Immigration Consequences of Criminal Convictions can be very serious
If you have been arrested or convicted of a crime, please read the following information. Do not travel abroad or apply for any immigration benefit, including renewal of your documents, before consulting with an immigration attorney.
Keep in my mind the following:
- Criminal history never expires under immigration law - you will always have to disclose it and it will always affect you until you become a US citizen.
- The sentence or no sentence that you received is irrelevant - what matters is the language of the statute under which you were convicted and the maximum sentence that you could have received (not the sentence you received).
- In certain cases, you will not be able to travel abroad until you are granted US Citizenship.
- There is often no logic to a lay person so don't assume anything. Example: conviction for driving under the influence of alcohol has almost no immigration consequences whereas jumping a turnstile in the NYC Subway can prevent you from ever getting a Green Card and make you deportable with no form or relief!