captainsensible

Hi,

I am in the process of completing the I-485 form for the purposes of concurrent filing.

One of the questions relates to having been previously arrested, etc. As I have been previously arrested, in the UK many years ago, and this was disclosed and an ACRO certificate provided for my E2 Visa application do I have to supply the certificate again?

It was my understanding that it would not be required for the AOS process, although I obviously cannot answer 'no' to the question and I wondered what the ramifications of this were.

Thanks.

Noorah101

As you know, you must answer "yes". Don't include the ACRO certificate at this time, but bring it to your AOS interview, if you have one.

Rene

captainsensible

Thanks Rene

jxv73

If it's employment-based you usually would not have an interview, so send in the arrest records (and any court documents you may have) as instructed in the I-485 instructions.

Noorah101

I agree about the employment-based I-485. Since he mentioned being here on an E-2 visa, which does not lead directly to US PR status, I assumed he married a USC and is doing an adjustment of status based on marriage to a USC. Also he said "concurrent filing" which usually means an I-485 and I-130 are filed together for AOS. I don't think employment-based AOS cases use an I-130.

Just a guess, though.

Rene

captainsensible

Spot on! The only document I have is the ACRO certificate anyway, showing 'No Trace', as charges relating to the arrest were dropped anyway.

captainsensible

Sorry for bringing this up again but I have been looking at the instructions for the I-485 and it states this in section 1. D. of 'Initial Evidence':

If you have ever had any arrest or conviction vacated, set aside, sealed, expunged, or otherwise removed from your record, submit:

1. An original or court-certified copy of the court order vacating, setting aside, sealing, expunging, or otherwise removing the arrest of conviction; or

2. An original statement from the court that no record exists of your arrest or conviction

Now, I think that this in particular relates to the 'other' question on the I-485, that asks if you have 'been the beneficiary of a pardon, amnesty, rehabilitation decree, other act of clemency, similar action?'

On the basis that the charges relating to my original arrest were dropped and I received no conviction, then it would seem that I must say 'yes' to having been arrested, and can then go on to answer 'yes' to the second question re the pardon and then include the ACRO certificate as proof of 'No Trace' on my record (in the UK, although I got the ACRO certificate before I first moved here in 2012).

OR, do I just leave it as 'yes' to the arrest question and NOT supply the ACRO certificate as Rene originally suggested? I am trying to make sure I avoid any possible cause for a RFE - it seems to me that including the ACRO certificate in the I-485 package would not do any harm?

Apologies if I am over complicating something really simple!!

Noorah101

Including the ACRO certificate (a photocopy of it) will do no harm, but from what you've posted above, it actually sounds like they want to see court documents, not an ACRO certificate.

Rene

captainsensible

It was so long ago (20+ years!) that I don't even remember which court it was! Given that, and that the certificate says No Trace (which means there is nothing whatsoever on my UK record), do you think a covering note, along with the certificate, will suffice?

I remember a while back, when I was first applying for my E2, asking a question about AOS, and Ian said something along the lines of, I would not even need my police certificate for AOS. But this section of the I-485 instructions is making me worry.

ian-mstm

Yes, they were dropped. They were not "vacated, set aside, sealed, expunged, or otherwise removed from your record". Words have meaning.

Ian

Noorah101

In general, a police certificate is not part of the required documents for AOS. But in your case, since you have an arrest and have to check "yes", then you must supply whatever documents USCIS is requesting.

All you can do is try. If all you have right now (and all you can get) is the ACRO certificate, submit that and see what happens. Best case scenario, USCIS accepts it and you're fine. Worst case, they send an RFE for the missing court documents, and you have to track them down.

Rene

captainsensible

Ok thanks. For what its worth, I am going to include the following explanation, along with the ACRO certificate in my I-485 package:

"I was previously arrested in the United Kingdom in October 1991 and charged with having consumed excess alcohol while in charge of a motor vehicle.

The charges against me were subsequently dropped and no conviction was made against me.

This incident was declared during the application process for my E2 Employee Visa in 2012 and a supporting ACRO Certificate, showing ‘NO TRACE’ on my criminal record, was supplied at that time to prove that I have received no convictions related to this, or any other matter. I have included a copy of that ACRO Certificate with this I-485 package."

Hopefully that will do!

captainsensible

Update on this... my Mum (bless her) reminded me that the case never actually went to court as proceedings were dropped beforehand. Seems to me that this means obtaining court records might not be possible anyway!

Noorah101

Yep, in which case you can get a statement from the court which says you have no records on file there.

Rene

captainsensible

Interestingly, in my I-797C that I just received notifying me of my AOS Interview date, there was an extra sheet of paper included, headed

"Notice to applicant: If you have ever been arrested or detained by any law enforcement officer for any reason, you must bring the following to your adjustment of status interview."

Then goes on to list all the different options, dependent upon the outcome of the case itself. Seems to me that its inclusion with the NOA is quite pointed, based upon my provision of ACRO certificate and covering letter.

Unless of course it is always included...

Looks like I need to get onto the court anyway.