Police Certificate Confusion

[Johnnie Oz 0]

We have just received the Instructions for K1 visa application from the Embassy. This is amazing news after months and months in the DHS and State Dept meat grinder.

What we are now wondering is this:

on the checklist that came with this packet 3, it says that you need police certificates for all place you have lived for SIX MONTHS or longer.

BUT on the supplemental information sheet, with details on police certificates and military records, it says all places you have live for ONE YEAR or longer.

This information is contradictory. To be clear, we are not talking about the standard six month requirement for country of residence. or if you have a record anywhere. Just those extra places you have lived.

Before we call the embassy: has anyone else noticed something like this?

Scanning the net, the state dept and most embassies stick to the one year rule. BUT the Embassy in Manila specifically says that six months applies for k visa applicants. that is the only one.

It is this case it is not specific just contradictory.

Since this involves getting hold of that tricky dutch police certificate (tricky for those not in holland), one of the few that you CANNOT get in advance, it would be great if the one year rule applied.

thanks for any info you may have.

[YuAndDan 153]

Keep in mind "Places" means Countries. So if only lived in one country then 1 police cert should do.

Police cert for Sweden is a national one.

Police Records

Available. A police certificate criminal record abstract (utdrag ur rikspolisregistret) is a record taken from the central police register and is issued to all persons upon application. Application forms (including forms in English) for a Swedish national crime record extract (Form RPS 447.3) can be downloaded from the Swedish Police webpage www.polisen.se, or obtained from the local police station. Complete instructions, regarding payment, charge for return postage, can be found on the form. The police certificate will not list any criminal offense which occurred more than ten years prior to the certificate request. Applications can be faxed or mailed to: Rikspolisstyrelsen, Kirunasektionem, Utlandsarende, 981 81 Kiruna, Sweden. Fax: 46 8 980 682 37.

http://travel.state.gov/visa/frvi/reciproc...ocity_3681.html

Do not worry about the Netherlands Police cert. The interviewing consulate will get it for you.

Police Records

Available. Police records can only be requested for immigrant visa applicants by the United States Consulate or Embassy where the applicant's case is being processed. Any certificate presented directly by applicants cannot be accepted. To request a police record, the visa processing post should send an email to the Consulate General in Amsterdam at ImmigrantVisasAMS@state.gov.

http://travel.state.gov/visa/frvi/reciproc...ocity_3634.html

[Mononoke28 135]

Can you call the embassy to find out? I know that the US embassy in Bogotá, Colombia asks for police certificates of any place the beneficiary has visited for more than 6 months (except the US and Ecuador) and the 6 months don't have to be continually, they can be sporadically.

Diana

[Johnnie Oz 0]

Thanks for the replies.

As we tried to state clearly

but obviously did not...

This was in reference to police cert requirements for additional places lived (and not the country of residence, in this case sweden) for k1 applicants only.

it seems that a one year rule for residence in other countries applies for most US consulate checklists, with the exception of manila and bogata (six months, thanks for that info, mononoke28!)

And yes, this includes all consulates in European countries. Except for maybe Sweden that is. That seems odd. The checklist and supplemental we received today have two different requirements.

In addition, the State Dept seems to have a general one year rule. Six months applies to your current country of residence of nationality, while one year applies to other places.

Did a lot of research before posting and have seen the State Dept reciprocity list etc.

So getting a police cert from Sweden is no prob.

We have also already obtained other police certs from Germany and the UK, but have not tried to get the Netherlands since we knew that this was not possible until we reached this stage. in other words, we are ready to roll here...

But b/c by happenstance, the beneficiary has spent around 12 months in Holland, we might have to wait.

So if we could skip this, we could get an interview all the sooner. Have read about many cases where people have gotten the all clear but were waiting for one thing...yes, the Dutch police cert. Holidays are approaching and being together would be nice...waiting for a Dutch cert and nothing else, would be

That is why the six months or one year makes a difference.

cheers

PS will call the embassy 2moro, but am just hoping that this ambiguity will work in our favor.

Edited November 28, 2007 by Johnnie Oz

[Johnnie Oz 0]

Of course, the DS 230 part I (item 20) does generally require the beneficiary to list "all places" lived at for at least six months since the age of 16.

This is odd since most Consulates do NOT require police certs from countries where you have lived for less than one year.

Can anyone explain this discrepancy?

thank you!

[YuAndDan 153]

Of course, the DS 230 part I (item 20) does generally require the beneficiary to list "all places" lived at for at least six months since the age of 16.

This is odd since most Consulates do NOT require police certs from countries where you have lived for less than one year.

Can anyone explain this discrepancy?

thank you!

Again don't sweat this, if has only lived in Sweden, and Netherlands since age 16, then only need to get the one from Sweden, the consulate will get the one from the Netherlands for you.

The six month rule applies to current country of residence or nationality, and 1 year rule is for other countries.

Is explained well here:

http://london.usembassy.gov/cons_new/visa/iv/ds2001.html#pc

[Johnnie Oz 0]

thanks again!

Not really sweating it...at least not too much. Please bear with us here....

Read the US Emb in UK info a while back, along with lots of other embassies with the same info, as well as the State Dept website.

This is why i was not worried - it was always one year residency. Imagine my surprise then to see totally different info on the check list that arrived today. and then the supplemental info form on police certs i also got meshes well with what YuDan writes.

to be totally clear here, i quote from the material received today

1) verbatim on checklist

"each applicant aged 16 years or over, is required to submit a police certificate...as well as from ALL OTHER countries where the applicant has resided for at least SIX MONTHS."

2) verbatim on the supplemental info sheet where the Netherlands is mentioned as a special case (the US Embassy, not the visa applicant, has to apply for the police cert) along with Brunei, Costa Rica and Bermuda

"Police certificates are required from every visa applicant aged 16 or over...(they) are also required from ALL OTHER countries where the applicant has resided for AT LEAST ONE YEAR."

here's the dilemma>

if i do NOT need the dutch cert, i can send in the check list and forms 2moro: likely getting an interview very soon. This is Stockholm after all. applicants here are fortunate and not subject to long waits.

BUT this Dutch police cert thing could delay matters. If it's the one year rule, I can plausibly claim to have lived there for 11 months. But if it's the six month rule, then i need to be up front about it and get hold of the cert.

I wonder why Sweden of all places would have a different rule than anywhere else. It could be that the difference is between K1s vs. the rest, K3s, IR1.CR1s etc. Again, that would be odd since few other embassies make that distinction. Or perhaps Swedish applicants regardless of visa category need to show good behavior if they have been to other countries for six months!

In that case there would be three kinds of US consulate requirements for getting police certs re: residence in other countries.

1) Almost all consulates: minimum 12 months in other countries for ALL visa types. 6 months for each place in current country of residence/ nationality.

2) Manila and Bogata: 6 months for k visa, 12 months for other visas for other countries. 6 months for each place in current country of residence/ nationality.

3) Stockholm: six months across the board.

now that would be...

cheers

[payxibka 10,045]

You are missing what YuandDan is saying... You CANNOT get the Dutch certificate as the Consulate is the only one who can request this... If it is needed they must do it not you.

Edited November 28, 2007 by fwaguy

[Johnnie Oz 0]

You are missing what YuandDan is saying... You CANNOT get the Dutch certificate as the Consulate is the only one who can request this... If it is needed they must do it not you.

I have been very unclear it seems. Apologies. Perhaps the info in my wordy posts gets lost...

For a long time, i have been aware that when it comes to the Dutch police cert specifically, only the US consulate can request it. Thus as previously stated, I have not tried to get one. I heard YuDan loud n clear, confirming what I already knew.

I was, however, under the impression that they would NOT need one since there was a general one year residency requirement for other countries. I lived in Holland for 11 months.

Packet 3 today, as indicated in my other posts, had different not altogether clear info.

So how do we avoid any possible delay now? What risks are worth taking? All thoughts welcome...

I will, of course, be truthful and list 11 months in Holland on the DS 230 (btw, the info supplied there is not enough to apply for a Dutch police cert, I need to give a complete address) But what then?

- Contact the embassy to ask? I fear they will then point to the unusual 6 month rule on the check list and tell me to ignore the info on the supplemental sheet. Once we talked about it, there is no way around it.

- conversely, if I am passive and do not point this out to the Embassy, I run the following risk.

A consular officer may see these 11 months and decide that a police cert is in order. Since I have read a lot of stories about people in this very situation re: Dutch police certs, suffering delays due to consular officers NOT knowing how to get this certificate, i fear delays.

In some cases, people have shown up for the interview and been asked "where is your Dutch police cert?" and then realized that the Embassy should have applied for it.

As I wrote earlier, there seems to be a grey zone here.

I think I will call 2moro and play dumb.

"I have lived in the Netherlands for 11 months, do you need to apply for a police cert for me? It says here on the supplemental that there is a one year minimum, but elsewhere there is some info about six months. I am confused. I have other police certs from Germany, the UK and Sweden."

If they tell me one year on the phone, I could later point to this if during the interview IF the officer asks for it.

Then again, that last scenario could entail a delay too since the officer could still put a stop to things....I guess I just have to call and find out. The alternative is too risky.

Let's hope it's one year.

cheers

Edited November 28, 2007 by Johnnie Oz

[Johnnie Oz 0]

Can you call the embassy to find out? I know that the US embassy in Bogotá, Colombia asks for police certificates of any place the beneficiary has visited for more than 6 months (except the US and Ecuador) and the 6 months don't have to be continually, they can be sporadically.

Diana

thanks Diana. for somehow understanding what I was trying to get at...

the 6 month vs 1 year issue. gotta learn to keep em short i guess...

Wonder why they have that Ecuador exception?

J Oz

[dropped 0]

I have a related question (and I hope this doesn't constitute a thread hijack):

As I lived in the U.S. from August '97 through January of '04 (F1-visa) does that mean that I have to present a background check from the U.S. as well (aside from the Swedish one) or will they perform a domestic check of their own? If they require that I submit a background check; do they require both state AND federal certificates?

[dropped 0]

Disregard my last post! I found this thread, which answered my question (the answer is, "no," by the way).