You are using an out of date browser. It may not display this or other websites correctly.
You should upgrade or use an alternative browser.
You should upgrade or use an alternative browser.
Traffic tickets and naturalization (threads merged)
- Thread starter patel789
- Start date
Online Status Changed yesterday and today received Yellow Letter and Interview Letter.
Yellow Letter says: bring DL and
You indicated in your application that you were arrested. For these arrests and any other incidents in which you have been involved, bring originals or certified copies of all arrest records and court dispositions showing how each incident was resolved
I was never arrested but had one normal speeding violation which I mentioned in my N400.
Is this normal?
What should I take with me for this ARREST?
Thanks,
Yellow Letter says: bring DL and
You indicated in your application that you were arrested. For these arrests and any other incidents in which you have been involved, bring originals or certified copies of all arrest records and court dispositions showing how each incident was resolved
I was never arrested but had one normal speeding violation which I mentioned in my N400.
Is this normal?
What should I take with me for this ARREST?
Thanks,
vatiger2009
Registered Users (C)
Online Status Changed yesterday and today received Yellow Letter and Interview Letter.
Yellow Letter says: bring DL and
You indicated in your application that you were arrested. For these arrests and any other incidents in which you have been involved, bring originals or certified copies of all arrest records and court dispositions showing how each incident was resolved
I was never arrested but had one normal speeding violation which I mentioned in my N400.
Is this normal?
What should I take with me for this ARREST?
Thanks,
I am not an expert, but here is my opinion. Hope someone would agree with/correct me here.
In your case i guess it would be the proof that you did pay off the fine/penalty(the receipt if you still have it). If you don't have it, you can get a "Certificate of Disposition" from the same court wherever you had paid your fine. That should be sufficient.
I also got a speeding ticket(in NY state) in Jan 2002 for which i paid the penalty at the local court but i didn't retain the receipt. So, I requested "Certificate of Disposition" from the same court by phone. I'll be receiving it some time next week. After that I'll be sending out my N400 along with the disposition.
Hope this helps.
If you answer "YES" to the question about citations, detentions, and arrests, the yellow letter will automatically feature the text referring to having been arrested. It's a standardized template.
vatiger2009, no need to send it with the N-400. Bring it to the interview instead.
vatiger2009, no need to send it with the N-400. Bring it to the interview instead.
jenniferinny
Registered Users (C)
I already posted this somewhere else, but, thought I'd add it to the thread.
According to the publication "A Guide to Naturalization", M-476 on page 25:
"If you have been arrested or convicted of a
crime, you must send a certified copy of the
arrest report, court disposition, sentencing,
and any other relevant documents, including
any countervailing evidence concerning
the circumstances of your arrest and/or
conviction that you would like USCIS to
consider. Note that unless a traffic incident
was alcohol or drug related, you do not need
to submit documentation for traffic fines and
incidents that did not involve an actual arrest
if the only penalty was a fine of less than
$500 and/or points on your driver’s license."
It won't let me post the link..
According to the publication "A Guide to Naturalization", M-476 on page 25:
"If you have been arrested or convicted of a
crime, you must send a certified copy of the
arrest report, court disposition, sentencing,
and any other relevant documents, including
any countervailing evidence concerning
the circumstances of your arrest and/or
conviction that you would like USCIS to
consider. Note that unless a traffic incident
was alcohol or drug related, you do not need
to submit documentation for traffic fines and
incidents that did not involve an actual arrest
if the only penalty was a fine of less than
$500 and/or points on your driver’s license."
It won't let me post the link..
I mentioned the a ticket (reckless driving) I got almost 3 years ago on my app form, IO rejected the court disposition I had with me, called it a printout. IO will not make a decision until I get a CERTIFIED copy of the court disposition.
Reckless driving is considered a misdemeanor (criminal) offense in several states. That's why the IO wanted a court disposition.
spiderman03
Registered Users (C)
I got 2 speeding tickets in 2002 & 2003 with fines less than $ 100/-. I paid the fines and also took the traffic school in both cases (judge offered it), finished it and my license history is clear now. I also got a copy of my IL driving history from DMV recently and it shows no tickets (probably because I took traffic school). I did mention those in my application. The problem is, I got a speeding ticket recently (after filing N-400). I paid the fine immediately (court appearance not required) using a money order and called that court in Indiana and they mailed the proof of payment on a court letterhead already.
I plan to inform the IO of my recent ticket during my interview. Does anyone think it could cause a problem with citizenship approval? Other than these 3 tickets, my personal history is clean, being single and my case is very straight forward. Please advice.
I plan to inform the IO of my recent ticket during my interview. Does anyone think it could cause a problem with citizenship approval? Other than these 3 tickets, my personal history is clean, being single and my case is very straight forward. Please advice.
spiderman03
Registered Users (C)
From personal experience, I think you'll be fine....they only rake you over hot coals if you have a major ticket like reckless driving or DUI/DWI or you get arrested.
The two tickets I got in IL, I have certified court dispositions written on it but for the one I got recently in IN, they mailed me a very nice, clear printout with a raised court seal but it doesn't say "certified court disposition" on it. So, you think that kind of proof of payment is good enough or do I need to get one from IN? I asked the court lady about it and she drew a blank when I mentioned CERTIFIED COURT DISPOSITION. Any advice?
The two tickets I got in IL, I have certified court dispositions written on it but for the one I got recently in IN, they mailed me a very nice, clear printout with a raised court seal but it doesn't say "certified court disposition" on it. So, you think that kind of proof of payment is good enough or do I need to get one from IN? I asked the court lady about it and she drew a blank when I mentioned CERTIFIED COURT DISPOSITION. Any advice?
The raised seal makes it a certified court disposition.
The two tickets I got in IL, I have certified court dispositions written on it but for the one I got recently in IN, they mailed me a very nice, clear printout with a raised court seal but it doesn't say "certified court disposition" on it. So, you think that kind of proof of payment is good enough or do I need to get one from IN? I asked the court lady about it and she drew a blank when I mentioned CERTIFIED COURT DISPOSITION. Any advice?
That raised seal should make it "certified", but my IO would probably not have accepted it. In my case, the "printout", even if it was certified would not have satisfied my IO. She wanted something different, she called the printout I had, "minutes" of the court. She said she would mail me instructions on where to get the actual court disposition. Im guessing, she wanted something official from the court itself, not just a certified printout from the records division of the clerk of courts.
Your IO may not make such a big fuss since your tickets were minor when compared to the reckless driving ticket I got.
Last edited by a moderator:
No need to disclose traffic tickets
Just no need to mention traffic tockets on N400 application or in the interview. I am telling this based on my interview experience and that of almost all the people i have in real life as well as based on the postings here. The IO either does not hae your traffic tickets info with him or he just doesn't care. So as long as you are not arrested on a DUI or a major crash that killed some one, don't talk about traffic tickets. Tell about them only if you are specifically asked about it. Most of the IO's ask only ask you if you have been ever arrested. The answer is "NO" if you have minor traffic tickets. This is my strong suggestion and i don't like to argue with those who indulge in theoretical lectures here an cite some rare and serious cases. So if all you have is a couple of speeding tickets, just ignore them.
Just no need to mention traffic tockets on N400 application or in the interview. I am telling this based on my interview experience and that of almost all the people i have in real life as well as based on the postings here. The IO either does not hae your traffic tickets info with him or he just doesn't care. So as long as you are not arrested on a DUI or a major crash that killed some one, don't talk about traffic tickets. Tell about them only if you are specifically asked about it. Most of the IO's ask only ask you if you have been ever arrested. The answer is "NO" if you have minor traffic tickets. This is my strong suggestion and i don't like to argue with those who indulge in theoretical lectures here an cite some rare and serious cases. So if all you have is a couple of speeding tickets, just ignore them.
dsatish, I asked myself this question : "Can it create a problem later on in life if I dont disclose my reckless driving ticket ?" (the fine was well below $500, in fact I paid no fine since the charge was dropped, I just had to pay the lawyer his fee)
Also the IO made a big fuss about it.....and reclkless driving is a big deal in some states, which tells me that it was important enough to create a problem if they ever checked my citizenship file again and found that I had not disclosed it. I would rather deal with it now than have it come back to haunt me.
But I agree, anything less than reckless driving/DUI/DWI/arrest will probably not cause the same fuss.
Also the IO made a big fuss about it.....and reclkless driving is a big deal in some states, which tells me that it was important enough to create a problem if they ever checked my citizenship file again and found that I had not disclosed it. I would rather deal with it now than have it come back to haunt me.
But I agree, anything less than reckless driving/DUI/DWI/arrest will probably not cause the same fuss.
vrb747,
As I've stated before, I firmly believe that the reason why the IO made such a big deal out of your tickets is because it was issued for reckless driving.
dsatish, however, is absolutely correct. In my humble opinion, USCIS doesn't check the applicants' driving records. If minor traffic tickets were really used to determine moral character, the N-400 approval rates would be much lower than they are now.
As I've stated before, I firmly believe that the reason why the IO made such a big deal out of your tickets is because it was issued for reckless driving.
dsatish, however, is absolutely correct. In my humble opinion, USCIS doesn't check the applicants' driving records. If minor traffic tickets were really used to determine moral character, the N-400 approval rates would be much lower than they are now.
in New York State reckless driving leads to an arrest, so it must be disclosed.
But it could vary in other states.
This is NY Law 1212:
"§ 1212. Reckless driving. Reckless driving shall mean driving or using
any motor vehicle, motorcycle or any other vehicle propelled by any
power other than muscular power or any appliance or accessory thereof in
a manner which unreasonably interferes with the free and proper use of
the public highway, or unreasonably endangers users of the public
highway. Reckless driving is prohibited. Every person violating this
provision shall be guilty of a misdemeanor."
In NYS only DWI (et similia) and reckless driving are CRIMINAL traffic violations and therefore should be disclosed.
That's why they took out the "excluding traffic violations" part from the question...because people failed to disclose DWIs and reckless driving tickets, which are indeed criminal charges.
But it could vary in other states.
This is NY Law 1212:
"§ 1212. Reckless driving. Reckless driving shall mean driving or using
any motor vehicle, motorcycle or any other vehicle propelled by any
power other than muscular power or any appliance or accessory thereof in
a manner which unreasonably interferes with the free and proper use of
the public highway, or unreasonably endangers users of the public
highway. Reckless driving is prohibited. Every person violating this
provision shall be guilty of a misdemeanor."
In NYS only DWI (et similia) and reckless driving are CRIMINAL traffic violations and therefore should be disclosed.
That's why they took out the "excluding traffic violations" part from the question...because people failed to disclose DWIs and reckless driving tickets, which are indeed criminal charges.
Last edited by a moderator: