Getting a USA visa (travelling to america with a drink driving conviction)

Convicted Driver Insurance
Some people take weeks to get through the medical stage. I hear of them receiving a letter a week after the Visa interview asking them to attend a medical, so you were well prepared expecting the medical at interview and could respond accordingly.
Thanks Price.

In all fairness to other people and to the US embassy, it might just be that the consular processes have improved. I was handed three pages with all instructions on how to book an appointment including a first form to be filled in before checking in at the clinic. Finding a slot on the same day was mostly a matter of luck because I didn't (and probably couldn't) call the doctor's before being asked to do so by the embassy.

Still, there's further room for improvement. Immigrant visas, as opposed to non-immigrant ones, always require a medical check and therefore applicants are expected to get all medical results even before booking the interview at the embassy.

In cases like mine, it would be easy to have at least a question at booking time which would ask about alcohol and/or drugs related arrests in the last five years, which I understand is the condition that triggers a request for a medical according to the procedures publicly documented. Another trigger would be a history of (i.e. multiple) alcohol/drugs convictions even when older than 5 years.

On the contrary, as I have reported, at booking time (hence after submitting the DS-160) there is actually an odd question asking about "non-alcohol related arrests and convictions" which I'm wondering what would entail as that was clearly not my case.

At the end of my whole application and booking, the list of requested documents was just passport, a picture and the application and booking identifiers.

Maybe other people did not even bring the ACRO at the consular interview (albeit if you read the "small print" you should know you should have it ready at the first interview if you tick the box about arrests and convictions), and therefore they might have sent it later on to the embassy, to be then asked for the medical after weeks.

For a person not native to the UK, you have really got to grips with how things work here!
Thanks again Price.

What I should have really learned better from all other Brits (and Irish, and Americans; Aussies and South Africans seem to be more tolerant) I've met in my life was a stricter attitude towards drinking and driving. I've always been fairly cautious, but in hindsight I've definitely always been close to the limit, if not slightly above as when I was arrested, when going out during the weekends with my wife. I've never been actually drunk, i.e. to the point of driving erratically, but I've always had a couple of glasses at dinner during weekends, whether I was driving or not.

My home country is socially more tolerant with drink driving although the limit is technically lower than the UK, and one further thing I've learned after my arrest is the "drunk in charge" offence which does not exist at all where I come from. To be honest, I had always considered a safe last resort to sleep in the car after a party with too many drinks involved and I have used such a "safety measure" a few times when I was younger and a tad wilder. Here in the UK that's clearly not an option, and therefore it's one more reason to stick to the simple rule of no drinks before driving regardless of any more or less sophisticated unit calculation.

I'm only eager to learn more "alcohol maths" during the rehab course for the purposes of "morning-after driving" (one more thing learned only recently), as there are times when I have to drive early in the morning even though I'm lucky enough to live close to where I work and I've always walked there in the morning, it's a 12-minute stroll.

Thanks and best regards,
Z
 
Last edited:
When the embassy saw that you had only lived in the UK for a few years, did they ask for a criminal record form from your home country?
which is your home country?
 
When the embassy saw that you had only lived in the UK for a few years, did they ask for a criminal record form from your home country?

No, they didn't.

However, since I had already planned a trip to my home town that coincidentally was between arrest and court hearing, I did ask for my criminal record there which was clean as expected. It should still be translated if I were to use it here but no one asked for it so far.

The instructions shown on screen in the embassy waiting room clearly and repeatedly warn applicants that no one should provide more documents than the ones asked before and/or during the interview, so that one remained in my folder.

We'll see what happens next, whatever the outcome will be I'm happy I didn't give up and I still believe that anyone who isn't really an alcoholic should go through the whole process because there is no rule barring anyone with an alcohol-related arrest from getting a US visa as long as there is no suspicion of alcohol addiction and/or harmful behaviour.

I'm not optimistic either because multiple reports hint at "unwritten rules" that would automatically deny a visa to anyone with a recent arrest/conviction (less than a year, in my case even less than a month (!)) but, as I've stated here multiple times, if you don't even try you will never really know what would have happened if you tried.

At the end of the day, I believe that this experience turned me into a safer, less risk-prone, and less harmful individual than I was before my arrest, but I do realise that my criminal record leads insurances, embassies and quite a few other businesses and entities to trust me less than if I had never been caught drink driving.

Thanks,
Z
 
Last edited by a moderator:
Hi all,

It can be done, it can be done, it can be dooooone!!!

Here's the key excerpt from today's email from the Embassy:

"Please submit your passport for visa issuance. You are NOT required to submit any other additional supporting documents"

Yes! Yes! Yay! Hooray!

We're still waiting for my wife's visa at this stage, but I wanted to share the awesome news ASAP.

I'm typing this update from my mobile now, later on today I'll provide a summary to recap my case.

Bottom line:
If you have to apply for a B2 visa for any reason and you get arrested even one day before submitting your application, go ahead, you can get your visa issued in less than a month after your visa interview while being completely honest about your past, present and future. Yes, you can.

Thanks everyone and all the best,
Z
 
Hi all,

It can be done, it can be done, it can be dooooone!!!

Here's the key excerpt from today's email from the Embassy:

"Please submit your passport for visa issuance. You are NOT required to submit any other additional supporting documents"

Yes! Yes! Yay! Hooray!

We're still waiting for my wife's visa at this stage, but I wanted to share the awesome news ASAP.

I'm typing this update from my mobile now, later on today I'll provide a summary to recap my case.

Bottom line:
If you have to apply for a B2 visa for any reason and you get arrested even one day before submitting your application, go ahead, you can get your visa issued in less than a month after your visa interview while being completely honest about your past, present and future. Yes, you can.

Thanks everyone and all the best,
Z


That's great news! I had no doubt that anyone (with a single conviction) applying to travel with an ESTA would be able to do so but it's very encouraging to hear that the embassy issued visa route is a totally viable one..
Well done on your determination and positivity...hopefully this will make the all the doomsayers take stock of their own negativity and quite often erroneous posts!!
 
Thanks again for all your help.

Here's my timeline:

  • 2nd of April 2016: arrested with 47 breath reading
  • 4th of April 2016: submitted my DS-160 application for a B2 visa (due to a country visited after 2011, if it weren't for that reason I would have gone the ESTA route like I've done for my all my past US trips) mentioning my arrest (no conviction yet as it hadn't happened yet)
  • 18th of April 2016: convicted (12 months that can be reduced to 9 upon course completion)
  • 25th of April 2016: asked for an urgent ACRO certificate (late enough to make sure the conviction was included there, urgent to book the visa interview ASAP)
  • 4th of May 2016, morning: Visa interview (scheduled on purpose to be late enough to bring my ACRO showing my conviction rather than just the arrest)
  • 4th of May 2016, afternoon: medical test/interview (I was lucky enough to find an available spot about 90 minutes after getting out of the Embassy; I had with me my arrest documents showing the 47 reading, the ACRO only shows the fine and the duration of the disqualification)
  • 16th of May 2016: email from the Embassy asking me to send my passport to them for visa issuance.
I don't know yet what will be the duration of my visa, but the simple fact of avoiding a cancellation is good enough news. A criminal record plus a denied visa is not a good start for a new visa application.

It's too early to know if I will actually visit the USA any time soon as my wife is still waiting for her visa, regardless of the fact that I am a criminal who visited her country while her only "fault" is to be born in that country. As she was granted a handful of US visas with her "native" passport I was quite confident that she would have been granted a visa earlier than myself now that she has a EU passport but, unfortunately, that's not the case.

Again, for anyone skimming through this thread, here are two key highlights:

  • If you could already apply for an ESTA before any DD conviction or arrest, you can still apply for an ESTA, at least in 2016, after a DD conviction or a long history of DD convictions. The ESTA wording changes often and once upon a time it definitely asked about any kind of arrest. Then it changed to CIMT, then it further changed to a more generic wording which apparently still hints at CIMT crimes, but a lot of other rules are quite clear. If you're really in doubt, apply for an ESTA. If you truthfully answer all questions and you're denied the ESTA, you can still go through the B2 route. OTOH, it's tricky if not counterproductive to start the B2 route and then attempt a shortcut via ESTA.
  • If you don't meet the requirements for the VWP, and these can change as well (in my case they changed after I had booked our flight for what was meant to be the first "full ESTA trip" for both me and my wife), do not worry. You will apply for a B2 visa, you will buy your ACRO (I bought two but then it turned out that the Embassy doesn't really retain their copy) and bring it to the Embassy for the interview. You will then be asked for a medical and after that step you can have your visa in two weeks.
As I mentioned previously in this forum, I have a long history of US trips in the last 15+ years (I'd say on average more than one trip per year since 2000), so I can't probably be compared to anyone traveling to the US for the first time in their life, but still my arrest was truly recent (less than 48 hours prior to my online application).
Also, my breathalyser reading was quite low so most of the questions during the medical interview seemed to be out of place. If you're really suspected of being an alcoholic, then this might affect your chances of getting a visa. However, the doctor told me that the blood test is just the standard one for immigrant applications, hence just testing for syphilis. They shouldn't check for CDT as the DVLA do. Also, any conviction for harmful behaviour while drunk (for instance, causing an accident) would probably reduce the chances of getting a visa as the US officers really have to focus on addiction and likelihood of harming US citizens.
I will further update this thread when I'll get my passport back with a visa (my very first US visa, so far!), and also when I'll know about my wife's visa. It would be really bizarre if I could get a visa soon after committing a crime while she could not get a visa just because she was born in a "wrong" country.

I have posted a summary of my case also at http://www.urban75.net/forums/threa...a-criminal-record.88652/page-40#post-14506129, a thread where unfortunately a lot of people suppose that it's just better to deny any past arrest/conviction just for the purpose of a quick holiday in the US, rather than answering truthfully to all questions in a visa application.

As I wrote there, beyond any moral concern, a lie when applying for a visa can have an irreversible impact on any further attempt to get a visa. A DD conviction can be risky for a B2 application, but after 1 year it becomes less relevant and after a few more years it might not even lead to a request for a medical test. OTOH, a lie when applying for a visa can hamper any further visa application. Is really a cheap holiday at Disney World or in Las Vegas, or even a lush fortnight in Hawaii, worth more than a billionaire career in the latest and greatest US business?

Thanks again and best regards,
Z
 
Last edited:
Short update:

The US Embassy has now sent my passport via courier, I can't wait to receive it tomorrow and see what's the duration of the visa they've granted me.

Unfortunately, however, my wife's visa is still undergoing "administrative processing". Again, it's amazing that a criminal like me who has willingly travelled to a country can get a visa earlier than someone who was simply born somewhere, clearly something no one could be held accountable for.
If the Embassy won't ask her to send her passport over by early next week, we'll have to cancel our summer holidays in California.

On a much brighter note, though, we are really happy that she passed her driving theory test today at her first attempt!
We're getting closer and closer to the day when we'll be able to use our car again, albeit I'll have to be a passenger at least until mid-January 2017.

Tomorrow I will publish another update.

All the best,
Z
 
Hello again,

Final update about my visa... awesome, outstanding, excellent, impressive, wonderful, marvellous, magnificent, unexpected, great and utterly goooooood: 10 years! :):D

I was honestly expecting a 1-year visa that would have involved more money down the line for my next visa but, alas, no, spending over £400 for an urgent ACRO certificate, medical test and delivery costs (I had to send my passport via Post Office as the courier office would have made sense only if I could drive there) eventually led to getting a 10-year visa.

My experience does imply that being convicted for DD entails additional costs, over £400 in my case, to successfully complete a visa application. So I've learned my lesson, no drinks whatsoever when/before driving. If you consider just the fine, the trip to the court and all the extra costs for the visa application, I spent the same amount of money that would have allowed me to go to some wonderful resort in exotic places.

My case also proves that you do have a chance to get a 10-year B2 visa if, for any reason, you don't meet the VWP requirements and you have to declare your DD conviction in a DS-160. This is true even if you start your application only 2 days after your arrest, hence reporting only your arrest and not the conviction, and then you bring the ACRO to the visa interview after your court hearing, when the ACRO would contain the conviction details.

Finally, it's still important to remind everyone that, as of May 2016, you meet the VWP requirements if you meet all other VWP requirements and you're convicted for DD. I knew I had to apply for a B2 visa with a DS-160 form even before my arrest because, since 2011, I visited multiple times the country where my wife was born. When you fill in a DS-160 you have to declare any arrest, and a DD conviction has to be reported. What's worse with a recent DD, or with multiple old DDs, is that you have to book a medical test costing over £300.

Unfortunately, my wife who has never committed any crime, who has just successfully passed her driving theory test, and whose only "fault" is to be born in a specific country, is still waiting for her visa to be granted.

Our holidays are still at risk of being cancelled, but my advice is not to cheat if you're asked to declare your DD arrest/conviction in visa forms.

To be fair, my case proves that the visa process is not a "money-making scam" as others report online. You can have a 10-year visa, like anyone who would apply with no arrests at all, if you go through the whole process even with a fresh conviction.

Thanks everyone, this forum is truly a precious resource.

All the best,
Z
 
Hello again,

Final update about my visa... awesome, outstanding, excellent, impressive, wonderful, marvellous, magnificent, unexpected, great and utterly goooooood: 10 years! :):D

I was honestly expecting a 1-year visa that would have involved more money down the line for my next visa but, alas, no, spending over £400 for an urgent ACRO certificate, medical test and delivery costs (I had to send my passport via Post Office as the courier office would have made sense only if I could drive there) eventually led to getting a 10-year visa.

My experience does imply that being convicted for DD entails additional costs, over £400 in my case, to successfully complete a visa application. So I've learned my lesson, no drinks whatsoever when/before driving. If you consider just the fine, the trip to the court and all the extra costs for the visa application, I spent the same amount of money that would have allowed me to go to some wonderful resort in exotic places.

My case also proves that you do have a chance to get a 10-year B2 visa if, for any reason, you don't meet the VWP requirements and you have to declare your DD conviction in a DS-160. This is true even if you start your application only 2 days after your arrest, hence reporting only your arrest and not the conviction, and then you bring the ACRO to the visa interview after your court hearing, when the ACRO would contain the conviction details.

Finally, it's still important to remind everyone that, as of May 2016, you meet the VWP requirements if you meet all other VWP requirements and you're convicted for DD. I knew I had to apply for a B2 visa with a DS-160 form even before my arrest because, since 2011, I visited multiple times the country where my wife was born. When you fill in a DS-160 you have to declare any arrest, and a DD conviction has to be reported. What's worse with a recent DD, or with multiple old DDs, is that you have to book a medical test costing over £300.

Unfortunately, my wife who has never committed any crime, who has just successfully passed her driving theory test, and whose only "fault" is to be born in a specific country, is still waiting for her visa to be granted.

Our holidays are still at risk of being cancelled, but my advice is not to cheat if you're asked to declare your DD arrest/conviction in visa forms.

To be fair, my case proves that the visa process is not a "money-making scam" as others report online. You can have a 10-year visa, like anyone who would apply with no arrests at all, if you go through the whole process even with a fresh conviction.

Thanks everyone, this forum is truly a precious resource.

All the best,
Z

10 years is fantastic! Essentially the DD conviction made no difference to the issuance of your visa (except, of course, making it a more expensive and convoluted exercise) or your 'desirability' as a visitor to the USA....
 
10 years is fantastic! Essentially the DD conviction made no difference to the issuance of your visa (except, of course, making it a more expensive and convoluted exercise) or your 'desirability' as a visitor to the USA....

Yes, indeed, completely unexpected and a proof that they really want just to understand if there is any chance of harmful behaviour while in the US.

I've been honest when stating that my arrest did not lead me to drinking less on a weekly basis, because I already assume that the amount I used to drink is perfectly fine in itself. What I have stated is that I have learned to completely avoid drinking before driving, and that my mistake was drinking and driving. If I weren't driving, I would definitely drink the same at dinner as I drunk that night. As I mentioned before, the low-ish reading proved by my arrest documents might have helped too. The reading is not in the ACRO certificate, so bringing a proof of the actual breathalyzer reading to the doctor's might help, unless it's so high to be counterproductive.

I went to the visa appointment and to the doctor's with a suit and tie, that might help too. Although the doctor states that it's up to the embassy to make a final decision, I'm quite confident that the doctor's opinion is the main component in these cases. The physical tests are nearly irrelevant (the chest X-rays are only good to shorten my life expectancy...beyond being surprised when seeing how big the heart is), considering that also the blood test is used only to check for syphilis, so the medical test is mostly a psychological/psychiatric test and the relationship established with the doctor is probably a crucial factor.

On the embassy side, I was probably helped by the number of past entries in the US, but still I believe that the outcome of the medical is essential to get a visa.

We can't really celebrate much yet, however, as we have no news about my wife's visa. We have at most 10 more days before cancelling our holidays.

All the best,
Z
 
I am just over a week away from travelling to the US under my ESTA which was applied for before my DD. I am very worried and nervous about not getting entry . Any reassurance welcome!!
 
Miserable,

from your our previous posts, you crashed and wrote off your own car. As this does not involve serious injury to another person or serious damage to property (this does not include your own property) then you can correctly answer no the the question about being arrested for criminal offences on the ESTA form and your conviction should not prevent you travelling to the USA.
Have a nice time!
 
Thanks Price :)

Having Wee wobbles about it now and again . Just read this entire thread through again and feel a bit better.

?
 
I confirm what Price wrote.

As a reminder of what I've already posted in this thread, the most recent significant change to the Visa Waiver Program was a new law approved in December 2015 excluding people from the ESTA if they visited some countries (like myself) or have another passport from one of those countries (like my wife). The official FAQs are at https://www.cbp.gov/travel/internat...ement-and-terrorist-travel-prevention-act-faq and the details are at https://www.congress.gov/bill/114th-congress/house-bill/158.

That law was the reason I was preparing to submit my DS-160 even before my arrest and conviction. I and my wife were initially pretty confident that the embassy would have processed our cases quite quickly, especially because she had no issues in all the recent times when she had to apply for a US visa before getting her EU passport. Her visas were short, 3 months, but approved in a couple of weeks in the worst case after waiting for quite some time only the first time she had to apply for a visa about 8 years ago. After my arrest I thought that I would have been the one having most problems getting a visa, but in the end I already have my 10-year visa while we're still waiting for news about my wife's visa. We have just one more week to wait, then on Friday I'll have to cancel everything if we don't receive good news from the embassy.

So, as long as you haven't visited some countries and you don't travel with people with a second passport from there, you can go via ESTA.

All the best,
Z
 
My experience of the visa scheme...

I was convicted in March 2011 and given a 2 year ban for drink driving. My reading was very high. My family are going to the US towards the beginning of next year and despite everything that many have said, I wasn't willing to risk getting to America only to be turned back, so I applied for a visa in March. My interview at the embassy was this morning and after a 3 hour wait, my visa was approved after a 2-3 minute conversation/interview.

The lady I spoke to was very courteous and simply wanted to know where I was going, how long for, the purpose of the trip and details of who I was going with. She asked me about what happened on the event of my DUI conviction and after explaining that it was a terrible mistake that was far from my finest moment she told me I'd receive my passport and visa in 3-5 days. No other checks, no medical.

After reading other examples on this site it seems that there isn't a 'rule book' for what circumstances will constitute a acceptance or refusal of a visa (barring some obvious points) but instead relies largely on how you come across to the interviewer. The fact is I was honest and remorseful for what happened and that, combined with being just over 5 years, meant she was satisfied that no further checks were needed. It's a great expense to go through, but at least now I know I don't have to lie at the border.

So now I'm 'enjoying' a night in a hotel in Luton before driving 7 hours home tomorrow. If it's at all possible to enjoy being in Luton....
 
My experience of the visa scheme...

I was convicted in March 2011 and given a 2 year ban for drink driving. My reading was very high. My family are going to the US towards the beginning of next year and despite everything that many have said, I wasn't willing to risk getting to America only to be turned back, so I applied for a visa in March. My interview at the embassy was this morning and after a 3 hour wait, my visa was approved after a 2-3 minute conversation/interview.

The lady I spoke to was very courteous and simply wanted to know where I was going, how long for, the purpose of the trip and details of who I was going with. She asked me about what happened on the event of my DUI conviction and after explaining that it was a terrible mistake that was far from my finest moment she told me I'd receive my passport and visa in 3-5 days. No other checks, no medical.

After reading other examples on this site it seems that there isn't a 'rule book' for what circumstances will constitute a acceptance or refusal of a visa (barring some obvious points) but instead relies largely on how you come across to the interviewer. The fact is I was honest and remorseful for what happened and that, combined with being just over 5 years, meant she was satisfied that no further checks were needed. It's a great expense to go through, but at least now I know I don't have to lie at the border.

So now I'm 'enjoying' a night in a hotel in Luton before driving 7 hours home tomorrow. If it's at all possible to enjoy being in Luton....


That's great to hear!!
Another poster here had no problem getting his visa very recently too, however he was required to attend a medical. Maybe there has been a change in policy/attitude? Also, I think how you come across influences all interactions, from your court appearance to when you speak to the immigration officer at the airport....think about a job interview or asking for a business loan from the bank, just about everything is about personal interactions and other people's perceptions of us. I wasn't aware that some people had condoned lying on their ESTA/visa applications... I must have missed those posts. Definitely not a good idea!!
Nevertheless, it just goes to show, as I have always maintained, that you can gain entry to the US with a DUI conviction, contrary to some disheartening posts.
Were you not eligible to travel on the ESTA?
 
Last edited:
That's great to hear!!
Another poster here had no problem getting his visa very recently too, however he was required to attend a medical. Maybe there has been a change in policy/attitude? Also, I think how you come across influences all interactions, from your court appearance to when you speak to the immigration officer at the airport....think about a job interview or asking for a business loan from the bank, just about everything is about personal interactions and other people's perceptions of us. I wasn't aware that some people had condoned lying on their ESTA/visa applications... I must have missed those posts. Definitely not a good idea!!
Nevertheless, it just goes to show, as I have always maintained, that you can gain entry to the US with a DUI conviction, contrary to some disheartening posts.
Were you not eligible to travel on the ESTA?

I saw the numerous arguments about whether or not it's a crime of moral turpitude or not so I checked my eligibility via https://uk.usembassy.gov/visas/visa-waiver-program/non-immigrant-visa-waiver-program-vwp/

"Travelers who have been arrested, even if the arrest did not result in a criminal conviction, those with criminal records, (the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act does not apply to U.S. visa law), certain serious communicable illnesses, those who have been refused admission into, or have been deported from, the United States, or have previously overstayed on the VWP are not eligible to travel visa free under the Visa Waiver Program."

That seems pretty straightforward to me; I've been arrested (and convicted) so I am not eligible for the Visa Waiver Program.
 
The wording changed on the ESTA form in November 2014, and you are no longer directly asked the 'Moral Turpitude' question.
What is now asked is:


  • Have you ever been arrested or convicted for a crime that resulted in serious damage to property, or serious harm to another person or government authority?
  • Have you ever violated any law related to possessing, using or distributing illegal drugs?
  • Do you seek to engage in or have you ever engaged in terrorist activities, espionage, sabotage or genocide?
  • Have you ever committed fraud or misrepresented yourself or others to obtain, or assist others to obtain, a visa or entry into the United States?
So unless you were involved in a collision involving serious damage to (other) property or serious injury to some (other) person, you can answer 'No' to that section.
It is still tighter if you have to apply for a Visa for some other reason, such as recent travel to countries on the 'concerned' list and you do then have to declare ANY arrests, but as it stands, straightforward drink driving cases do not seem to have an effect on the ESTA route.
There are several conflicting pieces of advice on the Embassy website and in the Immigration website, but reading the ESTA form word for word this is what the current situation is.
 
Last edited:
Enter code DRINKDRIVING10 during checkout for 10% off
Top