Document Actions
My friend spent some time in prison ten years ago, will he be refused a Visa to enter the USA for a holiday at Disneyland?
Does America hold details of British people's past criminal records? We are considering family holiday to Disneyland but our friend who is considering going with us served some time in prison ten years ago (no convictions since). Will he be able to get a Visa?
After ten years any conviction involving a sentence of less than 2.5 years is deemed spent under UK law but this is a US, not a UK issue. US immigration laws state that any conviction or even arrest must be declared.
US immigration officials have no direct access to UK criminal records but some information is automatically shared between the UK and the USA. This is likely to include details of people convicted of offences involving drugs, firearms, explosives or sexual misconduct.
The official line is that he will have to obtain a Memorandum Of Conviction (MOC) from the Court and be interviewed by a US Embassy official in the visa section who will be involved in a decision making process as to whether he is granted entry. Decisions can take up to five months.
If he decides to 'chance it' he will probably get through but the best legal advice would be that it would still be wisest to 'play safe' and apply for a visa as outlined above.
We hope this information answers your question and that you found our free service fast, comprehensive and useful. We answer questions on any legal matter so please tell anyone else who you think might benefit from our free assistance.
It would also be a good idea to bookmark http://www.lawanswers.co.uk in case you need free advice on any other legal question.
Please come back to us if you have any other legal matter we can assist with in future.
Important! Ask your own free questions... Questions are answered accurately at the time they are posted but the law can change or your circumstances may differ in an important but not obvious way from those mentioned. For fast, free and up-to-date personal legal advice direct to your inbox about your own individual case ask Law Answers your own free legal question.
