Canadian citizen coming to USA

[kindafamous 0]

Dear friends on VisaJourney:

I am new to this site, and to the situation I now find myself in. I have met and fallen for a Canadian woman. She feels the same way too. She has visited me for 4 days in early December, and now we have decided we want to spend more time together and see if we might want to be together forever! We have not discussed marriage or Visas, or Green Cards...none of the above. We have only decided that she will visit again in late January for longer than 4 days...perhaps several months. We awant to do everything by the letter of the laws of both our countries, and know very little about what they are!

Can she stay with me for up to 6 months before we have to make any serious decisions? She is NOT planning to look for work here or live here without permission of her and my countries. Can she be my guest for this length of time? Can she be truthful about this when she crosses the border and gets on a plane next time? She will NOT have a round trip ticket this time...

Please enlighten me as to the best approach to this whole confusing matter. I am sure many thousands of people / couples have been in this situation, and solved it by the law. We may be soul mates and want to find out if what we feel is so real that we want to take it to the nexxt level. In the meantime, we want to maake sure she can visit for an extended time first.

Please help! Romantic and confused in South Florida

TH

[Krikit 1,163]

Hi kindafamous. Here is a post that will help you out: Link

I'm going to move your thread from the Moving Here forum to the Canada forum as the rules are somewhat different for visiting Canadians.

Welcome to VJ.

[antda 13]

Hi Kindafamous,

Welcome to VJ! I hope you will find VJ to be helpful and informative too!

In answer to your question:

Yes, as a Canadian, your girlfriend is allowed to visit for up to 6 months, without a visa, as allowable by law.

However, it is up to the discretion of the border guard, as to whether or not she can stay for up to those 6 months. For example, border guards have been known to "cut visits short", for any number of reasons. If this is the case, that the visit has to be "cut short", then the Canadian is issued an "I-94 arrival-departure card", that states exactly how long one can visit, and they cannot go past this date for the visit...So be prepared accordingly, that the visit can be as long as 6 months, or a lot shorter than that, depending on the border guard's discretion....

And yes being truthful helps in all cases, regardless! Make sure too, that your girlfriend has "enough ties to go back Canada after the visit" too. For example, round trip tickets, itineries/travel plans, lease/rental agreement, employment letter, bills, etc., to prove that "this is just a visit only", and that there is no purpose of commiting fraud and/or illegally stay in the USA. The more proof that you show, the better chances that you have of getting longer visits approved.

Hope this helps. In the meantime, enjoy the visits with your girlfriend, and may you find out what you want for your relationship too.

And if you want to explore further immigration options, feel free to ask here on vj about that too.

Good luck with the rest of your journeys too.

Ant

Dear friends on VisaJourney:

I am new to this site, and to the situation I now find myself in. I have met and fallen for a Canadian woman. She feels the same way too. She has visited me for 4 days in early December, and now we have decided we want to spend more time together and see if we might want to be together forever! We have not discussed marriage or Visas, or Green Cards...none of the above. We have only decided that she will visit again in late January for longer than 4 days...perhaps several months. We awant to do everything by the letter of the laws of both our countries, and know very little about what they are!

Can she stay with me for up to 6 months before we have to make any serious decisions? She is NOT planning to look for work here or live here without permission of her and my countries. Can she be my guest for this length of time? Can she be truthful about this when she crosses the border and gets on a plane next time? She will NOT have a round trip ticket this time...

Please enlighten me as to the best approach to this whole confusing matter. I am sure many thousands of people / couples have been in this situation, and solved it by the law. We may be soul mates and want to find out if what we feel is so real that we want to take it to the nexxt level. In the meantime, we want to maake sure she can visit for an extended time first.

Please help! Romantic and confused in South Florida

TH

Edited December 31, 2009 by Ant+D+BabyA

[Hugglebuggles 60]

Like Ant said, your girlfriend may be asked to prove significant ties to Canada. A key indication of ones intent to return to their home country is a return ticket. Be aware that having your girlfriend travel with a one way ticket may serve as a big red flag if discovered at the border. She may not be asked to provide her travel itinerary, but she may, and having a one way ticket may cause her some problems. I would strongly advise you against doing this. She can always change her ticket later if she is unhappy with her departure date. May I ask what border crossing she will be using? I was a frequent crosser at the Peace Bridge and was asked to produce my travel itinerary more times than not.

Good luck, I hope everything works out for you!

[Misty1979 0]

I'll also throw in here that chances of her being allowed to stay for the full six months are pretty slim, in my opinion. I'm only saying this because I too had the intention of flying to the US for the full 6 months, staying then deciding whether or not to marry after we'd gotten to know each other...luckily I called ahead to the border I was going to cross through and the Customs and Border Patrol officer made it very clear to me over the phone that even with a round trip ticket, it would be VERY unlikely that I would be allowed to stay that long.

Again, that's just my opinion, and I'm sure there have been a few others even in these forums that have gone and stayed for 6 months at a time (though alot of those changed their minds and extended their stay after they arrived, which is different.) It's not a fact that she won't be authorized to stay for this long, just my personal opinion. I would think 2-3 months would be a more likely bet.

Congratulations on possibly finding your soul mate, and best of luck to you!!

Edited January 1, 2010 by Misty1979

[Rhiannercakes 14]

I went to the US for 3 months last year, and I was let in with just a return ticket and 1000 dollars in my bank account.

If I had known better though, I would have brought letters from my employer and parents saying they expect me back at a certain date.

I think I just got lucky. So I reccomend that she brings evidence of her intended return date.

Edited January 1, 2010 by Rhiann

[chrisNmanda 0]

I went to the US for 3 months last year, and I was let in with just a return ticket and 1000 dollars in my bank account.

If I had known better though, I would have brought letters from my employer and parents saying they expect me back at a certain date.

I think I just got lucky. So I reccomend that she brings evidence of her intended return date.

I agree with Rhiann here,

While she can spend 6 months here, we have found that it doesn't necessarily mean consecutively and by all means don't let the boarder know you know the rules about it, trust me. We had no problem at all with 1 month or 6 week visits ( with proof of returning ) but we tried 2 months once and were denied and were given a I-94 (i believe) and she had to return in 2 weeks, even tho we had proof she would come back, we just ran across the guard having a bad day ... ruined a vacation.

[Misty1979 0]

I agree with Rhiann here,

While she can spend 6 months here, we have found that it doesn't necessarily mean consecutively and by all means don't let the boarder know you know the rules about it, trust me. We had no problem at all with 1 month or 6 week visits ( with proof of returning ) but we tried 2 months once and were denied and were given a I-94 (i believe) and she had to return in 2 weeks, even tho we had proof she would come back, we just ran across the guard having a bad day ... ruined a vacation.

Which is pretty much what I was saying too. All my six week visits were ok...I was pulled into secondary once, but I was never turned away at the border. I just think that a 6 month lump visit would be very risky without extremely strong ties.

[kindafamous 0]

Hi kindafamous. Here is a post that will help you out: Link

I'm going to move your thread from the Moving Here forum to the Canada forum as the rules are somewhat different for visiting Canadians.

Welcome to VJ.

WOW...Thanks to all of you!!Such a positive vibe here on VJ.com, and it seems like everyone really cares on this site. What a relief! SO many great and informative responses! This is going to be very helpful indeed. I am reading all these responses carefully and will forward them to my "girlfriend" in Canada. We will then share this information and make our careful decisions accordingly.

Another question... I see that a round trip ticket is much better for our chances of sharing a longer stay together, especially in case she is questioned beyond the initial intrerview / or in depth. What if I purchase a round trip ticket for let's say a two month (or even less) stay, and then once she is here and we decide we want more time together I just change it later to up to the 6 month limit? Once she is over the border and in USA with me, as long as a border guard has NOT issued her a "I-94 arrival-departure card", that states exactly how long one can visit, we / she is still entitled to the maximum 6 months, then she is still entitiled to the maximum stay, correct? Does the 6 months or however long start frm the day she enters the USA?

What happens after the 6 months? I have a business and want to hire her to work with me...she is very qualified to do the job I have in mind for her. Is there any way to incorporate a Work Visa down the road so she can stay here longer? Is a marriage proposal the only thing that will make a longer stay possible? I understand there are stringent ,laws governing even marriage and Fianace Visas, and we are honestly not planning marriage at this time...we only just met. I would like to know what to expect if this love affair continues to gro stronger though. As the man in this relationship, I want to be informed and educated so when the inevitable questions a rise, I will already be prepared with the answers!

You guys are the BEST! Happy New Year and thanks for making my day!!

TH

[Kathryn41 3,205]

WOW...Thanks to all of you!!Such a positive vibe here on VJ.com, and it seems like everyone really cares on this site. What a relief! SO many great and informative responses! This is going to be very helpful indeed. I am reading all these responses carefully and will forward them to my "girlfriend" in Canada. We will then share this information and make our careful decisions accordingly.

Another question... I see that a round trip ticket is much better for our chances of sharing a longer stay together, especially in case she is questioned beyond the initial intrerview / or in depth. What if I purchase a round trip ticket for let's say a two month (or even less) stay, and then once she is here and we decide we want more time together I just change it later to up to the 6 month limit? Once she is over the border and in USA with me, as long as a border guard has NOT issued her a "I-94 arrival-departure card", that states exactly how long one can visit, we / she is still entitled to the maximum 6 months, then she is still entitiled to the maximum stay, correct?

Yes, she can do that unless otherwise told by the border or immigration. Make sure this isn't the 'intent' upon entry, though, because it could be considered 'misrepresentation' if things got dicey or tight with immigration or the border at any time. It does leave them an opening of considering her to have lied about her intentions when she crossed the border. Not that this is likely to happen but it is a consideration, nonetheless.

Does the 6 months or however long start frm the day she enters the USA?

Yes. The general rule is she is supposed to spend at least an equal amount of time out of the country as she does in the country in any given year. The time starts from when she crosses the border. Another consideration, if she is in the US for more than 6 months in a year IRS considers her a 'deemed resident for tax purposes' which is totally different than for immigration purposes, and she is supposed to either file a return with them or provide them with proof of her closer ties to Canada.

What happens after the 6 months?

She absolutely needs to return to Canada. If she overstays her visa each day is considered out of status. If she accumulates 180 out of status days, then when she does leave the US (for example, to complete the visa process) she would incur an automatic 3 year ban on re-entry to the US. If she is out of status for a year, it is an automatic 10 year ban. How would USCIS know? They ask for dates of presence in the US on a variety of forms and if she lies on any of the forms, the ban for deliberate misrepresentation is often a lifetime ban from ever entering the US.

I have a business and want to hire her to work with me...she is very qualified to do the job I have in mind for her. Is there any way to incorporate a Work Visa down the road so she can stay here longer?

You would have to file as a sponsor for one of the various work visas for her. That means verifying that there are no Americans who can do the job, submitting the proof and then waiting for permission before you can submit a petition and she can then submit an application. The process is a long one and she needs to be outside of the country for its completion. The process will almost definitely take longer than 6 months - sometimes the verification phase alone can take at least 6 months. There are also 'caps' on the number of different type of work visas issued each year. In many years, the caps are met after a few months. One of the work visa caps has already been met for this current work year (don't remember which one though). USCIS starts accepting employment visa requests in October. You may want to take a look and see if she would be eligible for a NAFTA visa - if the job you have available and her skills are among those covered by the NAFTA agreement. That is probably the easiest one to pursue if you are both eligible.

Is a marriage proposal the only thing that will make a longer stay possible?

To be technical, a marriage proposal doesn't really make a longer stay possible. She is still only allowed to be in the US the same 6 months maximum. Going through the immigration as a K-1 applicant will eventually allow her to receive permission to enter the US for the sole purpose of getting married to you. That entry is only valid for 90 days and then she must apply to change her status from a non-immigrant to an immigrant (Called AOS). Once she is granted permission for the AOS she is allowed to stay in the US. That can be as short a process as 3 months or as longer as 2 years or more. Engagement alone doesn't count and even marriage itself doesn't count unless you have the correct immigration paperwork completed.

I understand there are stringent ,laws governing even marriage and Fianace Visas, and we are honestly not planning marriage at this time...we only just met. I would like to know what to expect if this love affair continues to gro stronger though.

Unfortunately, neither the US nor Canada have a 'getting to know you better 'visa. Separation is, unfortunately, part of the reality when you are dealing with cross border relationships. The best thing you can do is to plan to continue your own separate lives on each side of the border - keep proof of these lives as they provide 'proof of ties' to your own respective countries, and visit back and forth for several weeks - 6 weeks to 2 months - at a time or for weekends at a time. That is what my now husband and I did - we visited back and forth for 4 and 5 days at a time as we were able to incorporate visits into our own schedules. Cross border relationships are not like relationships with the girl next door - or even the next State, unfortunately. The border and its rules and requirements are always going to play a major role.

As the man in this relationship, I want to be informed and educated so when the inevitable questions a rise, I will already be prepared with the answers!

This is one of the smartest moves you can make. I would also suggest that your girlfriend familliarize herself with the immigration rules too as if this relationship progresses either personally or as a professional work situation, she is always going to be the primary beneficiary and needs to be aware of what is involved. She is the one who will be interviewed at all of the various stages of the process.

You guys are the BEST! Happy New Year and thanks for making my day!!

TH

Good luck and Happy New Year!

Edited January 1, 2010 by Kathryn41

[Sprailenes 47]

So what are you kinda famous for?

[kindafamous 0]

Good luck and Happy New Year!

Dear Kathryn ...you are amazing! Thanks for breaking that down so completely! You obviously have experienced this yourself..congratulations on getting through it all successfully.

One last thing I do not understand -->

My Question; Does the 6 months or however long start frm the day she enters the USA?

Your answer: Yes. The general rule is she is supposed to spend at least an equal amount of time out of the country as she does in the country in any given year. The time starts from when she crosses the border. Another consideration, if she is in the US for more than 6 months in a year IRS considers her a 'deemed resident for tax purposes' which is totally different than for immigration purposes, and she is supposed to either file a return with them or provide them with proof of her closer ties to Canada.

Let's say she goes back to Canada after 6 months or less... does this long visit affect her chance of visiting again in the near future? She canot come bacck for at least another 6 months? It is now my understanding after reading your thorough response that she needs to stay in eacch country for at least 6 months to fulfill the requirements that she is spending at least as much time in her own country as she is in the USA...correct? In addition, she will be "living with me" during the up to 6 month visit...is that considered illegal? Where else would she stay? It is technically a "visit" but 6 months is a long time to visit... and I have been told that is another "red flag" if they ask where she is staying. Seems like some of these parameters are like catch 22's ...

After she goes bacck to Canada, can I make as many short visits as I want to during the ensueing 6 months after she goes home? Of course I am getting ahead of myself here as we have not decided if we are the perfect match yet...but we have already come through a lot of obstacles and hurdles to get where wwe are so far, and I have a feling it will develop into something bigger...as I said before I want to be completely prepared and educated.

TH

TH

[Danu 19]

Dear Kathryn ...you are amazing! Thanks for breaking that down so completely! You obviously have experienced this yourself..congratulations on getting through it all successfully.

One last thing I do not understand -->

My Question; Does the 6 months or however long start frm the day she enters the USA?

Your answer: Yes. The general rule is she is supposed to spend at least an equal amount of time out of the country as she does in the country in any given year. The time starts from when she crosses the border. Another consideration, if she is in the US for more than 6 months in a year IRS considers her a 'deemed resident for tax purposes' which is totally different than for immigration purposes, and she is supposed to either file a return with them or provide them with proof of her closer ties to Canada.

Let's say she goes back to Canada after 6 months or less... does this long visit affect her chance of visiting again in the near future? She canot come bacck for at least another 6 months? It is now my understanding after reading your thorough response that she needs to stay in eacch country for at least 6 months to fulfill the requirements that she is spending at least as much time in her own country as she is in the USA...correct? In addition, she will be "living with me" during the up to 6 month visit...is that considered illegal? Where else would she stay? It is technically a "visit" but 6 months is a long time to visit... and I have been told that is another "red flag" if they ask where she is staying. Seems like some of these parameters are like catch 22's ...

After she goes bacck to Canada, can I make as many short visits as I want to during the ensueing 6 months after she goes home? Of course I am getting ahead of myself here as we have not decided if we are the perfect match yet...but we have already come through a lot of obstacles and hurdles to get where wwe are so far, and I have a feling it will develop into something bigger...as I said before I want to be completely prepared and educated.

TH

TH

Technically the way it works is she could return for a few days and then turn around and go back. In practice however the guards are extremely unlikely to allow her to return after such a long stay because at that point they will see hit as her trying to live in the states. Theres also a difference in living and visiting. She won`t be able to work or anything during the time she is down there, so it will just be a long visit, but if she says shes living with you, that will probably put up a flag for refusal or for a shortened time being issued. You can make as many visits to her as you would like with the same conditions, you may have to bring proof that you are going back to the states. My Fiance got hauled into secondary and questioned about him going back to california because he brought my engagement ring up with him on his last visit here so he could propose to me. At any point on the cross border visits either of you can be asked to show the proof that you`re going to return to where you live and not try to get around the immigration rules, and some border guards can be a bit...jerkish about it.

now if she stays for 2 months and then goes home for 3 and then tries to go back for another 2, they may not be as suspicious. It all really depends on the guard you get though and whether or not s/he is in a good mood or not.

[Flames9_RN 358]

The beauty (sarcasm)of going to the USA is that each POE guard seems to have their set of rules! So no one can say exactly what will take place! I traveled frequently to the USA, never had a problem!

As well keep in mind, there is a reason why Cdn Snowbirds come back before their 6 months are up----they do NOT want to loose the Cdn health care!!

[Kathryn41 3,205]

Oh good point, Flames9_RN!

Technically, she is allowed 6 months at any one visit as a maximum. She is also expected to spend an equal amount of time out of the US as in the US so that means 6 months out of the US as well. She could turn around - and if the guards allowed her entry - return to the US a few days or weeks later after spending 6 months in the US already but then she faces both the situation Flames9_RN mentioned - she would lose her health coverage in Canada (you have to be physically present in Canada for 6 out of every 12 months in any given year) and she would then have to file proof of closer ties to Canada with the IRS or would have to file a tax return as a deemed 'tax resident' in the US. So, you really don't want to have more than a total of 6 months outside of Canada in any 12 month period. The other issues that Danu mentioned are also important - it is always up to the discretion of the border guard when you present yourself at the US border whether they will allow you entry and for how long - even if you have a visa. It would probably be better to plan on shorter trips and try for a maximum of 6 months within a year rather than do the whole 6 months all at once.