USA Visa

Right I was silly and took my gf to her work on the Sunday morning, got
stopped, over the limit, 1 year ban etc. 12 Years ago.
What I need to know is, do I need to now get a visa to now get in the
USA, or can I wing it? And hope for the best?
I have heard it may be worth a chance? Or do I really have to go down to
London and preent my case?

 

You is obviously a terrorist and will get your arse reamed out in Gitmo.

Seriously - I doubt if a driving offence will bother them in the
slightest, but who knows. If you wing it and get found out you'd
probably be on a blacklist for ever.
--
Dave
GS850x2 XS650 SE6a

"It's a moron working with power tools.
How much more suspenseful can you get?"
- House

 

Were you arrested?

 

Yes

 

In which case, the answer is simple. Having been arrested (regardless
of charge or actual convictions) you are no longer entitled to enter
the US under the visa waiver program. Ergo, you must apply for a visa.

Whether you choose to run the gauntlet, much depends on how you feel
about potentially wasting your airfare and being turned around. Plenty
of people wing it, and no doubt get away with it.

 

Nononono, it's not quite this simple. This is what the US embassy in
London will tell the OP, but that's them in CYA mode.

The question on the visa waiver specifically asks about offence/crimes
of moral turpitude (listed here:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Moral_turpitude), drugs-related stuff or
offences that he got got banged up for for more than five years.
Driving while pished is explicitly listed as not falling into the above
categories.

Being turned around (ie, having the immigrations guys put you on the
next plane back instead of volunteering to hop on it) is a Very Bad
Thing and a bit more than a waste of an airfare. Especially if you
think you might have to go back within the next ten years for whatever
reason, because you will not be able to...

IANAIL, but I'd think the OP should be OK. If he's still worried, talk
to a US immigration lawyer about it - there's a bunch of pretty
competent ones in London and I have the contact details for them
somewhere. Alternatively, a search on the britishexpats.com forums
should bring up more information than the OP would ever want to know.
Just don't ask the question above there as it gets asked roughly every
five minutes. IIRC the main problem with getting a visa as a citizen of
a country that is part of the visa waiver program is that once you've
done it you have to do this every time and it's an unnecessary expense
and waste of time if you didn't need it.

Not to mention that if the immigrations officer at the US end decides
that you're up to no good, they don't have to let you in even with a
visa.

 

Absolute garbage. As long as you can answer No to all of the questions
of the Visa Waiver card, specifically the one about having been
convicted of any crimes of moral turptitude. And while it's not
altogether clear what they may be, the important word is convicted,
not arrested.

He'll be fine. There's much worse in my driving record and it's never
worried me in the slightest.

--
_______
..'_/_|_\_'. Ace (b.rogers at ifrance.com)
\`\ | /`/
`\\ | //' BOTAFOT#3, SbS#2, UKRMMA#13, DFV#8, SKA#2, IBB#10
`\|/`
`

 

Of course he will. I don't know how far back they would want to check
anyway but I've been to the US on the VWP on many occasions (the last
time two weeks ago) with a DR10 on my licence, albeit from 20 years ago
now, with nary a glimpse of an orange suit.

 

Ahh, so I was wrong about arrested vs. convicted.

But interesting stuff, nonetheless. And I think I'm safe.

Surely there's no doubt? Drunk driving is specifically excluded from
the Moral Turptitude list.

But in any case the most important question is whether there's any way
for the US immigration authorities to find you out, and as they have
no ability to see any UK Police or Criminal Records systems, the
answer would be, in 99% of cases, no way.

I've been called a drug dealer[1] on entry to Newark[2] before now,
which was, I'm sure, intended as a joke, but which I was very careful
about answering - you never know when they might suddenly turn on you.


[1] As in "What's your business?" "Phamacetical industry".
[2] A significant proportion of business travellers into New Jersey
work in this industry.

--
_______
..'_/_|_\_'. Ace (b.rogers at ifrance.com)
\`\ | /`/
`\\ | //' BOTAFOT#3, SbS#2, UKRMMA#13, DFV#8, SKA#2, IBB#10
`\|/`
`

 

Drink-driving is regarded as a fairly minor offence in the US, of course.

What's interesting is the inclusion of "Adultery" in the list... and the
specific exclusion of suicide (but only attempted, no mention of
successful)

 

Thanks for your replies. I have been to the US since my DR10, but it was
in 2000, so before things got a little bit more difficult...

 

Unfortunately my GBH arrest means I'm probably not.

Easily solved though - I just don't go to the US anymore. **** 'em.

 

Would it fall into the "Assault with intent to kill, commit rape,
commit robbery or commit serious bodily harm" or the "Assault with a
dangerous or deadly weapon " category ?

Even more easily solved - just don't tell the fuckers.

--
_______
..'_/_|_\_'. Ace (b.rogers at ifrance.com)
\`\ | /`/
`\\ | //' BOTAFOT#3, SbS#2, UKRMMA#13, DFV#8, SKA#2, IBB#10
`\|/`
`

 

I don't think the conditions of the VWP has changed at all, it's just that
they'll scan you, fingerprint you and bugger you on the way in.

 

I had D207s fitted. They're dangerous or deadly, right?

 

So you're saying that you can be banged up for less than five years for
an offence that's not in moral turpitude and get let in but get caught,
arrested and fined for somoking a joint[1] and not get let in?

They'll make you pay for a fucking CRO check just so they can refuse you
a visa next.

[1] For the sake of argument.

 

Next? They already do.

Part of the visa application process is obtaining a copy of your record
from the police, which costs about a tenner iirc.

 

I think it's more than that, BICBW.

Had to have criminal record (CRB in the UK) checks done last year for
the voluntary work I do with the Ski Club, including leading kid's
holidays. What made me laugh was that it needed to be supplied only
from you current country of residence, who of course have no access
whatsoever to your record before you moved there.

Makes you wonder, eh?
--
_______
..'_/_|_\_'. Ace (b.rogers at ifrance.com)
\`\ | /`/
`\\ | //' BOTAFOT#3, SbS#2, UKRMMA#13, DFV#8, SKA#2, IBB#10
`\|/`
`

 

You're right. 35 quid, or 70 quid if you need it in a hurry.

http://www.acpo.police.uk/Certificates\Application form 7.pdf

 

I tried some of that moral turpitude once - crap for cleaning brushes.
--
Dave
GS850x2 XS650 SE6a

"It's a moron working with power tools.
How much more suspenseful can you get?"
- House