Immigration Corner|Drug felony convictions bar Green Card applications

Hello, Mrs Walker-Huntington:

I was living in America in the ‘90s. My sister gave a drug lady my number, and I got caught up in a conspiracy. I went to prison for two years and got deported 21 years now. My son wants to file for me sometime this year. He is an American citizen. Do I have anything to be concerned about?

Kind regards,

AM

Dear AM:

Yes, you have a lot to be concerned about.

Although I am not sure what your immigration status was when you were convicted for drugs, those are serious charges that never come off your immigration record. It is clear that you were either undocumented or a Green Card holder when you were deported.

Drug charges are considered aggravated felonies, and there is no waiver for you to return to America as a permanent resident/Green Card holder – no matter who is filing for you to migrate. In this case, it is your US citizen son who wants to file for you. You will make it to the interview for the Green Card at the Embassy in Jamaica, but you will be denied. There is no immigrant waiver for drug conviction unless it is possession of under 30 grams of marijuana.

As you did not give the specifics of your charges, I have to assume that it was a felony as you were involved in a conspiracy and you were sentenced to more than a year in prison. When you were deported, your documents should have also indicated how long you were barred from the United States and under what conditions you were deported. You could have been deported as an aggravated felon and or a violator of the controlled substance laws of the United States. You should have also been advised for how long you were banned – five, 10, 20 years, or permanently. Even if you were banned for five years, and you applied to migrate after those five years, it does not mean that you would be able to migrate because of the underlying reason for the deportation.

Theoretically, you could apply for a non-immigrant waiver to visit the United States and face the uncertainty of applying for a non-immigrant visa. You would need to show that you are not a danger to the United States and that you have sufficient ties to Jamaica that you would return after your visit. Keep in mind that no one is entitled to a non-immigrant visa. It is discretionary, and the consular officer viewing your past conviction and the totality of your situation may or may not grant you the privilege of a non-immigrant visa.

Dahlia A. Walker-Huntington, Esq. is a Jamaican-American attorney who practices Immigration law in the United States; and Family, Criminal & International law in Florida. She is a Mediator and Former Special Magistrate & Hearing Officer in Broward County, Florida. info@walkerhuntington.com