US Waiver for Canadians

The following notes are an excerpt from a document posted on state.gov with which the Admissibility Review Office (ARO) appears to use in determining ineligibility of visa applicants (source included at the bottom of this post) – and of particular interest – waiver review. Determining Ineligibility When adjudicating a visa application for an applicant that ARO have reason to believe has committed a crime involving moral turpitude, the officer must determine whether: The offense was purely political The offense committed involves moral turpitude (CIMT) The applicant has been convicted; and The applicant has admitted or may admit that he or she has committed acts which constitute the essential elements of a crime Exceptions to Ineligibility Certain statutory exceptions may prevent a determination of ineligibility by reason of a conviction for a crime involving moral turpitude. These exceptions relate to: Crimes committed prior to age 18; or Certain purely ...

If you have a criminal record and travelled to the US, have not yet been denied entry, be prepared for the inevitable. Do yourself a favour and don't go back until you have successfully received a record suspension (formally called a pardon) . See my previous post on Record Suspension which includes a link to the Parole Board of Canada's guide. If you have only 1 conviction, there is good news, you may not be inadmissible. See my previous post on claiming the petty offense exception . In this case, depending on your circumstances, it might make sense for you to retain an attorney or lawyer. If you are unsure about whether you will be denied entry because of your particular conviction, be sure to check out this PDF defining "morale turpitude".

Found this interesting: A single DUI conviction is not grounds to deny entry into the U.S; however, multiple DUI convictions or a DUI conviction in combination with other misdemeanor offenses can make you inadmissible and require a waiver prior to entering the United States. A  crime of moral turpide (CIMT) may be grounds to deny entry to the U.S. Source:  Admission to the U.S .with either a misdemeanor or criminal record

If you were denied entry to the US because of a criminal conviction (a crime involving moral turpitude, or CIMT) and you've committed only 1 offense then you might be eligible for the petty offense exception under INA §212(a)(2)(A)(ii) if you satisfy all of the following 3 statements: he/she has committed only one CIMT; he/she "was not sentenced to a term of imprisonment in excess of six months (regardless of the extent to which the sentence was ultimately executed)"; and the offense of conviction carries a maximum possible sentence of one year or less. In other words the individual can only have one Crime Involving Moral Turpitude (CIMT), this crime must be a misdemeanor, and the sentence that the individual received could not have been for more than 180 days. If this is the case, the individual will be “forgiven” and the individual cannot be deemed inadmissible for this crime! (this is a para-recap of a prior posting entitled " Can you claim the Petty Offense Exc...

As crazy as it might sound, the answer is... No. At least for deportation purposes. Exert from an article published by the LA based MetNews - Court Overturns a Deportation Based on Sex With Minor: A person 21 years of age or older who engages in a sexual act with a minor under 16 years of age does not categorically commit a crime of moral turpitude, the Ninth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled yesterday. In an opinion by Judge Sidney R. Thomas, the court reversed an order by the Board of Immigration Appeals finding Alberto Rene Quintero -Salazar deportable because his conviction under California Penal Code Sec. 261.5(d) constituted a crime of moral turpitude. Quintero -Salazar, a Mexican national, entered the United States in 1990, obtained conditional residence in 1992, and became a lawful permanent resident in 1994. His wife, three children and two stepchildren are all U.S. citizens. In 1998, he pleaded nolo contendere to contributing to the delinquency of a minor, engagi...

There is a thread over here ( I-601 and extreme... ) on the IWL discussion board which includes some excellent information regarding the filing of an extreme hardship waiver. Some additional information and the original post material can found over here ( general guide for waivers... ) on the Family Based Immigation forum . Hardship waivers are usually applied for when the individual intends to immigrate to the US but has been deemed inadmissible (excluded) because of: Health related problems (HIV, TB, etc) Criminal and related violations People likely to become a public charge on welfare Security and related violations Illegal entrants and immigration violators Document violations etc. Although this blog is mostly focused on those who wish to travel to the US but have no intention of immigrating (where an I-192 application is needed - Application for Advance Permission to Enter as a Non-Immigrant) I do intend to post when possible anything related to I-601 waivers in general.

If you were denied entry to the US because of a criminal conviction (a crime involving moral turpitude, or CIMT) and you've committed only 1 offense then you might be able to argue that you are entitled to the petty offense exception under INA §212(a)(2)(A)(ii) if you satisfy all the following 3 statements: he/she has committed only one CIMT ; he/she "was not sentenced to a term of imprisonment in excess of six months (regardless of the extent to which the sentence was ultimately executed"; and the offense of conviction carries a maximum possible sentence of one year or less. I quickly 'Googled' but haven't found any offenses in the current Canadian criminal code which carry maximum sentences of one year or less ( see this chart that I found ). My original convictions (I had 2) were for "Theft under $1,000" which I was told carried maximum sentences of 6 months each (called a summary conviction offense). But the law has been updated to "T...

This definitive article written by a Windsor law firm and published by the Ontario Bar Association on January 24, 2006 covers everything your lawyer needs on gaining you lawful admission into the US. You can read the entire article here ( PDF ). There are a couple of interesting points. On page 5 for example, there is a piece under Crimes Involving Moral Turpitude ( CIMT ) called the US Petty Offence Exception: Pursuant to the US petty offence exception, a non citizen may be determined admissible, notwithstanding a single CIMT conviction if three essential requirements are satisfied: (1) he/she has committed only one CIMT ; (2) he/she "was not sentenced to a term of imprisonment in excess of six months (regardless of the extent to which the sentence was ultimately executed"; and (3) the offence of conviction carries a maximum possible sentence of one year or less. Unfortunately all 3 don't apply to me (I was convicted of 2 minor offences) but it is worth considering and...