No live trace

[Ellio 1]

Hi guys, I have my interview arranged finally for the 15th Apr. it will be almost 1 year since application process began. I have one concern though that I can't seem to find an answer to on here. My police certificate says ' NO LIVE TRACE'. Now I understand what it means, it means I have spent convictions. It was actually for getting involved in a fight outside a restaurant in 2006, no injuries to anyone but everyone was arrested and released the next day, no fines, no court, nothing, just a simple " behave yourself and don't do it again".

Now though as I prepare for this interview in detail I notice a couple of people on sites talking about needing more in depth paperwork on any certificates with the wording 'NO LIVE TRACE". It does not request this anywhere that I can find, they have not asked for this in my interview letter nor at any stage through the entire process. They have had a copy of my police certificate since my medical back early December. Has anyone had similar circumstances with this and has any factual advice? And did anyone recently get asked for this additional paperwork?

Much appreciated

[mindthegap 2,590]

Subject access report - http://www.acro.police.uk/subject_access.aspx

[Ellio 1]

Yeh I know about the form but I have never been asked for it throughout the entire process. Other than reading these kind of sites I would never have heard of it. I am wondering if anyone has been caught by surprise and asked for this at interview stage without ever having known about it?

[Ellio 1]

Well done on the timeline mindthegap, I have had paperwork lost at both ends, evidence in the US and ALL my forms over in the uk, delaying us by about 4 months. Frustrating I know!

[mindthegap 2,590]

Yeh I know about the form but I have never been asked for it throughout the entire process. Other than reading these kind of sites I would never have heard of it. I am wondering if anyone has been caught by surprise and asked for this at interview stage without ever having known about it?

I figured it wouldnt hurt to get it, given i also had 'no live trace' from a single minor caution many years ago. At the very least it details exactly what and when the single indiscretion was, and the minor nature of it. However, if i had a 'no trace' certificate i'm not sure i would have bothered.

Ultimately i am glad i obtained it- it saved me a lot of extra hassle producing it at the interview when it turned out there was a slight error on my police certificate with regards to my former name. They accepted the subject access report which showed the correct info and saved me a denial pending a new police certificate with the error corrected.

[Ellio 1]

Ok, an update. I did apply for the report and am still waiting for it. My interview was yesterday and the interview went very well but I did get 221g for this report even though it's never been mentioned before in any correspondence. They have had my police certificate for 4 months and could have asked me to supply the subject access report at any time but they wait for the interview date. So between them losing relationship evidence in the US (delay caused), losing ALL my packet 3 over here (delay), never sending me a interview letter (almost a major delay), asking for an affidavit of support yesterday? And then 221 me yesterday (causing yet another delay), this process is now gong to take approx 1 year and 2 months if it ever ends at all. Times like this just make you realise how badly organised this whole process is and for the first time in almost 2 years has casted doubt on our future. Are we jusr destined not to be? Very very disappointed.

[tedyc 4]

We got a 221g as well last week for a document that the consulate was responsible for obtaining. At first we were pretty upset and frustrated, but then we just decided to accept it and begin the wait (which hopefully won't be too long). Did they keep your passport? Apparently that's a good sign the visa will be approved once they get the additional documents.

[Ellio 1]

Hi tedyc, I got my passport back but was told to get the embassy courier to collect it as soon as I have the subject access report. What I don't understand is they must do security checks on criminal records at the start of this process. I assume they are checking fr crimes of moral torpitude. Since yesterday i have researched ths topic in depth and it covers alot of what could be petty crimes as well as some very serious ones such as murder. Mine was getting into a fight after a few beers, arrested, held over night, charged with affray and then released the next morning. No court, no fine. However, reading into moral torpitude i may have intended to harm someone. I was in a fight! Im not just gonna stand around and take a beating! Yesterday I sent off for the subject access report then I find out that there is actually 2 kinds of report. Local and PNC. The 221g does not specify which it is so I guess I will order both now. Mentally I'm beaten down with this process and am almost at the point of handing it over to an immigration lawyer now. I will wait though until I get a straight out denial which I'm sure is coming.

[Ellio 1]

Ps, if anyone sends for a subject access report you are supposed to get a receipt from the governing body before you get the report. If you don't get a receipt within a couple of weeks they haven't received your request (call them and check), so you will need to send it again as I did yesterday!

[chrisclassic 14]

I figured it wouldnt hurt to get it, given i also had 'no live trace' from a single minor caution many years ago. At the very least it details exactly what and when the single indiscretion was, and the minor nature of it. However, if i had a 'no trace' certificate i'm not sure i would have bothered.

Ultimately i am glad i obtained it- it saved me a lot of extra hassle producing it at the interview when it turned out there was a slight error on my police certificate with regards to my former name. They accepted the subject access report which showed the correct info and saved me a denial pending a new police certificate with the error corrected.

hey quick question what was your caution for ???

[Ellio 1]

Ok, I got one of my reports back but this was just the local report and does not state that it is a subject access report so it's pretty useless for this 221 request. Strangely though this report or custody record as it reads is all nonsense. It says I was bailed and requested to reappear on a date 3 months later. Then I did reappear on said date, was arrested , cautioned and released with just the caution. No I wasn't! I was arrested on the night, held overnight, charged the next day and told to behave myself on you go! I won't complain though, I think the caution will be a lesser charge than the Affray anyway. I will just continue to wait for the Dooming subject access report.

[Ellio 1]

Well, that's 33 days of waiting for the subject access report and no sign of it. You are not allowed to chase it up within the 40 days the police have to get it to you though. Problem is, by the time I get this report and send it off with my passport and get the passport back with visa (hopefully) my medical will have expired as of 6 June. What a process this is!!! Does it ever end? Anyone else had similar luck to mine through this?

[Nich-Nick 3,354]

Well, that's 33 days of waiting for the subject access report and no sign of it. You are not allowed to chase it up within the 40 days the police have to get it to you though. Problem is, by the time I get this report and send it off with my passport and get the passport back with visa (hopefully) my medical will have expired as of 6 June. What a process this is!!! Does it ever end? Anyone else had similar luck to mine through this?

Ellio-

The instructions on the website say

"Persons who have been convicted of a crime must obtain a certified copy of each court record and any prison record, regardless of the fact that he or she may have subsequently benefited from an amnesty, pardon or other act of clemency or the United Kingdom Rehabilitation of Offenders Act.

Court records should include:Complete information regarding the circumstance surrounding the crime of which the applicant was convicted and the disposition of the case, including sentence or other penalty or fine imposed"

That was your clue to get something official in writing concerning any police incidents.

You commented earlier that they had your police certificate 4 months and should have told you about the subject access report. First off, if you had read their instructions, they say do not send documents to the embassy so it shouldn't have been there. Secondly, nobody reviews the specifics of your case in London until the officer opens your file minutes before you are called back to interview.

You said--

"Times like this just make you realise how badly organised this whole process is and for the first time in almost 2 years has casted doubt on our future. Are we jusr destined not to be? Very very disappointed."

It's unusual to have so many delays like you have. I suspect some of your difficulties may be your failure to read all the details they provide in the instructions. I think it's all pretty organized but slow for sure. Do-it-yourself requires a lot of attention to detail, reading all the instructions and being able to comprehend "government-talk". Maybe for your AOS, you should consider an attorney.

I don't think your police incident will keep you from getting a visa. Hope it's all sorted soon.

[Ellio 1]

Hi again Nich Nick

Thanks for your reply but I was pretty sure of what I read so I copied it from the Embassy website for your future reference. As you can see it clearly states "discuss my no live trace at the interview" and also that court and prison records are NOT required for those convicted in the UK. We went through this carefully seeing that my fiancée is an attorney. Not immigration unfortunately

Police Certificates for the United Kingdom: A visa applicant who has resided in the United Kingdom for 6 months or more since the age of 16, is required to obtain a police certificate from the ACPO Criminal Records Office (ACRO). Further information is available from their website at www.acro.police.uk. This police certificate will serve to advise the U.S. Embassy, London whether or not any criminal conviction is held against him/her. The police certificate will be sent to the applicant's address provided at the time of application. Please note that the Immigrant Visa Unit considers the police certificate valid for 12 months from the date of issuance, not six months as stated on the certificate. If the police certifiate states "No Trace" or "No Live Trace", please be prepared to discuss your arrests/cautions/convictions with the consular officer on the day of the interview.

Court and Prison Records: Persons who have been convicted of a crime must obtain a certified copy of each court record and any prison record, regardless of the fact that he or she may have subsequently benefited from an amnesty, pardon or other act of clemency or the United Kingdom Rehabilitation of Offenders Act. (DOES NOT APPLY TO APPLICANTS CONVICTED IN THE United Kingdom)

As for them having a copy of my police certificate, you misunderstood. They took a copy of the police certificate at my medical and sent it to the embassy with the results. That is how they had a copy for 4 months, not because we didn't read or follow instructions properly.

I believe we have followed this process to the letter and certainly not let ourselves down by ignorance of understanding the process. I guess I am just venting due to the timescales of this and the biggest delays have not been caused by us. You had a great timeline but I am simply showing the other side of that coin even with accurate following of the guidelines and requests.

[Ellio 1]

Ok then! The subject access report has finally arrived this morning. 35 days for mine but that is still under the 40 day limit. It is not quite what I thought it would be. It is basically just a cover letter with 2 additional sheets. 1 showing my personal details and the second showing offences. In my case just one caution for public disorder, nothing more. It looks like something anyone could have typed up on a PC though. I was under the impression it came on tamper proof paper with 2 blue lines of authenticity?

Oh well, this form does say "Subject Access Report" on it and this is the one I'm sending tomorrow with the courier. I'm still not going to risk booking any flight yet as I'm not sure of average timescales in the situation of having to send passport in for visa issuance and return. If anyone has had similar circumstances please send some advice over.

Although I was told that my medical expires on 6 June, I have come to find out over that last few days that the medical exam is valid for 12 months. It's the chest x-ray that is only valid for 6 months.

So fingers crossed that this part of the journey is coming to an end and we should get our pens out for the next stage of numerous form filing for AOS.