For some reason Northern Ireland is also favored for Green Cards, as well as Ireland. Northern Ireland are still eligible to apply for the Green Card lottery whereas England (and rest of UK) are not.
For some reason Northern Ireland is also favored for Green Cards, as well as Ireland. Northern Ireland are still eligible to apply for the Green Card lottery whereas England (and rest of UK) are not.
Probably a lot of the politicaians who brought the rules in had Irish ancestry at some stage.Originally Posted by roger
Babblin Boo
Didn't know that! Just always thought it was the South!
Jean
It's because of the political history in Ireland. The Republic of Ireland always claimed jurisdiction over the North and refused to recognise the border, so always automatically gave people born in NI an Irish passport and citizenship if they wanted it. Presumably the agreement they made with the US included NI to keep the Republic of Ireland happy. There are also lots of family ties on both sides of the border, so presumably there has been some recognition of that.
Tonish
My silly brother in law has just this week been charged with drink driving.
Am i right in thinking that as this is a more serious offence than speeding that he will now have to apply for a visa?
There have been literally hundreds of posts on this subjecton on OV and other forums and still no conclusion. The problem is a conflict between US regulations and the guidance notes of the US Embassy in UK. This is the question on ESTA
Have you ever been arrested or convicted for an offense or crime involving moral turpitude or a violation related to a controlled substance; or have been arrested or convicted for two or more offenses for which the aggregate sentence to confinement was five years or more; or have been a controlled substance trafficker; or are you seeking entry to engage in criminal or immoral activities?
The US Regulations for entry state that you must declare an offence of moral turpitude and are ineligible to travel on a Visa Waiver. However there is no precise definition of moral turpitude in US law, but the regulations give plenty of examples of offences that are, and are not, included in that category, and DUI(Americaneese! for drinkdriving) is not such an offence; indeed even a third offence of DUI is not considered an offence of moral turpitude.
I have seen an offence of moral turpitude described as involving an intent to commit an offence and thus it can be argued that someone caught DUI did not intend to commit an offence.
On the other hand the guidance from the US embassy in London clearly states that if you have been arrested you are ineligible to use a Visa Waiver - and drink driving in UK involves an arrest.
The problem is that apparently the US embassy guidance in some other countries, in the visa waiver scheme, does not include the term 'arrest'; and I have read that drink driving in some countries does not necessarily mean you are arrested. Indeed in UK you could be arrested for drink driving - and subsequently at police station be below the limit and not charged; the strict interpretation of the US embassy guidance is that you need a visa.
There is no point in phoning or writing to the US Embassy in London or indeed the US authorities. Their standard reply is that if you are unsure of the regulations you must attend for an interview.(and you will payŁ1.50 a minute on the phone to get that answer)
Last edited by Robert5988; 23-06-2012 at 07:11. Reason: sp
Hi we are travelling to Orlando next year but my husband has a record from 12 years ago for possession of a class a drug with intent to supply. In this country his conviction has been spent but in US it is never spent. He just rang police up to ask what was showing up on his criminal record and they said nothing shows up. So if it doesn't show up in the police station he was arrested in how do the US know about it?
I know this question has been asked loads of times. Has anyone been with similar conviction and been let in?
Many thanks
In order to travel to US he must either have a valid Esta or Visa. When he applies for his Esta he will either commit an offence by answering "no" or answer "yes" he has been arrested and will then almost cettainly have it refused and have to apply for Visa. By applying you are giving implied consent for the US authorities to use whatever means they have at their disposal to check that what you are saying is true. I think someone said to apply for Visa you have to apply for a form from the police which may or may not show his offence.
Babblin Boo
I had a guest who was in a similar position and I will relay what happened to him and you can then decide what course of action you want to take.
Whatever you do there is a risk of either being turned back or not having a visa issued.
My guest was told by the police that once the conviction was spent it would disappear off all the 'normal' checks and immigration files in the UK. The U.S. does not have unrestricted access to UK records. They can ask for specific details but cannot do a blanket check on every flight arriving in the U.S. They are counting on you to admit an offence so that they can look into it.
If you apply for an ESTA and get one then you have passed all their first level checks. However you have committed an offence by not completing the form truthfully.
My guest arrived and went through with no questions asked. However there are no guarantees.
Dave
Dave Lewis
I know several people who have entered the USA under visa waiver even though they have criminal records for offences when they were younger. They got through no problem.
The offenses were minor ones - but as the other poster has said - there are no guarantees.
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