Determination of Inadmissibility Reversed, Client to be Admitted without a Waiver

I was just able to convince U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) that my client, an undergraduate student and citizen of Canada, is not inadmissible to the United States, and does not need a waiver to be readmitted as a student.  

The basis for the initial determination of inadmissibility was that he was charged with a theft offense in the State of Pennsylvania.  Most convictions for theft offenses constitute a crime involving moral turpitude that render an individual inadmissible.  That being said, I convinced CBP that my client was not convicted of any offense, theft or otherwise, that would preclude his readmission as an F-1 Student. 

In doing this I provided proof that in lieu of a conviction my client was admitted into Pennsylvania’s Accelerated Rehabilitation Program (ARD).  The ARD rehabilitation program allows prosecutors to avert a trial and defendants to ultimately earn a dismissal of criminal charges upon the satisfactorily completion a probationary program.  In support of my argument I provided case law from the Board of Immigration Appeals that set forth that participation in the ARD program is not a conviction for immigration purposes as it does not mirror the definition of conviction as set forth in 8 U.S.C. § 1101(a)(48). 

CBP conferred with the lawyers in Office of Chief Counsel who agreed with my interpretation of the law, and my client is subsequently determined to be eligible for admission to the United States to resume his studies without the need for a waiver.  I received this determination in less than 10 days.