lessthanstellar

was i LEGALLY bound to disclose any convictions i might have on my K1?

if you have followed my story, there were two convictions i didn't disclose (because i was unaware of them).. first, i submitted the court report for the one they had in their computer system 'producing a dangerous drug', but when i got my criminal history record (and i was afraid i would find the second one on it) i didn't disclose it. that happened 3 years earlier in 1991, and was for 'being in possession of a pipe used in smoking a dangerous drug' (that being marijuana.) for the record, i haven't touched marijuana since 1994.

so now i don't know whether to leave it, or disclose it. when my 601-waiver case is referred to the dept. homeland and security, will the dept. h&s be able to find out about this conviction, if they haven't already?

i feel really screwed. like i can't win whatever i do. some people say don't hand it over, some people say come clean. am i completely screwed?

i am very sad and depressed that it just looks bad for me. that after 18 months (18 months! 11 months of that in nebraska) i am still not with my partner.

i hope you can advise me on what could/should/would happen.

lessthanstellar.

207lonsdale

When I completed the forms required to apply for a K1 visa most of the questions were very simple to understand. Further, those questions did not simply ask about convictions, but also if you have ever been arrested, etc.

There certainly was not any provision detailed on those forms that allowed you to omit information that you would prefer not to disclose. To be honest, I don't think you really need a lawyer to confirm whether you should have answered those questions honestly or not.

If you were unsure whether you actually had a conviction, surely you must have known that you were arrested for a crime, whether or not that arrest actually led to a conviction?

lessthanstellar

don't mind me, i'm just really stupid.

if you want to read you can look at http://britishexpats.com/forum/showt...essthanstellar which explains. and you can put yourself on the list of those 'unhelpful people.'


no more posts from unhelpful people please!

207lonsdale

I can understand how you are feeling as I have been there! I had a conviction that was spent as far as UK law was concerned, but not where US law was concerned. Just after applying for the K1 visa I was also advised that I had committed fraud three times as an adult (albeit that I was not aware of it at the time).

Anyway, I was honest throughout the process and at my K1 interview and recent AOS interview not one word was mentioned about my past! At the AOS interview the officer completely left out any mention of CIMT, etc., which I took to mean that they were aware of my past (via statements that I had submitted) and had no interest in it!

Certain people told me not to admit to my past crime as my police record was clean, but that really was not an option, unless I wanted to constantly worry about something being found out later on in the process.

In my case, being honest was the best policy. Sadly, I think your case is much more complicated in that drugs were involved.

207lonsdale

I have read some of your previous posts. However, if you wish to claim that I am one of those "unhelpful people" simply because I cannot tell you that omitting information on the K1 application is okay, then that is your problem!

Noorah101

When helping my Iranian fiance fill in the forms for his K1 application, he told me about an instance where he had been found for working without proper authorization in Turkey. By his description to me, it sounded like he got arrested, detained, and then released (not deported). Rather than take any chances, we checked "yes" to the arrest question, wrote a detailed account of the circumstances, and submitted it, even before seeing his police record from Turkey. Fortunately, the day before his interview, when we actually did receive the police/court records, they were clean and showed no arrests. The ConOff questioned why we marked "yes" when he had no arrests, and I told her the reason...better safe than sorry. She put a big red line through the question where we answered "yes", and wrote a big "NO".

I think if your convictions are on a record that you have been able to get your hands on, then for sure the government will be able to do so. I think, by answering questions on the forms, and signing that they are true to the best of your knowledge, then you ARE legally responsible to disclose all you know of.

I just want to wish you good luck and hope it all works out.

Rene

lessthanstellar

please, people, if you are not a lawyer, if you haven't directly experienced any of the above, then you are not helping. judgements and comments are not appreciated. however, support and kind words are.

thank you.

Noorah101

In that case, just pay attention to the last line of my post where I wish you good luck

Rene

ironporer

No. You were obligated to list ALL ARRESTS on it.

(Add me to the unhelpful list also)

lessthanstellar

yes, technically i did sign that form to the best of my knowledge, and when i had my interview i swore to the best of my knowledge.. the conviction information for the first incident came out during that interview. technically i haven't been dishonest. but i feel like it am hiding something now. and it's stressing me out. but understand, america takes a hard line on drugs. if i don't hand it over, they may never find out - they had the first one on record, but not the second. if i hand it over, they may deny me entry, when i didn't have to hand it over. hence the question.

sorry noorah, i was writing this as you posted.

thanks for your support.

207lonsdale

For your information, I do have experience of having committed a crime and then applying for a visa! I have also experienced all the stress and pain whilst waiting for the visa interview, wondering whether I would be denied the visa because I messed up some 20 years earlier!

I very much doubt that any lawyer will be able to give you the answer you are looking for. You cannot be unaware of having committed a crime and you cannot be unaware of having been arrested! Therefore you chose to omit certain information from the application forms when applying for a visa; that is something you have to take responsibility for rather than bitching at me or anyone else.

207lonsdale

So what you really want to know now is whether you can choose to not hand over information that is in your possession and that you are aware of?

That decision is yours to make, no one here can advise you lie, etc. Whatever you decide, I do actually hope everything works out for the best for you!

lessthanstellar

i'm glad it worked out for you. but i am not here to justify myself to people and your post was offensive and rude. you talked down to me and insinuated (and still are) that i am stupid for not knowing that i had been arrested. it is possible, by the language used in different countries, to be unaware of being arrested. if no one says 'you are under arrest', then i don't think i am arrested. if the police are gentle and laid back, as they were, then how can one know? if they don't handcuff me or read me any rights, how would i know? if they use language like 'detained', then how does one know? if no one tells you you have a conviction, then it appears to me i don't have a conviction. if the judge says 'conviction not recorded' what would you think? if you want to understand anything about my case, you can read my posts IN FULL.

thank you for your wishes.

207lonsdale

The application forms for a K1 visa do not simply ask about convictions, but about any crime that you have committed, whether or not this resulted in any conviction.

Even if there is a language barrier and the police are "laid back", can you honestly expect anyone to believe that you did not understand that the police were there because you were in possession of drugs?

Apologies if you take me as being rude and offensive, however, you know that you chose to omit certain information; and even now you are considering whether to omit even more information!

I know how stressful this situation can be, but I didn't bitch at people here for my own mistakes!

207lonsdale

I didn't insinuate that were stupid, rather I believe that you knew full well that you were not honest when applying for a K1 visa and hoped that you would get away with it! Again, that was your choice to make - end of!