Criminal record

[Peter14 0]

Hello,

I met my girlfriend travelling and we plan to marry. She is a guidance counsellor in new york and i live in germany. I just finnished my appreniceship as industrial mechanic and i would like to move to the usa to build up a future with my soon to be wife. The problem is that i have a criminal record with 2 offenses with drugs and i was sentenced to 2 years 8 months of jail. I am still on probation. 

Is there any chance for me to get a work permit in the usa when i marry her? There is no reason for me to go to the usa any other than her because i have a great job here.

Thanks for the informations!

[SusieQQQ 11,587]

Gotta be honest, that’s going to be extremely tough. The US is very strict on drug convictions. 

Technically you’d need a spousal immigrant visa to get a green card ( not a “work permit”, that’s a different visa) when you marry her (the green card would allow you to work). But if you are serious about this I’d suggest consulting with an immigration attorney upfront to see if there is any chance of you being able to overcome the usual inadmissibility from a drug conviction.

[USS_Voyager 1,972]

Yes, a lot of it will depend on what exactly is the nature of the drug convictions and how do that translate into the American justice system and what is that the equivalent to. That's where a good lawyer comes in. I mean, no one is gonna be able to spin an inadmissibility to an admissibility. However, there are cases that are "wobblers", meaning that it could go either way, and a good lawyer may be able to convince the consular officer that it is not an inadmissible offense, and here is why, here are the precedent cases, that kind of thing. 

[SPaul 9]

You should definitely be consulting an immigration lawyer. The way things are now in the US when it comes to immigrants and law offenders it is very hard and only getting harder with this administration. There are also two options for you to come here: K1 visa as her fiancé, that is when you would need a work permit while you wait to adjust your status; or with a spousal visa which might be better because once approved you would automatically receive your green card with that visa. However, no visas are gaurenteed, and your criminal record may be taken into account through both applications processes. Please consult a lawyer and good luck to you!

[Peter14 0]

Thank you very much for the information! 

[SusieQQQ 11,587]

2 hours ago, USS_Voyager said:

Yes, a lot of it will depend on what exactly is the nature of the drug convictions and how do that translate into the American justice system and what is that the equivalent to. That's where a good lawyer comes in. I mean, no one is gonna be able to spin an inadmissibility to an admissibility. However, there are cases that are "wobblers", meaning that it could go either way, and a good lawyer may be able to convince the consular officer that it is not an inadmissible offense, and here is why, here are the precedent cases, that kind of thing. 

Can you be more explicit about the "wobblers"? I mean,. even smoking marijuana in a state where it's legal can be a problem from an immigration perspective because it's still a federal offense. Is there a hardship waiver available for a drug related inadmissibility? My other concern about this is that it such a recent offence that OP is still on probation, not a decades old "young and foolish" type thing. I am assuming also OP is not under 18.

 

OP, fyi here is the section of the policy manual dealing with drug related inadmissibiities https://fam.state.gov/FAM/09FAM/09FAM030204.html

[geowrian 22,338]

Note that there's criminal inadmissibilities related to controlled substances and a medical inadmissibility as well.

[SusieQQQ 11,587]

26 minutes ago, geowrian said:

Note that there's criminal inadmissibilities related to controlled substances and a medical inadmissibility as well.

The medical one seems easier to overcome from what I can gather, it’s the criminal ones that tend to be the bigger problem? 

[Peter14 0]

I am 26 and my court date was with the age of 22. It is about bringing drugs from the netherlands to germany. 10lbs marihuana, 2lbs amphetamines and 2 ounces cocaine. 

[SusieQQQ 11,587]

13 minutes ago, Peter14 said:

I am 26 and my court date was with the age of 22. It is about bringing drugs from the netherlands to germany. 10lbs marihuana, 2lbs amphetamines and 2 ounces cocaine. 

Is that dealing quantities (I presume so for the ones in lb at least)? If so you likely will have a lot of trouble with this.

 

(the manual specifically provides some leniency for under 18, and for a waiver if possession of less than 30g of marijuana and more than 15 years ago, clearly none of these apply)

 

is your girlfriend prepared to move to Germany? That may be what needs to happen to be together.

Edited December 12, 2019 by SusieQQQ

[Peter14 0]

Moving to germany is not possible for her because of her job as a guidance counsellor. We dont have this job here and she doesnt speak german.

And yes, it is dealing quantities.

[Boiler 46,012]

You can forget about moving to US dealing. 

 

Could she retrain?

[Peter14 0]

I dont want her to move to another country. She has a great career in new york with very good prospects. I am at the beginning of my career so i could move without responsibilities. I already have a job at an american company in germany and could simply work for the same company in new york. But looks like it wont happen 😕

[geowrian 22,338]

2 hours ago, SusieQQQ said:

The medical one seems easier to overcome from what I can gather, it’s the criminal ones that tend to be the bigger problem? 

Correct. Criminal ones are much more of an issue.

In this case, it seems that immigrating to the US is just not on the table given that the activities indicate dealing.

[USS_Voyager 1,972]

2 hours ago, Peter14 said:

10lbs marihuana, 2lbs amphetamines

Yup, that's a no go, with that kind of quantities. You are not immigrating to the US. 

 

Just so everyone knows 2 lbs of amphetamine is equivalent to about 800,000 tablets. Say the street value is $10 a pop. You're looking at $ 8 million worth of drugs. Not a chance my friend. 

 

This is my wheelhouse, I'm a pharmaceutical professional. 

Edited December 12, 2019 by USS_Voyager