squeakr

Are you asking if you will have trouble entering Canada for your interview? Or if there something else you should do? I would have as much paperwork as you can on showing that you completed your probation over two years ago.

skyisthelimt

Hello there I am relieved to come across this thread! I to would like to hear some real stories, the majority of what I have come across is from Lawyers that want your money and tell horror stories to get it!

I am a prior flight attendant with 2 separate airlines, and never had the issue come up. unfortunetely i have 2 DUI'S however one is from over 17 years ago and the last one i was convicted 8 years ago. everything is complete and paid, and probation was over 2 years ago!

I have an interview with an airline in a week and a half with a flight attendant referral and recommendation letter. I disclosed the DUI in the application online, passed through phone and video interview and got invited to fly and do a final interview with a possible hire the day of. The restrictions to be followed are in regards to entry and exit through Canada. My flight attendant friend and I have been desperately searching for answering and ways to get correct info as not to flag myself for investigating. I want to have all the steps covered and all things I need to do to prepare just in case I get asked or it becomes a make of break if chosen to be an employee!! I do NOT want to pay $200 if I dont have

skyisthelimt

my question mostly refers to the possibility of not being hired if I am unable to get in and out of Canada as a flight attendant. My interview is in Seattle, but the airline makes it very clear that we need to make sure we are able to transfer through canada without issues.

So I am wondering, since I have 2 dui's but one is 17 years ago and the other one is 8 years, does the law look back that far to 17 years, or just 10 years? Would they consider it 2 offenses?

And what are the odds of me being approved to travel to and from often as a flight attendant? either with rehabilitation or the TRP? My final in person interview is the 22nd of this month, do I have time to apply and bring proof with me in case the dui comes up at the interview?

Sorry for not being able to explain it well. I have been unable to find answers on airline employee sites/forums where it pertains to the specific airline stipulations

TWA884

I doubt that airline employees are treated differently in this respect than other people seeking to enter Canada.

This Canadian government publication explains how to overcome criminal inadmissibility:

mdkowals

I posted this on the Canada forum. I'll repost as text here as it seems to be the more lively thread....


So I've had to follow a rabbit trail many others have had to lately, and figure out admissibility to Canada with a DWI arrest in my past. Finding the search to be quite frustrating (albeit not undeserved, because in the end I did put myself in this situation), I thought I'd compile what valid, or at least credible, information I could in this post.


Government References:
1) Port of Entry Examination Procedure
http://www.cic.gc.ca/english/resourc.../enf04-eng.pdf
2) Procedure for Evaluating Admissibility
http://www.cic.gc.ca/english/resourc.../enf02-eng.pdf
3) Canadian Border Services Website
http://www.cbsa-asfc.gc.ca/menu-eng.html
4) Admissibility Criteria
http://www.cic.gc.ca/english/informa...lity/index.asp


Additional information is from attorney websites. One key piece of information - that the FBI NCIC database is not searched at primary inspection, but is searched at secondary inspection, comes from multiple posters who have claimed to be CBSA officers on both FT and Reddit. I could not find an official source for that, but did verify the posters weren't "trolls" via their other posts and the info in the above reference materials does not point to searching criminal databases at primary inspection.


The easy basics:
(info from Ref 4). A conviction of DWI (or if there's reason to believe you committed such an act) will leave you inadmissible to Canada. You can be deemed rehabilitated at the conclusion of 10 years after your sentence is completed or can apply for rehabilitation after 5 years. Without rehabilitation, a Temporary Residence Permit can be applied for, but your need to enter Canada must outweigh the risks.


One layer deeper:
(info from Ref 2, with additional interpretation from some attorney websites). If your court proceedings are over, and the final disposition is "not guilty", or "dismissed", or pretty much anything other than "conviction" you are likely admissible to Canada. For the US, many states have a pre-trial diversion program that would land you in these categories. Expunged records from the US should be honored at the border.


For Secondary examinations at the border, Canadian officers have access to the FBI NCIC database, and that database may not be updated with the final disposition of the case. For this reason, you should have all court documents at the border. An arrest without a documented final disposition will leave you inadmissible. This can either be due to the trial not having occurred yet (in this case you're still inadmissible due to having reasonably "committed an act"), or due to your local court information of "not guilty" not making it back up the FBI chain. Either way, as a foreign national the burden of proof is on you.


Deeper Yet
(Info from Ref 1, Ref 3). At primary inspection, your criminal history should not be asked about (Ref 1 pg. 29-33). The reject rate of people at the border seems to be < 0.5% of all travelers.

GotogoBob

I paid a 200$ for a temporary work permit for DUI 30 years old last year. I was only spending the night at the airport hotel before flight the next day. This was in Vancouver.I was coming back from Bangkok heading to Atlanta.

LA to PDX

I see that one can apply for the TRP by applying to the consulate in Los Angeles, skipping the relative uncertainty of applying at the port of entry.

For the life of me, I can not navigate the Canadian government website, specifically the Los Angeles consulate website, in order to find the actual application, how to request one, or anything related to the application itself. All I can find is the fact that one exists and you can do it at the consulate before traveling. Does anyone know how to actually receive the TRP application and accompanying instructions/requirements? Appreciated!

Edit: this seems like the page where it should be, but the closest I see is a temporary residence VISA, not permit.
http://www.cic.gc.ca/english/informa...ions/index.asp

ken_ll

LA to PDX. Try this link http://www.cic.gc.ca/english/informa...s/5312ETOC.asp the form appears to be IMM1444. This link references Rehabilitation for past Criminal Activity, it has probably been referred to earlier but DUI is equivalent to impaired driving in Canada which falls under the Criminal Code, hence criminal activity. Good luck.

MrEcks

Hello, again - glad to see my thread took on a life of it's own!

Since last posting in 2013, we addressed my situation by holding our team meetings in the U.S. This year we are facing limits on the number of travelers allowed, which brings Vancouver back into play, due to the number of folks already there. I'm sorry to see that border crossing with a DUI has not been addressed, as the Canadian Tourism Industry had hoped, but progress has been made in terms of identifying Forms IMM 1444 and IMM 5507 as places to start for a TRP. Ihave two questions related to TRP:

1) I've heard that turn-around times could take up to six months, but that may have been due to a strike in the Foreign Service. Posters on another forum reported response times of six to ten days. Does anyone have any recent examples of TRP turn-around time?
2) Since airfare is non-refundable, will a TRP application be considered if it contains dates, hotel, etc., with the explanation that airfare can only be booked once the permit has been approved?

iamflyer

Nothing to add but you may find these two threads in the Canada forum helpful:
DWI Entry to Canada - Consolidated Info
Inadmissibility to Canada due to old DUI's

MrEcks

Thanks for the links. The "old DUI" thread was almost comical. I wonder what OP decided to do - it would have been interesting to get closure.

The most frustrating part of this is that no one reports back the results of their adventure. I would think that quite a few people have applied for TRP prior to a business trip, but all we hear are rumors of long wait times - never "I applied and this is exactly what happened." Piecing together fragments of information from other posts, and looking closely at IMM 1444, I can see where a lack of "attention to detail" could derail what should be a relatively straight-forward application.

Another observation is the seeming misconception that Canada takes DUI much more "seriously." From my reading of Canadian Statutes, the penalties are typically harsher in the U.S. - the only difference being that it falls under the Canadian version of "felony" offense. In the U.S. (depending on State) DUI's fall on both sides - a first DUI with no damage or injury is a misdemeanor, while driving drunk without an Interlock (breath-a-lyzer) on a restricted license is a felony.

mdkowals

I updated on the Canada forum with my result. In short, a free 30 minute consultation with a Canadian immigration attorney who confirmed that since I was not on the books as a "conviction" (due to successful completion of pre-trial diversion) I should be technically admissible - but bring my paperwork just in case. Made it into Canada without being sent to Secondary.

MrEcks

Thanks for the update. I am moving my future content to that thread, as Canada Forum seems a better location.

TWA884

Since this is a Canada specific issue, please continue discussing this topic in the Canada forum where there are several thread on this subject.

TWA884
Travel Safety/Security co-moderator