Previous convictions and completing the I-129F form

[dundeehighlander 17]

Hi everyone, I am a UK citizen and my fiancé is a US citizen and we have been working on the initial I-129F form with the aim of completing it shortly. We have known each other for several years, evidence of our relationship is not a problem, however, she has two convictions, one for possession of drugs(a small amount) and a DUI. Both offences were more than thirty five years ago when she was really young, the first charge was meant to be expunged on completion of a course(which she did complete). Question 4 a. indicates that all offences have to be listed (which we will do), we plan to obtain a police criminal history report and if no records still exist (bearing in mind the length of time since the offences) try to get some kind of document from the court to prove this. All very stressed and not sure what documents will be acceptable to include in the pack. The offences were in the state of California. - San Bernardino District.

Any advice would be very much appreciated.

Thanks

Keith

[Chris Duffy 1,257]

No need to disclose the DUI.

 

The drug related I don't know the answer,  I will let someone with first hand experience reply to that

[geowrian 22,337]

As of the current I-129F, all past arrests and citations must be disclosed, except for certain traffic violations:

"Have you ever been arrested, cited, charged, indicted, convicted, fined, or imprisoned for breaking or violating any law or ordinance in any country, excluding traffic violations (unless a traffic violation was alcohol- or drug-related or involved a fine of $500 or more)?"

 

The DUI and drug charge items aren't a bar to petition a fiance/fiancee. You just need to disclose it and provide appropriate documentation, and the beneficiary should know about it.

[pushbrk 12,872]

2 minutes ago, Chris Duffy said:

No need to disclose the DUI.

 

The drug related I don't know the answer,  I will let someone with first hand experience reply to that

Not exactly.  Read the form to see that on pages 8 and 9, this petitioner would indeed answer "no" to questions 2a, 2b, and 2c.  However, they have added a pesky question 4a, to which she will need to answer yes, and then provide explanations.  Providing records would be optional.

 

Bear in mind that expunged records are still available to USCIS, so treat all arrests as if they are still on the record.  If you want records, get them directly from the applicable court.

[dundeehighlander 17]

Hi guys, thanks for your answers, really appreciate it.  We plan to check the police records then check with the courts and if no records exist, get a document to confirm this.  She can then list the offences on he application with an explanation.  Is this a good approach?

 

Thanks

 

Keith

[TNJ17 1,329]

No need to worry. Get a copy of all records and submit everything. USCIS will run a background check, and they will see everything, even expunged records, so don’t hide. The advice above not to disclose is bad advice. Answer all questions truthfully regards of what the records say. If you were charged for anything even if that charged was later dropped or expunged you must always answer yes because you were charged. With that said, this shouldn’t be an issue for your petition as long as you disclose everything. The charges are on the petitioner and not beneficiary so there will be no need to worry. 

[Chris Duffy 1,257]

7 hours ago, pushbrk said:

Not exactly.  Read the form to see that on pages 8 and 9, this petitioner would indeed answer "no" to questions 2a, 2b, and 2c.  However, they have added a pesky question 4a, to which she will need to answer yes, and then provide explanations.  Providing records would be optional.

 

Bear in mind that expunged records are still available to USCIS, so treat all arrests as if they are still on the record.  If you want records, get them directly from the applicable court.

Good Catch, I hadn't read this updated version of the I-129F