Will an arrest(but no conviction) affect F-1 visa application

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kathy84

Registered Users (C)
I am an international student on F-1 visa studying at the U.S college. Last Novemeber, i got caught at a store for stealing a pair of earrings which valued at $40. The police was involved and they got my fingerprints and other infos. I had to go to the court, and finally paid $250 and the case was dismissed. I know what i did was stupid and i have no excuse. It was an unpleasant experience for me and i had learned my lessons.

My problem is that i returned back home this summer and when i went to the U.S embassy to reapply the F-1 visa, they asked about if i had been into any trouble last year.( i nearly forget about all of that before they ask me) But i think they must have myu fingerprints from the record. So i told them what happened. They said they are going to do an investigation on me and it will take up to 6-8 weeks. They took my fingerprints and ask me to file them my case document.

I am extremely anxious and worried. I already contacted the court asked them to send me my case record. The case was dismiised but they told me it's up to them to decide whether this is a serious issue. i just don't know if this will affect my applying for the F-1 visa. Right now i only have half a year unil graduation. I don't know what i should do if they deny my visa appication. Could anybody give some advice? Thanks a lot!!
 
kathy84 said:
I am an international student on F-1 visa studying at the U.S college. Last Novemeber, i got caught at a store for stealing a pair of earrings which valued at $40. The police was involved and they got my fingerprints and other infos. I had to go to the court, and finally paid $250 and the case was dismissed. I know what i did was stupid and i have no excuse. It was an unpleasant experience for me and i had learned my lessons.

My problem is that i returned back home this summer and when i went to the U.S embassy to reapply the F-1 visa, they asked about if i had been into any trouble last year.( i nearly forget about all of that before they ask me) But i think they must have myu fingerprints from the record. So i told them what happened. They said they are going to do an investigation on me and it will take up to 6-8 weeks. They took my fingerprints and ask me to file them my case document.

I am extremely anxious and worried. I already contacted the court asked them to send me my case record. The case was dismiised but they told me it's up to them to decide whether this is a serious issue. i just don't know if this will affect my applying for the F-1 visa. Right now i only have half a year unil graduation. I don't know what i should do if they deny my visa appication. Could anybody give some advice? Thanks a lot!!
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If you are not convicted, then why did you pay fine. Sentence may be jail or fine based on the crime count. Now you are under the mercy of the counsellor who is going to evaluate before issuing visa.

If he things you are practising for a bigger crime instead of studying, you know the result.
 
i paid the court $250, and the case was dismissed. (since the value of the goods i took was under $50) I am pretty sure about this and i actually called the court the other day to confirm it. I am not sure what the $250 is for, perhaps just a procedure?
So do you think under this circumstance, the consulator will still be likely to deny my visa?
 
great guru said:
If you are not convicted, then why did you pay fine. Sentence may be jail or fine based on the crime count. Now you are under the mercy of the counsellor who is going to evaluate before issuing visa.

If he things you are practising for a bigger crime instead of studying, you know the result.
Click to expand...


Thank you for your reply. Now that you remind me about the fine and i am starting to worry. Maybe i was convicted but only being asked to pay a fine. I was totally scared and blank during the clerk hearing. But the judge did say the case was dismissed after i pay. (or does "dismiss" here only means the case is "closed"?) i already asked the court to send my case record to me. If it is true that i have been convicted, is there anything i can do to persuade the consulator to grant my F-1 visa? (I have been in good standing on F-1 for 3 years and this is my last year. And i really can't lose the chance to finish college. I just wish i didn't do that. )Or should l hire a lawyer to hlep me?
Any advice you could give me would be helpful! Thanks a lot!!
 
kathy84 said:
Thank you for your reply. Now that you remind me about the fine and i am starting to worry. Maybe i was convicted but only being asked to pay a fine. I was totally scared and blank during the clerk hearing. But the judge did say the case was dismissed after i pay. (or does "dismiss" here only means the case is "closed"?) i already asked the court to send my case record to me. If it is true that i have been convicted, is there anything i can do to persuade the consulator to grant my F-1 visa? (I have been in good standing on F-1 for 3 years and this is my last year. And i really can't lose the chance to finish college. I just wish i didn't do that. )Or should l hire a lawyer to hlep me?
Any advice you could give me would be helpful! Thanks a lot!!
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See ,here how counselor is going to see the and evaluate the records. Crime seriousness differ, shop lifting may be consider some time kind of rich man disease too. So many celebraties did shop lifting !!!. Since your punishment was just only $250, you are just at the mercy of the counsellor. Young age students try to do thrilling things, elders know. As far as it is not a serious crime, you are alright. Cross your fingers.
 
Thanks a lot for your reply!!
So do you think I should provide evidence that i have been a good student other than that? And is it necessary to hire a lawyer to help me in case the consulator denies my visa? Or is his decision ultimate and cannot be repealed?
Sorry there are too many questions. I know i should just pray for now,but i just want to do something if there is any possibility.
 
kathy84 said:
Thanks a lot for your reply!!
So do you think I should provide evidence that i have been a good student other than that? And is it necessary to hire a lawyer to help me in case the consulator denies my visa? Or is his decision ultimate and cannot be repealed?
Sorry there are too many questions. I know i should just pray for now,but i just want to do something if there is any possibility.
Click to expand...

Please, if you have any Yoga class in your area go and join for a month and relax. Do not think on any F1 matter until counsel office calls you.
 
F-1 denied

So it turned out that my F-1 visa got denied. The visa issue officer told me kindly that the embassy is feeling that i haven't paid my price for the breaking the American law. They think that the shoplifting incident is so recent and i need to realize the serious consequence of it. So i asked her if that is an inadmissble event and she said no, and she suggested me to apply again at least after one year and spend this year working in China.

I am about to take the result this way. But my parents wanted to consult it with somebody from the Chinese Foreign Ministry (the diplomatic service) and file an appeal/protest letter, since there is an agreement between the U.S Embassy and the Chinese Foreign Ministry that the Embassy cannot discontinue the student's study in the U.S without sufficent proper reasons. Based on your knowledge, do you think this might help the situation or not really? Can the embassy punish me for breaking the law by delaying my return to the U.S? (this time when i applied, they didn't quite mention the credible reasons to come back to China)

Thanks a lot!!
 
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