Reporting an Arrest on a Visa Application Form
Hello,
I am an international student from with an F-1 visa in the US. Months ago I was arrested with two friends on the street by two undercover cops. The charge was burning marijuana in public view. My fingerprints were taken. On my second court the case got dismissed and sealed because there was no evidence report in my file. I got the certification of disposition that says so. I was told at the clerks office that my record was spotless.
Now I want to visit Canada and need to get a Temporary Resident Visa. Do I answer YES or NO to the question on the form that says "Have you or any member of your family ever committed, been arrested or charged with any criminal offence in any country?" And also, if I say YES then I need to "provide details" in the box below the question. What should I write there?
Thanks a lot.
Ahmed from New York
Re: Reporting an Arrest on a Visa Application Form
The answer to the question, quite obviously, is "yes". You would want to provide a truthful summary of what happened. I am not going to tell you what to say - if you want that type of advice I suggest retaining an immigration lawyer to advise you.
Re: Reporting an Arrest on a Visa Application Form
My son in law had a similar problem... he was arrested and fined (no jail time) for having a trace amount of marijuan and a glass pipe when crossing into Canada from Montana. He is a Canadian.. and when he came back and married my daughter a couple of years later and filed for permanent residency, he passed all the background checks ( which did not reveal this arrest) but when the board asked him if he had ever been arrested in the U. S., he thought it best to be honest. He said " yes" and was denied residency. His attorney told him later that the board had no information on had showing this violation so if he had said "no", he would not be a permanent residency. We are now hoping there is some way to overturn this decision. Bottom line, although I belive honesty is the best policy, I don't think it's fair to deny someone residency in this country due to a transgression as minor as this for which tens of thousands of U. S. Citizens receive a misdemeanor violation every day.
I think this is a double standard where we punish more harshly and excpect more from immigrants than we do from U.S. born citizens.