u.s. overstayed in ireland, what will happen at my embassy?

personguy

i have overstayed my visa in ireland by quite a bit, though i have left and come back a few times.

i'm trying diligently to get the mess sorted before next summer.

i have an aunt (my mother's sister, +30 years here, married irish) here, but not the parent-or-grandparent-born-here tie that i would need to secure a visa that way.

i have insurance through laya, so as to help my case of "not being a burden on the state".

i've been travelling to and from europe on a passport that was granted in 2004 that will be expired in summer of 2014, so i need to get it renewed.

however, i'm also trying to change my name to a name that i've been using since 2005 (something i always wanted to do since i was very young, which my family and friends have all supported, etc). so i'm looking to set up an appointment at the u.s. embassy in ballsbridge to get the name + passport renewal + advice for getting legal, etc information that i need.

(i'm also planning to move to berlin next year, as a student, fully legit, but would like to find out how i may or may not have besmirked my passport thusfar with various overstays).

my question is: if i'm going to the u.s. embassy, here in ireland, and essentially confessing that i've overstayed, in order to get advice on what steps to take to get all my gears in working legal shape, are they then obliged to simply say "gotcha!" and deport me? i know that i, as both a visitor or resident, am expected to adhere to the laws of whichever country i am visiting / residing in, so i assume that the people who work at the embassy are bound by the same law. but are they obliged to carry it out the same as gnib officers? or are they allowed to give me advice then send me on my way?

i have been moving and travelling around all my life, and ireland is the first place that has ever really felt like home...ever.

so i would greatly appreciate any advice or even thoughts or words of experience from someone who has visited their own embassy in another country after doing something frowned upon ... and whether or not those who work at the embassy are obliged to execute appropriate legal punishment right then and there.

i really want to get some kind of legal status sorted, and my aunt is equally if not more rearing to get my status above board, because she knows, as someone who also left the states and married here and will live and die here in dublin, how much it means to me to have found what feels like home on this side of the pond. thanks in advance for any help.

Victor

The US Embassy is there to represent American interests. They aren't there to, nor can they, apply the law of some other country*. They may however wash their hands of you as they won't want to be seen condoning people breaking the law of the host country. They will simply re-new the passport and off with you. As to whether they allow the name change is down to American laws.

In applying for the German student visa, your past abuses may cause issues with your application.


* They will however take note if there are any American or international arrest warrants against you.

keithclancy

Wait till you get your new passport, then the stamps won't be in it.

Guyanachronism

Are you in contact with the Irish authorities about your status?

If you can prove you're not a burden, you're sorting your status out and have genuine intentions etc. the Irish authorities (INIS) will give you lee way for that. Are you here on a student visa?

Maybe avoid travelling to the UK (including NI). The Gardai are stricter about visa breaches than the civil servants in INIS.

personguy

Victor wrote: »

* They will however take note if there are any American or international arrest warrants against you.

yeah, nothing like that thankfully

personguy

Guyanachronism wrote: »

Are you in contact with the Irish authorities about your status?

If you can prove you're not a burden, you're sorting your status out and have genuine intentions etc. the Irish authorities (INIS) will give you lee way for that. Are you here on a student visa?

Maybe avoid travelling to the UK (including NI). The Gardai are stricter about visa breaches than the civil servants in INIS.

i'm not in contact with them, no. the last time i came through customs (from oslo), i was directed to gnib, which i did, and they told me to come back when i had insurance and proof of funds, which i didn't at the time, but have since acquired. it seems like quite a gamble though, to go back and ask them "is this enough?" and have whether they say Yes or No determine my future here. i know i was stupid about the way i initially did (or didn't do) things, but i hadn't known that i'd be staying so long; hadn't planned on staying, in other words. now i'm trying to get things done the right way and just want to be sure i'm being smart about it.
that article about the chinese woman's trip to NI is quite shocking, considering she has an established life here and was doing everything honestly and above board.

i'm still waiting for confirmation about whether the u.s. embassy will shackle me as soon as i walk in, or if it's safe to get some answers from them.

i got a phone number from an office in washington last night that i'll use to try to get some more answers.

personguy

keithclancy wrote: »

Wait till you get your new passport, then the stamps won't be in it.

it's all on the computer now, as far as i know. last time i came through the boarder patrol scanned my passport then just went through my travel history on the monitor and hardly looked at any of the other pages.

if only it were as simple / old fashioned as that.

but i'd still like to get everything legit and above board.

keithclancy

personguy wrote: »

it's all on the computer now, as far as i know. last time i came through the boarder patrol scanned my passport then just went through my travel history on the monitor and hardly looked at any of the other pages.

if only it were as simple / old fashioned as that.

but i'd still like to get everything legit and above board.

Continental Europe anyway is on stamps, e.g. Germany expects to see a Dutch entry stamp when you connect in Schiphol for example.

The only scanning they do is sticking it under a UV light to check security features.

Victor

keithclancy wrote: »

Continental Europe anyway is on stamps, e.g. Germany expects to see a Dutch entry stamp when you connect in Schiphol for example.

The only scanning they do is sticking it under a UV light to check security features.

Remember they already have your passport number from when you buy your ticket.

personguy

keithclancy wrote: »

Continental Europe anyway is on stamps, e.g. Germany expects to see a Dutch entry stamp when you connect in Schiphol for example.

The only scanning they do is sticking it under a UV light to check security features.

i've travelled to and from poland twice, to germany twice, to italy three times, and into dublin about five times, and each place, every time (except when i landed in new york, for some reason), they scanned the main barcode at the bottom (sometimes having to do it in several goes and sometimes heaving impatiently when they had to manually type in the numbers, because the passport is quite worn down), until the info they needed came up on their computer screen.

maybe the difference in new york would be the same for those with continental passports over here in europe. maybe they don't scan the local ones, only the non-EU etc. ones.

at any rate: any other experiences with embassy-related visits? i suppose it wouldn't really be an issue for most already here in the euro zone, so i guess i was looking more for help from fellow expats or aussies and the like who would have dealt with time limits on visas over here.

thanks again for all the input.

wishwashwoo

Well the way I would put it . Would be go to the embassy if they give you any guff tell them about all the over staying Irish in the states I really think they won't argue with you then ... Bingo!!!!!

Jim2007

keithclancy wrote: »

Continental Europe anyway is on stamps, e.g. Germany expects to see a Dutch entry stamp when you connect in Schiphol for example.

The only scanning they do is sticking it under a UV light to check security features.

It most certainly is not! It has been on the Schengen system for sometime now. And details of the entry and exit of every third country citizen is available to all member states. Furthermore although Ireland and the UK are not part of Schengen they do participate in the sharing of information about over stays etc.

So OP your failure to return to the GNIB and your over stay may be come issues for the Germans when you apply for a student visa if they run you through the system.

keithclancy

Jim2007 wrote: »

It most certainly is not! It has been on the Schengen system for sometime now. And details of the entry and exit of every third country citizen is available to all member states. Furthermore although Ireland and the UK are not part of Schengen they do participate in the sharing of information about over stays etc.

So OP your failure to return to the GNIB and your over stay may be come issues for the Germans when you apply for a student visa if they run you through the system.

It certainly happens, we have quite a few Indian Colleagues on Schengen Visas that had the issue more than once transiting through Schiphol.

A communication went out to everyone to make sure they get a stamp in their passport when transiting Schiphol as they must do this in the first point of entry into the Schengen zone.

Also the e-ticket is not accessible after the fact (confirmed by the Airline)