Prison record & travel to USA

As others have said, he will not get an ESTA. He needs to apply for a B12 visa online and then attend an interview at the US Embassy. Given the conviction was so long ago, it's possible he'll get it. The wait for an interview is about 3 months in the UK at the moment though. If he lies on his ESTA and he is caught then he'll be denied entry at the airport. The US is very thorough and strict, they DO check. He won't be covered for the flight back so will have to pay that (airlines are liable to bring someone back if they don't check someone meets visa requirements, but if he lies that is not the case.) He will be blacklisted from the US for many years at least. It will also affect visas for other countries. He will likely be rejected for Canadian and Australian visas automatically. His status for additional countries will depend on how seriously the US classifies the rejection.

Same process unfortunately - that’s why we didn’t bother!

Let's hope they are not filming a new series of Border Security, the one they show on Sky as him trying to get in will be absolute catnip to them.

I have a particularly horrible family member who has multiple convictions for drugs and violence, he's spent years in prison. He goes to America there or four times a year, just doesn't declare it. I'm guessing they're not that stringent.

MIL tried that approach on the question about having been to Cuba since January 2021 (she had). They knew she was lying and denied the ESTA. Had to pay out the extra money for a VISA along with the expense of going to the London embassy for an interview. She only just got it in time.

Is a renewal the same process, or is it easier because the info has been checked in detail 1st time around?

I have direct experience of this - my DH has a very minor drugs possession conviction from the 1980’s that resulted in a small fine (no prison time). He couldn’t get an ESTA so had to apply for a visa and have an interview at the US embassy. The normal tourist visa was refused & they sent his paperwork off to Washington for consideration and was eventually granted a special category tourist visa for 5 years. It took 9+ months and about £800 in the end to sort it out. We haven’t bothered to renew it since it expired and will just not bother with visiting the US again - plenty of other places to go on holiday!

Very likely his ETSA will be denied and he will
need a visa which can take a lot longer.

Good to know as I know internally spent convictions are considered invisible.

Kinda sad though that say being a twat at say 11 years old because of poor home life means you cannot go to the USA without a year wait and interview.

@MelvinThePenguin If nothing ever came of it (ie no crime), he should apply for it to be deleted from the police national database. It’s fairly straightforward and means he’ll be able to get an ESTA in the future as there’s no record of the arrest. https://www.acro.police.uk/s/acro-services/record-deletion

No convictions are considered spent for the purposes of getting either an ESTA or Visa to the USA and many other counties. You still need to declare them regardless of the crime or how long ago it was.

Yes

2 years in prison for drugs but not dealing? What was it for? Smuggling?

Depending on his age when he was convicted would it not possibly be considered spent?

Do spent convictions still need to be declared.

Without Getting into the rights and wrongs and opinions of people who are convinced for crimes when they’re younger, it is such a shame that no one realises how much of an impact something you did in your teens will have on your life.

He will need to apply for a Visa and definitely not an ESTA, it’s not worth lying.

Before even thinking about brazening it out I would want to know the consequences of getting caught. (I know someone who thought they would outstay their visa and just leave when they got found out. Turns out they don't just let you live free, or even put you on the next plane. Spent a very unpleasant time in a US jail until loaded, manacled, onto a flight.)

How is he going? Have they planned and paid for the trip?

And 'years' for something minor? That doesn't sound right.

He needs to apply for a visa- not an esta. Get him to apply now as the wait time to even get an appointment is very long. Good luck!

That would be a much worse idea. It could affect future attempts to enter the US or other countries if caught against electronic records. OP, please don't advise your brother to lie.

Ahh ok, yes good point! I would guess a conviction may be something you would have to look at on any policy

Really?? Yes they can request the information from interpol but why would you lie and risk being further imprisoned in the US while you await deportation 🙄

if it’s prince harry you are referring to, he never got a conviction and has sufficient money to get a green card…

He needs to contact the US embassy and apply for a Visa. They might give him one but probably won't. Either way it's better to know before travel and not get turned back after flying out there and queueing at immigration.