Entering the US...after having left......
 

Hi all, I'm new here and I'm not sure if you can help but it's worth a shot. When I was 6 years old we moved to the US and I grew up there. However, I never became a citizen. It was never an issue as, I guess, all my paperwork was in order. When I was 20 I made a stupid mistake of driving drunk. I was arrested for DUI. Soon after I had a family emergency back home and left...not realizing my DUI probation was not yet complete. Several years have passed since then and I've recently found out that there is a bench warrant for my arrest and I'm planning a trip back to the States.

This is just a short vacation with the wife.

Do you know if I'll have any issues with Customs? There is no visa requirement as I will be staying less than a month but I would hate to be detained at my point of entry. Any help is greatly appreciated.

When you say "no visa required", is it because of your green card, or because you are from a visa waiver country?

Visa waiver program. I never acquired a green card.

Welcome to FT. :) I would suggest you make contact with an American lawyer and pay for some professional legal advice regarding your status in advance of any visit.

So you lived in the U.S. from 6 to 20, and you never acquired a green card? Something does not dovetail here. Are you SURE you are not in an overstay situation? That might be a bigger problem than a bench warrant.

You'll likely have a hard time getting electronic authorization.

My understanding of my situation is that I entered with a student visa...the rest I really don't know. The thing is that nothing ever came up when I was arrested or when I left the country. So I don't know what my situation is really like.

I've already gotten the ESTA authorization.

Student visa - as in F2, student dependent, I presume? However, if you are not in an overstay situation, then you are probably OK on this front.

Things are a lot less clear with a bench warrant. Do they ask about those things when you apply for travel authorization? If they did, and you answered honestly, you might well be OK with the feds as well. Local authorities - less clear, but as long as you stay out of their jurisdiction, what are they going to do?

...however, as someone pointed out above - consult a lawyer. I am not one. :)

Thanks for the help.

Is it worth the risk? You never know if they'll see something when they run your passport.. I am not a lawyer, but some have suggested entering Canada, and then flying to the US from Canada..

He wrote that he never became a citizen. He did not write that he was not a Lawful Permanent Resident (LPR).

I dint not know or have ever heard a 6 year old getting a student visa!

Oh yes, he did: "I never acquired a green card."

And, no need to lecture me on what LPR is. I was one for 5 years.

Student dependent, F2? Possibly going to F1 around college age. Not sure how that works in real world.

Probably the dependent of an adult who held a student visa.

Dont know that either. I am a green card holder But I have never heard about a student visa for a child.

He could have gotten something through his parents though.Like if they had student vias and he was their under/on their paper work.