My moral turpitude?

[luzula]

I'm filling in a form that's required to enter the United States. These are the kinds of questions they ask (and presumably, it's stuff they can use to deny you entry).

Do you have a communicable disease; physical or mental disorder; or are you a drug abuser or addict?

Have you ever been arrested or convicted for an offense or crime involving moral turpitude?

I had to look that up. Apparently turpitude = inherent baseness. Hmmmm.

Are you seeking entry to engage in criminal or immoral activities?

If I'm trying to get into the US to commit crimes, do you really think I'm going to tell you so? Also, immoral activities--how am I supposed to know what you consider immoral? Maybe I'm going to write explicit pornography while I'm there. What do you think of that, Department of Homeland Security?

I wonder if anyone ever answers yes to this question.

Comments

[jesse_the_k]

The last two questions are also asked in the application for a residency permit "Green Card." When I took a class in tutoring English-language learners about the residency & citizenship paperwork, I asked your exact question.

Here was the exact reply:

The bureacracy doesn't expect to rat yourself out. However, the citizenship application asks if you've ever "knowingly mislead the government." So if you lied in this form to get the VISA, and then don't tell the truth about it when applying for a green card or citizenship, you're doubly screwed.

[luzula]

Hmmm. Is that so they will have an excuse to throw you out if they find out that you have in fact been convicted for crimes before, but lied about it?

Yeah, I still find it a bit strange.

[jesse_the_k]

Oh, it's strange alright.

Another question on the citizenship application is straight out of Kafka:

"D15 Have you ever committed a crime or offense for which you've not been arrested?"

So if you have committed a felony, they can prevent you from applying. If you lie about committing a felony, that is in itself a felony, for which they can deport you.