"I HAVE been a legal resident for 15 years and wish to apply for U.S. citizenship. I am an Irish citizen. I have one DWI conviction in 1995 and two arrests for domestic violence in 2001, both alcohol related. In both of those cases the charges were dropped. Will these issues adversely affect my application for citizenship?"

FIRST and foremost, as you probably already know, you must consult with an immigration attorney before you proceed with an application for U.S. citizenship, given the brushes with the law you described above.

Will they affect your application? They may, or they may not, which is why you need expert legal advice.

People applying for naturalization have to meet many requirements - permanent residency in the U.S., the filing of the appropriate income tax returns and adherence to U.S. law chief among them.

Having said that, would a single DWI conviction in 1995 torpedo your application? The answer is likely no, as it happened 12 years ago.

Citizenship candidates must prove what's known as good moral character for the five year period preceding the filing of the application (or three years if the application is based on marriage to a U.S. citizen).

Much of what constitutes good moral character is obvious - i.e., murderers, drug dealers, thieves abusers and tax cheats would fail the requirement even if the crimes were committed more than five years ago.

Let's bring into your equation the domestic violence cases, with the involvement of alcohol. You don't say when they occurred, but they'd still be on your record even though you were cleared of the charges.

If they happened during the past five years, you would likely be advised not to proceed with citizenship at this time, perhaps never, depending on the advice your lawyer gives you. The alcohol issue would also be troubling, given the previous DWI conviction.

It goes without saying that permanent residents need to stay on the right side of the law, especially in this post-September 11 world that we live in. We've all read stories where families have been split apart because of some minor, once off indiscretion in the past coming back to haunt. Don't let it happen to you.

Thanks for Reading!

WE'RE celebrating the 20 year anniversary of the Irish Voice this week as you've noticed, and as I wrote in my introductory note in the special supplement marking that milestone, this column has meant a heckuva lot to me since I started writing it 17 years ago.

At that time I knew little about immigration - some may say that's still the case - but I've learned a lot since then, and I hope that you have too.

I hope that this space has offered help and guidance to those who have needed it the most, or at least a starting point as to where to go for further assistance. I've loved learning about immigration issues, and I'd like to thank all of those who have called, sent letters and emails seeking assistance.

I look forward to a day very, very soon where the primary questions to this space will concern a new visa program which will finally allow the present day undocumented Irish to take their legal place in our country. And, eventually, questions from those who become legalized on how they can become U.S. citizens.