 

[Danny & Brenda 18]

On 1/18/2023 at 9:09 PM, Cheesehead22 said:

All offenses including ones that happened as a minor need to be reported. If there is no record, explain the charge and the approximate date. 

I'm not a lawyer I can't give legal advice, but in the top post it says "deferred adjudication" so if the terms of that court agreement is met there is no offense charged or convicted. You can do a background search to see the history you need to present in most states for a small fee, I think Oklahoma is here:

 

https://chirp.osbi.ok.gov/

 

Good luck!

[Cheesehead22 86]

18 hours ago, Danny & Brenda said:

I'm not a lawyer I can't give legal advice, but in the top post it says "deferred adjudication" so if the terms of that court agreement is met there is no offense charged or convicted. You can do a background search to see the history you need to present in most states for a small fee, I think Oklahoma is here:

 

https://chirp.osbi.ok.gov/

 

Good luck!

Deferred or not, being honest is the best route. even if it doesn’t show up on record, immigration can likely see more than we all know.