Traffic tickets and naturalization (threads merged)

Clearly the traffic ticket issue is always very, very ambiguous. Applicants treat it differently, lawyers give conflicting advice and IOs react differently.

I guess my take was, and is, that the downside of mentioning tickets uneccessarily is less than the downside of ommitting them and having an IO that cares.

However, many applicants sail thru' without referring to them at all.

The professional association of lawyers (???) sent a respectful letter to the USCIS when the new N-400 form was circulated for feedback some years ago. They pointed out this ambiguity but obviously no clarification was ever made.

At least it provides the opportunity for endless debate on this forum !!!
 
dckaraja said:
You quoted:Also, out of the big stack of documents I brought with me she only looked at that traffic fine receipt (which she actually kept with her) and my wife's passport.



Why did she keep your wife's passport.?Did you apply on marriage based.I have never heard them keeping you spouses passport ?:rolleyes:
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they kept my traffic ticket receipt. She only looked at my wife's passport and gave it back to me
 
here is my timeline:

mailed out N-400 mar 10,07
check cashed mar 16,07
notice of action mar 23,07
fingerprints notice mar 30,07
fingerprints taken apr 20,07
interview letter May 3,2007
interview June 21,2007
 
Traffic Tickets - Another perspective

Few days ago I called the 1800 number for uscis and the operator/customer rep. told me that I had to say yes to the place where it asks about traffic ticktes/(cited) if I had gotten traffic tickets(I have gotten only regular traffic tickets, no DUI or anything like that, none over$500). Then I asked her if I could attach my DMV record to my N-400 application when I mail it to them and she replied yes.
What do you guys/gals say about this. Is this okay from your experience? anyone done it? Thanks very much.
 
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happy life said:
Few days ago I called the 1800 number for uscis and the operator/customer rep. told me that I had to say yes to the place where it asks about traffic ticktes/(cited) if I had gotten traffic tickets(I have gotten only regular traffic tickets, no DUI or anything like that, none over$500). Then I asked her if I could attach my DMV record to my N-400 application when I mail it to them and she replied yes.
What do you guys/gals say about this. Is this okay from your experience? anyone done it? Thanks very much.
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That's pretty much correct (which is unusual for an operator manning the USCIS 800 number!).

The N-400 application form only says you do not need to provide documentation for citations not involving Drugs/Alcohol under $500. There is still a requirement to list these citations, although for expedient purposes, some IOs will tell you otherwise.
 
tarkash said:
Hello all, I got a DUI in 2003.. will it give me problems during I-485 stage? Does anyone know?
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Wrong forum... but I'd guess the answer depends whether USCIS knows about the offense, and if not, whether you have to declare it.
 
Applying to naturalization with a speed ticket

In the form n-400 are two question.

I got an speed ticket 6 months ago
I declared guilty with an explanation and I went to court for trial

1. have you ever been arrested, cited or detained by any law enforcement officer.?

should I answer yes.

2. Have you ever received a suspended sentence, been placed on probation or been parole?

The veredict was Probation before Judgement.
In other words no points to my driver license, I only paid a fee.

Should I answer yes or no
 
Riseb1, this question has been debated to death on this forum.. and you still won't get a straight answer. :p Not even lawyers or Interviewing Officers (IO) can agree on the correct answer.

IMHO, since it asks have you *ever* been arrested/cited/detained, that answer should be YES. It says you don't have to provide *documentation* if it wasn't DUI, or the fine was not over $500, but it doesn't say you shouldn't mention it. I would have some kind of documentation anyway, to show the fine was paid.

There was someone recently who had a ticket, but didn't mention it on his N400. At the interview, he was specifically asked if he'd ever received a ticket. After answering that he had, the IO then changed his answers to 16, 17 and 18 to a YES. You can read more about his interview here:

http://www.immigrationportal.com/showthread.php?p=1707163

My DH had a ticket or three, so we decided to err on the side of caution, and answered 16, 17 and 18 with a YES. DH will take along a driving record of the past 7 years to his interview.

Another poster who answered YES to those questions for a ticket was told by the IO that that was a sign of "good moral character."

Then there are others that don't mention it at all, and don't get asked about it at all.

If you decide to go that route though, I would take along proof of payment for any tickets, just in case the IO DOES ask you about tickets.

So.. it's up to you on what you're going to do. Good luck either way :D
 
I never mentioned my many tickets as everything I had read stated traffic tickets weren't looked at. I was asked if I was in court and he didn't care about the tickets in my interview, just as long as the traffic fines I did get weren't drug/alcohol related.

Another poster just recently stated (at the same place I interviewed with) that the IO specifically told them they don't care about traffic tickets if they aren't DUI/drug or over $500.

So take that with what you will. Some people who do have other issues on their N-400 might need to state their tickets especially if they had any other issues or arrests or problems on their application. Up to you if you want to bring proof and mark it down or not...
 
Warlord, I think we're both referring to the same case, LOL!

This is from Netzero's interview report:
6. I had listed about a speeding ticket/citation < 100 bucks..She asked if it was
drug or alcohol related..negative..I then offered her my Driving records, she said, not
necessary but later took a copy anyway..She told that speeding/moving violation don't
need to be reported but if u report it, she said(am not making it up), that is an indication
of "good moral" character because you are being upfront.. (I corrected the date as well, it was so long
ago and had forgotten the eact date/month...1997)she wrote notes about it..BTW,
I didn't have any receipts or docs for the ticket I paid..but got the DMV records
to indicate all is clear..
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(Emphasis mine.)
 
Yeah that's the case. See us Denverites stick together ha ha. Basically with the traffic ticket it's up to you if you want to have that extra security or not...
 
RiseB1 ..... do a search on this forum on "traffic" or "tickets" and you will indeed find a gazillion of posts. I have no quantitative support but I suspect that the split is about 50/50 for and against listing them.

Based on an immigration lawyer's article written in a journal (see my threads), I went ahead and listed mine but the subject never came up at interview.

The good news is that, irrespective of what you decide, I cannot remember ANY applicants whose N-400s were put in jeopardy solely on the basis of "minor" traffic offences. This might not be the case if you were a consistently repeat offender. Then the whole "moral character" might come into play.
 
traffic ticket - applying N-400

I got two speeding tickets (in the entire 11 years I have been in the US). Although, I still believe, I did not do anything wrong both times. For the first one, the court ordered me to pay a fine of $100 which I did (no points). For the second one, the court dismissed the case. I do not have to pay anything and nothing goes on my records (no points).

Do I have to mention this in my N-400 application. If so, where? Please specify the part number and question number. If i have to attach a sheet of paper detailing this ticket, what do I need to say. Please post a sample format.

By the way, even if I did not go to court, my original fine was much less than $500 both times. Obviously going to court helped me save money on the fine and also no points.
 
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There are many discussions on this. General agreement is that you have to mention all your traffic tickets no matter what, even if you got 10 years ago or paid no fine, no points etc etc.. Merely mentioning about it will not disqualify you from becoming citizen. Be truthful. Do not hide anything.
 
Traffic Ticket.

Hi!

I included an explanation on a separate piece of paper along with an original copy of my traffic ticket citation and payment from the court with my application (along with a copy of my selective service letter). And I said yes to questions 15, 16 and 17 in the section of Good Moral Character. In my explanation I said that I was pulled over by a Virginia State Trooper, I was cited $130+ dollars for speeding and charged with speeding. I've never gotten into any trouble with the law except for the traffic ticket over my 20+ years in the US (Thank God!). This was just to be safe and because it said to do so on the section for materials to attach with the application. And my fiancee said that at most the person reading the explanation will just laugh. I hope this helps!


I must admit though that the application is quite ambiguous when it comes to this subject. And there is a high degree of variability when individual IOs happen to ask this question during interview...at least from what I've read on this forum.:confused:
 
CA Traffic school to keep my record clean - Should I report that?

Sorry for bringing this issue again, but I did not see anyone answering about traffic school which is supposed to clear your record.
Should it be reported?
 
Can you explain all the acronyms:

PR - Permanent Resident
DO - District Office
CC - Check cleared
FP - Fingerprint
PP - Passport
CSC - ?
PN - ?
IL - ?
PD - ?
VR - ?

Anything else!!! Thanks Guys.
 
CSC-California Service Center
PN-Priority Number
IL-Interview Letter
PD-Priority Date
VR-Voter Registration

Hope this helps!
 
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