Travelling from Northern Ireland to USA with a conviction in ireland

[DEEKO]

i live in northern ireland but was convicted of having a small amount of cannibas in southern ireland 5 years ago. I wasn't fingerprinted when arrested and wondering if they would only access my UK file details as its a uk passport or both UK and ireland files?

I might be going to the states with work and never declared i had a criminal record with them so i don't know whether to say nothing and chance it or go ahead and tell them.

Anyone else any ideas?

[Buenchico]

US immigration authorities have no direct access to any criminal records, other than those of the USA and Canada. They would not know about your conviction unless the Irish authorities had passed the information on. Unless you're regarded as a terrorist suspect or a potential drug smuggler, this won't have happened. So you should be able to enter the USA under the Visa Waiver Program.

If you're still worried, and decide to apply for a visa, you need to be aware that the process can take several months. (The current estimated wait, after attending an interview, is 8 weeks). For much of that time you would be effectively prohibited from travelling outside of the UK and Ireland, because your passport would be held by the US authorities. Further information is here:
http://london.usembassy.gov/nireland/nivisa.ht ml

Chris

[DEEKO]

Well because i'll be travelling to work over there for 2 weeks i think i will need to get a work visa? Therefore should i state on the form about ever being arrested no. Im just thinking it might cause problems either way with my company as i never declared the convictions to them.

I passed a police check to work in a school here in northern ireland and stated that i'd never been convicted of any crime on that form, so i was thinking because it was in southern ireland that they simply didnt check irish records and only checked my UK records. .

Thanks for the prompt reply buenchico!

[Buenchico]

... and thank you for your reply, Deeko.

I think you've effectively answered your own question. If the Irish authorities don't regard your conviction as being important enough to notify the only country they share an (open) border with, the chances of them mentioning it to the US immigration service would seem to be zero.

Chris

[BBWCHATT]

http://www.theanswerbank.co.uk/Travel/Getting- there/Question419386.html

[Reverandfunk]

I'm sure I heard last week that we are in talks with US customs so both countries have direct access to this information in the future. Or I might have dreamt it lol.

[netibiza]

Buenchico - a question for you. If a person of 17yrs was arrested for having a false driving licence in Spain, ie they had imposed their own photo on a lost one ( just to be able to get into discos, as they had no intention of driving and couldn't) were fingerprinted and photoed, but never charged - do they have a criminal record? and I also heard that in Spain records are not automatically erased at the age of 18. Can you enlighten me!

[dzug]

You are NOT going to work over there. You are going on business.

There is a very big difference between the two and you need to get the terminology right when filling in forms/talking to US immigration or you could get turned away by mistake.

If you are going on business you can use the Visa Waiver.

If you are going to work you need a visa - which you won't get. Not because of your conviction but because work visas are next to impossible to get.

The distinction is whether you are being paid by your UK employer (business) or a US company (work)

[dzug]

netibiza - yes for US immigration purposes they have a criminal record - they have been arrested (all that's needed) for what sounds like fraud. Even if taken to court and found not guilty they still have a record.

But as frequently said the US are not going to know about it unless he tells them.

[netibiza]

Thank you dzug

[jno]

tut, neti, I'm sure you did all this a very long time ago and your records in Madrid have all been expunged. As dzug says, the USA thinks anyone who's been arrested has a criminal record and would need to get a visa if travelling there. But if you don't apply for one and just fill in the visa waiver form on the plane, it doesn't actually say any of this; it just asks if you've been convicted of a crime involving moral turpitude. So you could tick the box for No and be allowed in without any fuss.

[jno]

PS Reverandfunk is half-right. The EU and US are working on a deal to share passenger information (the US is insisting, otherwise it won't let flights land). But I don't think criminal records are involved, it's more the sort of passport information about dob, addresses and phone numbers that we already fill out for airlines: it just means they'll pass it on to immigration authorities, I think.

[netibiza]

Twas not I jno am asking for my daughter's friend, as they think I know everything, you see.

[jno]

of course it was, neti...

[dzug]

The I94W form asks rather more than jno suggests - it asks about both arrests and convictions for moral turpitude or offenses involving controlled substances.

So you would be lying.

Sample here:

http://www.thedibb.co.uk/web/imigration/visaba ck.jpg

If it's too small when you open it just click to enlarge.

[jno]

dzug is quite right - my apologies, but I was answering neti's side-question rather than DEEKO's original one. I don't think using a dodgy driving licence in a disco counts as moral turpitude, except in the sense that all crimes do. And <said doubtfully> I can't imagine discos would involve controlled substances.

[nuttynel]

i got drug convictions and i didnt declare and im just back (still on wrong time zone)
DO NOT DECLARE or apply for visa cos anyone with drug related convictions or arrest will be refused visa and i know cos i spoke to usa visa laywer, so iwent and said nothing ticked NO in all boxes and was fine