Two drink driving convictions

@Cmex

If you are talking SRRV I know. Message me.

Cmex, I'll drink to that. Welcome to the forum and hope you get your answers. I had a drink drive conviction over 40 years ago, no problem here or any country.

I will ask though that you said you want to apply for a resident Visa, That's a 10 years process or 5 years on a 13a.

Do you mean a visitor/tourist visa that can be good for 3 years? Perhaps applying for permanent residency, asylum? Let us know your situation and I'm sure the members will point you in the right direction.

Cheers, Steve.

@Cmex
If you are talking SRRV I know. Message me.
-@emvaningen

The admin consistently says this group exists to inform the group publicly, not privately. You should contribute at least some knowledge to the group.

@Cmex Whether you’re applying for a family or marriage green card from inside the United States or from abroad, a large portion of the application will be dedicated to questions about your criminal history.

If you don’t have a criminal history, you don’t have to worry. But for many applicants, the criminal history section of the green card application is stressful, as a police record of any kind could be a reason for denial.

@danfinn

I think I have made some useful contributions here to date.

However, the question asked is rather personal, even though others may have a different opinion. Therefore I would prefer to leave it to the OP what he wants to be public and what he wants to share in a smaller circle.

But, point taken. Here you go : @Smex, if it is about SRRV, contact info at vaningenmanagement.com

@danfinn The Special Resident Retiree's Visa (SRRV) is a special non-immigrant visa separate and distinct from the existing visa categories defined by the Philippine Immigration Act of 1940, as amended, and allied laws. (Sec. 1, Rule II of LOI 1470).

Cmex, I'll drink to that. Welcome to the forum and hope you get your answers. I had a drink drive conviction over 40 years ago, no problem here or any country.
I will ask though that you said you want to apply for a resident Visa, That's a 10 years process or 5 years on a 13a.
Do you mean a visitor/tourist visa that can be good for 3 years? Perhaps applying for permanent residency, asylum? Let us know your situation and I'm sure the members will point you in the right direction.
Cheers, Steve.
-@bigpearl

Thanks Bigpearl. My spouse and I are over 35 and my spouse receives a fortnightly pension payment - I would becoming as a dependant. We also could combine this a bank deposit if we need to hopefully meet the criteria for the SRRV. Although we are open to suggestions for other options so we can stay long term - we are both Australian so no visa needed for being a tourist however not sure how long you can extend this option or whether you need to get another type of visa and whether criminal history would be a problem with that…

@danfinn
I think I have made some useful contributions here to date.

However, the question asked is rather personal, even though others may have a different opinion. Therefore I would prefer to leave it to the OP what he wants to be public and what he wants to share in a smaller circle.

But, point taken. Here you go : @Smex, if it is about SRRV, contact info at vaningenmanagement.com
-@emvaningen

*******************************************************

From time to time I have received unsolicited messages from members.

I have never solicited private messages, If it's that personal, the person who is asking feels they want to keep private they will do so.

The private messages I've received are personal but irrelevant to any discussion.

@Cmex Whether you’re applying for a family or marriage green card from inside the United States or from abroad, a large portion of the application will be dedicated to questions about your criminal history.
If you don’t have a criminal history, you don’t have to worry. But for many applicants, the criminal history section of the green card application is stressful, as a police record of any kind could be a reason for denial.
-@angelsaldivar90907

Hi

Is this regarding an American Green card? My question relates to the Philippines…

@danfinn The Special Resident Retiree's Visa (SRRV) is a special non-immigrant visa separate and distinct from the existing visa categories defined by the Philippine Immigration Act of 1940, as amended, and allied laws. (Sec. 1, Rule II of LOI 1470).
-@angelsaldivar90907

Are drink driving convictions considered grounds for denial of a visa?

@angelsaldivar90907

@angelsaldivar90907 LOL I obviously know that already since I have ab SRRV as zi have commented several times. This comment looks like it came from ChatGPT.

@danfinn The Special Resident Retiree's Visa (SRRV) is a special non-immigrant visa separate and distinct from the existing visa categories defined by the Philippine Immigration Act of 1940, as amended, and allied laws. (Sec. 1, Rule II of LOI 1470).
-@angelsaldivar90907
Are drink driving convictions considered grounds for denial of a visa?
-@Cmex

It appears that nobody here really knows. I will say that based on my internet search, moral turpitude in the Philippines does not seem to include dwi even if shown as a felony. The PRA advisor who responded to you said to pm him if you are going for SRRV but you are likely going for 13a from what i can gather; however, by his suggesting you contact him, that already suggests it is likely possible in his experience. So contact him or some well known visa agency like JRC or just apply for it.

@danfinn The Special Resident Retiree's Visa (SRRV) is a special non-immigrant visa separate and distinct from the existing visa categories defined by the Philippine Immigration Act of 1940, as amended, and allied laws. (Sec. 1, Rule II of LOI 1470).
-@angelsaldivar90907

Lol...I know, I have SRRV but so what? But when it comes to background check the same agency, BI, will apply its rules and approve or deny the request. PRA SRRV has nothing to do with it.

@danfinn
I think I have made some useful contributions here to date.

However, the question asked is rather personal, even though others may have a different opinion. Therefore I would prefer to leave it to the OP what he wants to be public and what he wants to share in a smaller circle.

But, point taken. Here you go : @Smex, if it is about SRRV, contact info at vaningenmanagement.com
-@emvaningen
*******************************************************
From time to time I have received unsolicited messages from members.

I have never solicited private messages, If it's that personal, the person who is asking feels they want to keep private they will do so.

The private messages I've received are personal but irrelevant to any discussion.
-@Enzyte Bob

Right, if someone opens up their private life on a public forum they have already volunteered to make it a public discussion not requiring the secrecy of a pm. But not completely personal since the person uses an anonymous id which is secret enough for him to admit to 2 drunken driving conditions in public. And that is reasonable enough for me; i might very well do the same if I had the same question. To me, I am annoyed when people solicit pm's and I have never solicited one either. His public response would have have been much more valuable to the community if he had simply stated "it is possible to get (srrv) approved even with drunken driving convictions". He didn't but by saying to pm him, I think he is tacitly admitting what he knows i.e. that it must be possible lol. And I stand by what I said about private messaging one's information because this forum would become useless if all we were was a coordination site for exchange of information by pm. And, btw, the PRA (for srrv) is not the agency that approves background checks; it is the BI who approves background checks for all visas.

To the OP, Cmex, if you or your partner are under 50 you can't apply for an SRRV. Personally at this stage I am not bothered with the SRRV as it's around the same cost as a visitor visor and if you have to lock up 10 or 20K US then it's cheaper to have a visitor visa.

Only my experience but 3 years here on a visitor/tourist visa is very generous and the fees acceptable. I got stuck here in March 2020 and at 35 months on a visitor visa we flew to Singapore for a weeks holiday and then returned to start the 36 month process again, painless and we had a holiday.

While we don't know your personal situation nor really what you are trying to achieve, asking here is a good start but google can also be your best friend.

Is your better half a Filipino National? Perhaps you?

Mentioned before that I have a drink driving offence from over 40 years ago and never stopped me from travelling the world but, Immigrant status may well be different, suppose it depends on the questions asked and how you answer.

Good luck and OMO.

Cheers, Steve.

@danfinn

the Philippines does not seem to include dwi even if shown as a felony.

As I understand it the term stateside is a ‘DUI’

Does ‘DWI’ mean ‘driving while influenced’ in which case you could cop a plea if your passenger is rat assed?

I agree with Bigpearl. What’s all the fuss about? Go in on a visitors visa. Remember the acronym when in the Philippines: KISS ( yeah all filipina’s are kissable), I mean ‘keep it simple stupid’ 🙄

Gotta wonder what problems I would have extending a tourist visa for 3 years or getting any kind of perm res visa.  I was convicted of a felony in 1970 for possession of an oz. of marijuana, no longer a felony in PA, but cannot get it reduced or removed.  Also got many misdemeanors including 3 DUI's possession of cocaine , and writing 15 bad checks.  All of this happened over 33 years ago, but I have already been informed that I am persona non grata in Australia and New Zealand. So far have used Balikbayan, no questions asked.

@bigpearl Thanks. My partner and I are both Australian. Happy to go down the tourist process…I understand from research the first 29 day extension form TVS-CGAF-VE-2016 does not ask details on criminal history. What about the next extension form? I cannot work this one out? Btw a DUI from years ago (my first was over 20) also has not been any issue however the second one does cause issues for some countries so this is why I was asking this forum as the internet info ins’t clear - I was trying to understand the immigration criteria for Philippines on this issue. I really appreciate your responses though as it prodded me to look at the visitor extension option.

Cheers

@Lotus Eater Thanks for this - yes I can enter on a visitor visa exempt and then extend for another 29 days - I am not sure what the next form is and whether you are requested for criminal history and how the Philippine takes that into account. Obviously it is quite a huge and expensive move so would like to understand the process before undertaking it - it is a big deal. Any assistance you can give would be appreciated (especially if you know the form for the extension after the initial 29 days…is it the same? TVS-CGAF-VE-2016?).

Thx

@danfinn Thanks for your response. I have researched the first extension if I come in visa exempt and it doesn’t ask for criminal history (TVS-CGAF-VE-2016). Do you know what the next for is? Or is it the same?

@danfinn Thanks for your response. I have researched the first extension if I come in visa exempt and it doesn’t ask for criminal history (TVS-CGAF-VE-2016). Do you know what the next for is? Or is it the same?
-@Cmex

Sorry. Since I am srrv without a dwi history i have no experience with 9A extensions but I would really be surprised if they required criminal history for any extension of simple tourist visas.

@danfinn Thanks for your response. I have researched the first extension if I come in visa exempt and it doesn’t ask for criminal history (TVS-CGAF-VE-2016). Do you know what the next for is? Or is it the same?
-@Cmex
Sorry. Since I am srrv without a dwi history i have no experience with 9A extensions but I would really be surprised if they required criminal history for any extension of simple tourist visas.
-@danfinn

DWI = Perhaps 'driving while inebriated' ?

Intoxicated

Cmex, every time you extend tour visitor visa there is a certification letter, a search for black listed and derogatory records, this is a search only in BIR's data base.

Never a check on O/S records in my 12 years coming here but I would think from memory that applying for an SRRV requires international police checks but doubt a drink driving charge would matter, others can chime in on that.

Cheers, Steve.

Thanks all - this has been super helpful. Hope you all have a great day!

Cmex, and add on from what I have only read, never researched it my self. If you apply for an SRRV and you have been here as a visitor for more than 6 months then you only need an NBI clearance (National Bureau of Investigation) here in the Philippines.

But if you are both under 50 Y/O then you won't qualify for an SRRV. They changed that a few years ago because some countries were abusing the system.

Cheers, Steve.

Cmex, every time you extend tour visitor visa there is a certification letter, a search for black listed and derogatory records, this is a search only in BIR's data base.
Never a check on O/S records in my 12 years coming here but I would think from memory that applying for an SRRV requires international police checks but doubt a drink driving charge would matter, others can chime in on that.

Cheers, Steve.
-@bigpearl

For SRRV my police report showed a driving offense of "felony greater than 15 mph over the speed limit reduced to misdemeanor 5 mph over the limit". This would not generally cause BI reject the application; the problem was that we needed the visa relatively soon as we were going on a trip to the states and it would certainly DELAY the application. Now, when the clerk at BI sees something like that, he/she cannot decide for him-herself if that record, especially with "felony" in the title, was a crime of moral turpitude. That requires them going to a superior to get approval and that can take a long time. The PRA marketer had a solution for that; i do not submit the police report with the initial application but submit a legally stamped undertaking (affidavit) that I will supply the US police report within 6 months. I got the SRRV and the marketer did submit the police report within 6 months and I never had a problem. The marketer was confident it would stay approved because speeding is not moral turpitude. If I didn't need the visa more quickly I could have just submitted the whole package without the undertaking. In the case of 2 dwi convictions, i did a quick search on Philippines crimes of moral turpitude and dwi is not on any list of examples. There is no real exact list of moral turpitude crimes, it is a judgement call and the lists I see from law offices only show typical examples. People may consider dwi "immoral" but that is not the standard. It must be "turpitude" which means a "vile" or "depraved" act.

@bigpearl thanks mate. Really appreciate your feedback. We will go down the tourist route to begin with and go from there.

@danfinn thanks mate. We will go down the tourist route first and then go from there. Appreciate your input!

@bigpearl if any criminal charges are over 10years old you can get those exsponged clean off your records. If you have recent class a b c or d felony charges you can seal your records so they can’t be seen without federal court order

@rlmcar55 that’s for Americans (unfortunately not the same for other nationalities).

@Cmex

that varies from state to state in the USA. I’m in NY and for the longest time, they only issue a certificate of relief for felonies, which is like a piece of paper stating you aren’t the same person as when convicted, but the fact that I have to even mention a felony makes it all prejudicial. My second DWI conviction, at 22yo was a felony conviction in June of 2000. I’m 22 years sober, have a bachelor degree, am an ICU nurse, and haven’t been in any criminal trouble since. I’m 45 going on 46. I can’t go to Canada without the craziness and the paperwork so I can spend my money in their country. Crazy. I have paid my dues but once a scumbag always a scumbag in some countries’ eyes apparently even if they couldn’t have recovered the way I did if placed in similar circumstances of living in a homeless shelter, getting sober, and working my way to where I am now.

…. I am trying to go to the Philippines with my gf in the summer and I tried to make phone calls to the consulate who told me to call immigration and none of the phone numbers work. I’m afraid of getting off a plane after 25 hours that costs me 2k and be told to get back on a plane for another 25 hours not to mention the lost money for reservations and the fact that I’m going there for my gf’s parents’ anniversary and her daughter’s wedding ceremony. I can’t believe I’m dealing with this crap 23 years later.

I’m only going for 2 weeks. I hope it works out. Any thoughts?

Welcome to expat.com, Dizzler.  Pennsylvania is much like NY.  I got busted for an oz of pot 50 years ago when it was a felony.  I could get it reduced to a misdemeanor if I had a clean record since, but my DUI a few years later prevents me from no longer being a convicted felon.  Been clean and sober for 33 years, my record does not prevent my entry into the Philippines.  Can also enter Balikbayan and stay for a year, as long as I enter with my wife. As long as you have a ticket out of the Philippines within 30 days and have a valid passport you should have no problem.

           Where are you coming from?  Where are you going to in the Philippines?  We go in October and return in April, flying 16 hours nonstop from JFK to Manila.  Good luck.m

@mugteck thank you for the insight. JFK is where we plan to leave from as we’re from upstate NY. She immigrated here 5 years ago and we met through work. I’ve been trying to call immigration to get an official ok but no one picks up the call and the consulate person didn’t know either. I only will be there for two weeks, flying into Manila in the summer. Hopefully someday I might get a visa to stay longer though I’m unsure if my past permanently destroys those chances

@mugteck do they ask at customs like they do in Canada about criminal record? I was honest in Canada at 3 years sober and they turned me back. I have two DWIs which is why the felony. I was 21 and 22 years old and my drinking was out of control. I’m grateful I never hurt anyone. I wish I could finally move on from my past however because I have paid my dues.

@Dizzler I've been though the Canadian visa process and it is thorough and expensive. It is nothing like that here. If you're only coming for 2 weeks they will stamp your passport and you're good to go. If your wife has an expired (or current) Philippine passport you can get a balikbayan stamp that is good for a year at no cost if you enter the country together. You would probably have to be on the black list to be turned away at the airport.

Welcome to the forum Dizzler, enjoy and research.

I have been coming here for 12 years, maybe 24 times arriving and leaving here, lived here on a tourist/visitor visa for 3 years, did my visa run to Singapore recently and no one ever hassled me, most times no one checks for declared goods and the forms I fill out on the plane go in the bin on my way out the door. I'm sure if you have warrants from another country that will show up in immigrations data base, old charges no unless pedophilia or previously black banned  in PH.

I think and only my opinion that you are over thinking. If as Mugteck says on a visitor visa easy peasy, if you intent to stay that's easy also but if you intend to marry or go the SRRV rout and worried about your previous history in your particular country then stay here for 6 months or more and then it's only a local NBI check.

Enjoy your holiday here and stop worrying.

Cheers, Steve.

I remember the good old days, growing up in Buffalo NY. The only questions I remember the Canadians asking is where were you born and where you are going.

As a teen I smuggled fire crackers and as an adult Cuban Cigars.