Can I Become a Legal Immigrant With Crimes on My Record?

Recently, our founder, attorney Maria Mendoza, won a case for a client who had committed several crimes in the past.

Crimes can be one of the hardest hits when applying to become a legal immigrant. Talking about this particular case, it helped to demonstrate that the client had rehab in terms of moral character.

In almost every migratory procedure, a good moral character must be demonstrated. This particular case was a VAWA case. VAWA is a humanitarian visa that can provide a way to become a legal immigrant without leaving the US, and that can provide an Employment Authorization Document (EAD) during the time the case is still being processed.

In VAWA cases, one of the requirements is to demonstrate that years have passed since the date when the procedure was submitted, and good moral character in the last 3 years. Beyond the three-years period as well. Since the date on which the procedure was submitted, USCIS can see an immigrant’s history in the US, and if he/she has committed any crime before the good moral character three years period required, that is something that is also considered.

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In terms of this particular case, the client passed through a difficult time when he was young. He used to suffer abuse and mistreatment; and was surrounded by bad influences that, unfortunately, made him accumulate more than five crimes. These crimes were inhibiting him from being able to become a legal immigrant, even though he had more than 20 years of looking for a way to regularize his migratory status, and implied the case to become difficult.

The ideal is to have a clean record. However, sometimes mistakes are made, especially when young or through a difficult time in life.

How to prove a good moral character despite having crimes in the past?

Each case is different, so each strategy is different. In this specific case, different arguments were used to demonstrate that, even though having committed more than five crimes in the past, the client had good moral character.

A psychological evaluation was required about how this client now has good moral character, how he changed, left the bad habits he had fallen into when passing through a bad time in his life behind, is in the position of contributing to the United States, and is a person who has no tendency to commit crimes in the future.

That was one of the most important factors in winning the case, a psychological evaluation, and demonstrating that a considerable period of time had already passed since his last crime.

There is more possibility that, if a person has previous crimes, immigration will forgive those crimes if time has passed since the last crime.

If more than 10 years have passed, no crimes have been committed, there are no convictions nor other problems, is possible to prove to the Immigration Department that the person changed and left the wrong steps behind.

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Something that can help is to demonstrate that in the last years, the person has had a consistent job, is responsible, pays his/her taxes, is involved with religion, and looks forward to helping other people within his/her possibilities, for instance, helping other people from their religion, at the hospital. and facts of this nature.

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When in this position of having several crimes in the past, and being afraid of not being able to regularize migratory status due to those crimes. it must be considered that there are ways to achieve it, and one of the main requirements is to demonstrate a moral character rehab.

That was the followed strategy in this case, joint with demonstrating the time that had passed since the last committed crime. Demonstrating that the person had changed, is responsible, counts with a stable job, and could get the feedback of an expert psychologist affirming that he was willing to contribute to the US also helped.

Those previously mentioned are factors that can be used in favor of this type of case.

Again, remember that each case is different, and that there can be times in which, if having crimes, there will be no way to apply for a waiver or regularize migratory status. That’s why it’s important to talk with an Immigration Attorney.