bigcurl254

Hi there, in my younger and much dumber days I was arrested for possession of Marijuana and Drug Paraphernalia. I have been sober and on the straight and narrow for about 9 years now. I recently had the charges expunged from my record and wish to visit Japan. Everything I have read says that the will not allow people with drug charges into the country no matter what. Theoretically if I have the charges expunged they should be unable to see the arrest. I am wondering if anyone else has been to Japan and successfully entered that has a drug charge that they also had expunged. Just to give me a little piece of mind before I chuck a couple of thousand down on flights. On a side note. I also have about 10 more misdemeanor convictions, all of them minor and alcohol related. From what I read they should not effect my entry but who knows. Any response would be greatly appreciated.

mkjr

There is a recent thread about this. Just search. Some good views. Some say be honest some say honestly is not the best policy.

bigcurl254

I read them, I had not seen where someone has actually been there that actually had been convicted and then expunged.

evergrn

I'm not sure if you were convicted in the case of your pot/drug deal. If you were arrested and charged but not convicted, then at least you don't have to answer "yes" to the question on the landing form where they ask you if you've ever been found guilty of a crime anywhere. Although I'm not an expert or have any inside info, my guess is that answering "no" to all the questions on the landing form is a good bet that your entry is safe.

But the above expunged arrest is a moot point in this regard, because of your 10 other convictions. You are going to have to answer "yes" just for that. And then that will be your red flag right there. I don't know what happens at TYO when you answer "yes" to the past conviction question. Is it an automatic secondary screening? What's the chance you're denied entry? I don't know.

Because your past dictates that you have to answer "yes" to that question which makes your entry shaky, I would recommend you contact Japanese consulate for their advice.

bigcurl254

I did reach out and they sent me the policies. You are basically OK for being arrested as long as none of your convictions involved you getting a sentence of 1 year or more. There is no indication on the quantity of arrests. The one thing that is highlighted is you will be denied entry if any of the arrests were drug related in any way. Since the charge has been expunged, I don't think they will be able to see that. So that way I could check yes in the box and not lie about drugs because they can't see them..... unless they can. Which is why I am trying to see if anyone has ever done it.

evergrn

Were you just charged/arrested of the marijuana thing, or also convicted? You're not making it clear. If you were not convicted of the pot thing, and you're saying none of your convictions were drug-related or carried >1yr sentence, then you should be fine based on your info. I'll continue below, however, on assumption that you were convicted and that the conviction was expunged and sealed.

Whether/not Jpn can see expunged conviction from another country... I don't think anyone can answer that. A quick google search suggests that expunged record can still show up in some cases, that some US states have varying laws pertaining to this (such as the right to not disclose any convictions that have been expunged), etc. However, we are talking about Jpn here.

If you're going to be truthful with Jpn immigration, you're going to check "yes" to that landing card question, they'll ask you what the convictions were for, and you're going to divulge everything (including your marijuana conviction, not just the other stuff). I know you are looking for someone to chime in here and say, "I didn't disclose a drug offense and it was fine." But I really don't think you're going to get that type of feedback from anyone here. So ultimately it's either you take a chance and keep a lid on it (which I can't recommend), or you consult an attorney who's knowledgeable on this matter, or you disclose everything to Jpn consulate and see what they say (which of course puts you at risk for forever ending up on their black list).

bigcurl254

Oh, ok, sorry. Yes I was convicted. I wasn't trying to get anyone to tell me it'll all be good if I lie. I was trying to see if anyone with an expunged drug charge has actually made it in and what there story was.

pharmawalk

If it was expunged, that means it you shouldn't have to disclose it IMHO.

Quinlanty

How would Japan know about your drug conviction?

deadinabsentia

I know of friends who travel to Japan and answer no on the form, despite drug/alcohol arrests.
They don't actually know unless they send to you to secondary.. which.. why would they?

Say no, smile and enter Japan.

Easy as that.

bigcurl254

Japan is connected to Interpol, which is connected to the FBI database. The same way that Canada is. Run it right when they fingerprint you, like they do everyone who enters.

I was actually not allowed entry in Canada once because of my record. Though there are only misdemeanors on it. They didn't ask me any questions. Just pulled me out of line and told me I wasn't allowed entry.

bigcurl254

That is very much true in the United States. However, you are unable to remove your arrest from the FBI database so if a potential employer looks it up, it won't be on there but if the government does it still remains.

Often1

First, the 10 other convictions whether misdemeanors or not, will likely be a serious problem. The fact that a particular crime is not a problem does not mean than 10 of them also are not, particularly in a very orderly society.

Second, expungement may be helpful in a US employment context, but it really doesn't mean anything even in the context of Global Entry or watch lists for US CBP purposes. It certainly means absolutely nothing overseas.

Rather than winding up caught in a lie and having a very unpleasant experience, before you drop a couple of thousand on a ticket, spend a couple of hundred consulting a lawyer who deals with Japanese immigration issues? Be honest with the lawyer. Don't bother characterizing crimes as "minor".

kb9522

Since it was expunged, it no longer exists.

Disclaimer: Not an attorney, recommend you ask one

bigcurl254

The answer I received from the consulate was that as long as I was never sentanced to over a year for a crime, then I am fine. Unless of course one of the charges is a drug charge. It's looking like no one on flyertalk has ever had a drug charge expunged and then got entry into Japan so I don't think it is looking good for me.