Go Back  British Expats > Living & Moving Abroad > USA
Reload this Page >

Foreign Legion

Foreign Legion

Old Jul 7th 2019, 12:07 pm
  #1  
Forum Regular
Thread Starter
 
Joined: Apr 2013
Posts: 78
nofrills is an unknown quantity at this point
Default Foreign Legion

Hello all
A friend of mine, has an opportunity to get a green card.
one thing he is worried about is that some years ago he served in French Foreign Legion.
would this negatively impact his application?
Any advice highly appreciated.
thanks
nofrills is offline  
Old Jul 7th 2019, 12:33 pm
  #2  
Often not so civil...
 
civilservant's Avatar
 
Joined: Apr 2010
Location: The Boonies, GA
Posts: 9,561
civilservant has a reputation beyond reputecivilservant has a reputation beyond reputecivilservant has a reputation beyond reputecivilservant has a reputation beyond reputecivilservant has a reputation beyond reputecivilservant has a reputation beyond reputecivilservant has a reputation beyond reputecivilservant has a reputation beyond reputecivilservant has a reputation beyond reputecivilservant has a reputation beyond reputecivilservant has a reputation beyond repute
Default Re: Foreign Legion

He will need his military service papers, his discharge papers I believe.

If he was discharged other than honorably, it could cause a problem.
civilservant is offline  
Old Jul 7th 2019, 3:24 pm
  #3  
Lost in BE Cyberspace
 
Joined: Jul 2016
Posts: 9,986
morpeth has a reputation beyond reputemorpeth has a reputation beyond reputemorpeth has a reputation beyond reputemorpeth has a reputation beyond reputemorpeth has a reputation beyond reputemorpeth has a reputation beyond reputemorpeth has a reputation beyond reputemorpeth has a reputation beyond reputemorpeth has a reputation beyond reputemorpeth has a reputation beyond reputemorpeth has a reputation beyond repute
Default Re: Foreign Legion

Originally Posted by nofrills
Hello all
A friend of mine, has an opportunity to get a green card.
one thing he is worried about is that some years ago he served in French Foreign Legion.
would this negatively impact his application?
Any advice highly appreciated.
thanks
One option is talk to a Marine recruiter (a) depending on his training it may be they would help (b)get his Green called, sign up for 4 years, and he can get his citizenship after completing boot camp..
morpeth is offline  
Old Jul 7th 2019, 7:16 pm
  #4  
Forum Regular
Thread Starter
 
Joined: Apr 2013
Posts: 78
nofrills is an unknown quantity at this point
Default Re: Foreign Legion

Thanks for replying.

The thing is, he signed a 5 year contract, and served only just over 1 year.

He left on his 3 weeks holiday and never came back.

That was over 20 years ago.

He wanted to get copies of his documents from FL, he phoned them, and was asked to send an email to the address they provided, and he would get his copy.

He's done it several times, but received no reply.

He suspects they could have tried him for deserting, and there could be a record of the sentence on his FL file.

When he spoke to them over the phone, he was told nobody is looking for him at all, as every year there are so many people deserting FL for various reasons.

When he spoke over the phone with a french lawyer he was told that most likely his case went through military court and there was some sentence imposed, but after 6 years it expired.

The lawyer said he could go through a court and ask to be pardoned.



He applied for a criminal history check from France as he lived there for over 6 months, and it came clear.

What do you think about it?

Thanks
nofrills is offline  
Old Jul 7th 2019, 8:03 pm
  #5  
Deep in the woods of CT
 
Nutmegger's Avatar
 
Joined: Feb 2010
Posts: 6,995
Nutmegger has a reputation beyond reputeNutmegger has a reputation beyond reputeNutmegger has a reputation beyond reputeNutmegger has a reputation beyond reputeNutmegger has a reputation beyond reputeNutmegger has a reputation beyond reputeNutmegger has a reputation beyond reputeNutmegger has a reputation beyond reputeNutmegger has a reputation beyond reputeNutmegger has a reputation beyond reputeNutmegger has a reputation beyond repute
Default Re: Foreign Legion

Originally Posted by nofrills
Hello all
A friend of mine, has an opportunity to get a green card.
one thing he is worried about is that some years ago he served in French Foreign Legion.
would this negatively impact his application?
Any advice highly appreciated.
thanks
It might be relevant for us to know how he has the opportunity to get the green card.
Nutmegger is offline  
Old Jul 7th 2019, 8:16 pm
  #6  
Forum Regular
 
jkeller's Avatar
 
Joined: Sep 2016
Location: Lone Star State
Posts: 238
jkeller has a reputation beyond reputejkeller has a reputation beyond reputejkeller has a reputation beyond reputejkeller has a reputation beyond reputejkeller has a reputation beyond reputejkeller has a reputation beyond reputejkeller has a reputation beyond reputejkeller has a reputation beyond reputejkeller has a reputation beyond reputejkeller has a reputation beyond reputejkeller has a reputation beyond repute
Default Re: Foreign Legion

It used to be that you could join the legion with a fake name. Did he join with his real identity?

Wiki quote..
"Legionnaires were, in the past, forced to enlist under a pseudonym ("declared identity"). This policy existed in order to allow recruits who wanted to restart their lives to enlist. The Legion held the belief that it was fairer to make all new recruits use declared identities." There has to be some way to get ahold of his service records. Lying on his green card paperwork is not the way to go.
jkeller is offline  
Old Jul 7th 2019, 8:49 pm
  #7  
Often not so civil...
 
civilservant's Avatar
 
Joined: Apr 2010
Location: The Boonies, GA
Posts: 9,561
civilservant has a reputation beyond reputecivilservant has a reputation beyond reputecivilservant has a reputation beyond reputecivilservant has a reputation beyond reputecivilservant has a reputation beyond reputecivilservant has a reputation beyond reputecivilservant has a reputation beyond reputecivilservant has a reputation beyond reputecivilservant has a reputation beyond reputecivilservant has a reputation beyond reputecivilservant has a reputation beyond repute
Default Re: Foreign Legion

Time for an attorney, this just became a non-DIY immigration case.

No one here can adequately advise on this situation.
civilservant is offline  
Old Jul 7th 2019, 11:03 pm
  #8  
BE Forum Addict
 
tom169's Avatar
 
Joined: Mar 2015
Location: NC, USA (ex Yorkshire)
Posts: 4,375
tom169 has a reputation beyond reputetom169 has a reputation beyond reputetom169 has a reputation beyond reputetom169 has a reputation beyond reputetom169 has a reputation beyond reputetom169 has a reputation beyond reputetom169 has a reputation beyond reputetom169 has a reputation beyond reputetom169 has a reputation beyond reputetom169 has a reputation beyond reputetom169 has a reputation beyond repute
Default Re: Foreign Legion

Originally Posted by civilservant
Time for an attorney, this just became a non-DIY immigration case.

No one here can adequately advise on this situation.
tom169 is offline  
Old Jul 8th 2019, 12:32 am
  #9  
Forum Regular
 
Joined: Aug 2011
Posts: 210
HDWill has a reputation beyond reputeHDWill has a reputation beyond reputeHDWill has a reputation beyond reputeHDWill has a reputation beyond reputeHDWill has a reputation beyond reputeHDWill has a reputation beyond reputeHDWill has a reputation beyond reputeHDWill has a reputation beyond reputeHDWill has a reputation beyond reputeHDWill has a reputation beyond reputeHDWill has a reputation beyond repute
Default Re: Foreign Legion

If I were an immigration officer looking at his case, I would have no problem and would love to hear his stories. I recall reading "Legion of the Lost," a book written by an American who joined in the '90s and deserted after a year due to the viciousness, brutality, and chaos he was subjected to. It made me imagine that I too would have deserted in a similar situation.
HDWill is offline  
Old Jul 8th 2019, 4:42 am
  #10  
Forum Regular
Thread Starter
 
Joined: Apr 2013
Posts: 78
nofrills is an unknown quantity at this point
Default Re: Foreign Legion

Thanks for replying again.

There is a company that wants to sponsor him as an employee.
would anyone know of a good attorney, who would be able to advise on this case?
He served under his real name.
thanks
nofrills is offline  
Old Jul 8th 2019, 7:29 am
  #11  
Lost in BE Cyberspace
 
Joined: Jul 2016
Posts: 9,986
morpeth has a reputation beyond reputemorpeth has a reputation beyond reputemorpeth has a reputation beyond reputemorpeth has a reputation beyond reputemorpeth has a reputation beyond reputemorpeth has a reputation beyond reputemorpeth has a reputation beyond reputemorpeth has a reputation beyond reputemorpeth has a reputation beyond reputemorpeth has a reputation beyond reputemorpeth has a reputation beyond repute
Default Re: Foreign Legion

Originally Posted by nofrills
Thanks for replying again.

There is a company that wants to sponsor him as an employee.
would anyone know of a good attorney, who would be able to advise on this case?
He served under his real name.
thanks
if you send me private message i can give you recommendation

morpeth is offline  
Old Jul 8th 2019, 12:33 pm
  #12  
Home and Happy
 
Pollyana's Avatar
 
Joined: Dec 2002
Location: Keep true friends and puppets close, trust no-one else...
Posts: 93,780
Pollyana has a reputation beyond reputePollyana has a reputation beyond reputePollyana has a reputation beyond reputePollyana has a reputation beyond reputePollyana has a reputation beyond reputePollyana has a reputation beyond reputePollyana has a reputation beyond reputePollyana has a reputation beyond reputePollyana has a reputation beyond reputePollyana has a reputation beyond reputePollyana has a reputation beyond repute
Default Re: Foreign Legion

Originally Posted by nofrills
Thanks for replying again.

There is a company that wants to sponsor him as an employee.
would anyone know of a good attorney, who would be able to advise on this case?
He served under his real name.
thanks
Many Legionnaires only served under their real names, sand their records are excellent,
However the biggest problem your friend will face is the fact hat he deserted. The brotherhood of the Legion views desertion as just about the worst crime there is, certainly post enlistment, and to many Legionnaire once a person has deserted they are dead. So the problem will be getting an officer with that attitude to trace and sign any records. The records will be there, its access to them that will be the issue.
I wish your friend luck - let us know the outcome. .




Pollyana is offline  
Old Jul 8th 2019, 1:19 pm
  #13  
BE Enthusiast
 
Joined: Mar 2017
Location: Austin, TX
Posts: 455
TexanScot has a reputation beyond reputeTexanScot has a reputation beyond reputeTexanScot has a reputation beyond reputeTexanScot has a reputation beyond reputeTexanScot has a reputation beyond reputeTexanScot has a reputation beyond reputeTexanScot has a reputation beyond reputeTexanScot has a reputation beyond reputeTexanScot has a reputation beyond reputeTexanScot has a reputation beyond reputeTexanScot has a reputation beyond repute
Default Re: Foreign Legion

Originally Posted by HDWill
If I were an immigration officer looking at his case, I would have no problem and would love to hear his stories.
I'm not an immigration officer, but I can't see many Americans in general looking fondly towards anyone deserting the military!

TexanScot is offline  
Old Jul 8th 2019, 1:20 pm
  #14  
Often not so civil...
 
civilservant's Avatar
 
Joined: Apr 2010
Location: The Boonies, GA
Posts: 9,561
civilservant has a reputation beyond reputecivilservant has a reputation beyond reputecivilservant has a reputation beyond reputecivilservant has a reputation beyond reputecivilservant has a reputation beyond reputecivilservant has a reputation beyond reputecivilservant has a reputation beyond reputecivilservant has a reputation beyond reputecivilservant has a reputation beyond reputecivilservant has a reputation beyond reputecivilservant has a reputation beyond repute
Default Re: Foreign Legion

Originally Posted by TexanScot
I'm not an immigration officer, but I can't see many Americans in general looking fondly towards anyone deserting the military!
Hardly fits with 'good moral character' does it?
civilservant is offline  
Old Jul 8th 2019, 1:29 pm
  #15  
Concierge
 
Rete's Avatar
 
Joined: Apr 2001
Posts: 46,344
Rete has a reputation beyond reputeRete has a reputation beyond reputeRete has a reputation beyond reputeRete has a reputation beyond reputeRete has a reputation beyond reputeRete has a reputation beyond reputeRete has a reputation beyond reputeRete has a reputation beyond reputeRete has a reputation beyond reputeRete has a reputation beyond reputeRete has a reputation beyond repute
Default Re: Foreign Legion

Originally Posted by TexanScot
I'm not an immigration officer, but I can't see many Americans in general looking fondly towards anyone deserting the military!
Would that attitude not be the same of someone who is a deserter who is attempting to emigrate to the UK?
Rete is offline  

Contact Us - Archive - Advertising - Cookie Policy - Privacy Statement - Terms of Service -

Copyright © 2024 MH Sub I, LLC dba Internet Brands. All rights reserved. Use of this site indicates your consent to the Terms of Use.