Getting married to us citizen. i am in canada

[landa 1]

Hi guys, i am very confused and lost. my girlfriend lives in california and iam in canada. we are getting married in canada in july. after that we will be going to us to get married. I will be moving to the US. I am not sure if what we have planned is the right way. I would appreciate if someone ccould tell me and guide me about the procedures. will i have to go back to caanda until i am allowed to be back to the us>?

[Devkpaik 1]

Hi guys, i am very confused and lost. my girlfriend lives in california and iam in canada. we are getting married in canada in july. after that we will be going to us to get married. I will be moving to the US. I am not sure if what we have planned is the right way. I would appreciate if someone ccould tell me and guide me about the procedures. will i have to go back to caanda until i am allowed to be back to the us>?

Landa,

I am confused as well. You mentioned your girlfriend lives in the US and you in Canada and that you are getting married IN canada, then after going to the US to get married?

If you are going the K-1 route, then you aren't going to be able to, as you cannot get married first then travel to the US on a K-1 visa. The K-1 visa is a fiance visa, meaning you must enter the US unmarried and engaged and when you get to the US you have 90 days to get married.

That means you may NOT get married in a foreign country then apply for a K-1 Visa.

I recommend reading the guides, as it sounds like you don't understand what a K-1 Visa is.

This post pertains to you applying for a K-1, if you are applying for a K3 visa, then you MAY get married in Canada and emigrate to the US.

[landa 1]

Hi guys, i am very confused and lost. my girlfriend lives in california and iam in canada. we are getting married in canada in july. after that we will be going to us to get married. I will be moving to the US. I am not sure if what we have planned is the right way. I would appreciate if someone ccould tell me and guide me about the procedures. will i have to go back to caanda until i am allowed to be back to the us>?

Landa,

I am confused as well. You mentioned your girlfriend lives in the US and you in Canada and that you are getting married IN canada, then after going to the US to get married?

If you are going the K-1 route, then you aren't going to be able to, as you cannot get married first then travel to the US on a K-1 visa. The K-1 visa is a fiance visa, meaning you must enter the US unmarried and engaged and when you get to the US you have 90 days to get married.

That means you may NOT get married in a foreign country then apply for a K-1 Visa.

I recommend reading the guides, as it sounds like you don't understand what a K-1 Visa is.

This post pertains to you applying for a K-1, if you are applying for a K3 visa, then you MAY get married in Canada and emigrate to the US.

sorry i didnt know if it was the right place to post...yes she is coming to canada and we are going to get married in canada. so, we have to apply for k3 right? can i go back to california with her or no? or or if i have to wait for k3 how long before they allow me to go to us?

[Devkpaik 1]

Hi guys, i am very confused and lost. my girlfriend lives in california and iam in canada. we are getting married in canada in july. after that we will be going to us to get married. I will be moving to the US. I am not sure if what we have planned is the right way. I would appreciate if someone ccould tell me and guide me about the procedures. will i have to go back to caanda until i am allowed to be back to the us>?

Landa,

I am confused as well. You mentioned your girlfriend lives in the US and you in Canada and that you are getting married IN canada, then after going to the US to get married?

If you are going the K-1 route, then you aren't going to be able to, as you cannot get married first then travel to the US on a K-1 visa. The K-1 visa is a fiance visa, meaning you must enter the US unmarried and engaged and when you get to the US you have 90 days to get married.

That means you may NOT get married in a foreign country then apply for a K-1 Visa.

I recommend reading the guides, as it sounds like you don't understand what a K-1 Visa is.

This post pertains to you applying for a K-1, if you are applying for a K3 visa, then you MAY get married in Canada and emigrate to the US.

sorry i didnt know if it was the right place to post...yes she is coming to canada and we are going to get married in canada. so, we have to apply for k3 right? can i go back to california with her or no? or or if i have to wait for k3 how long before they allow me to go to us?

No worries, just wasn't quite sure.

Yes, you're correct, you file for K3 IF you plan to get married BEFORE you enter into the US. If you plan to get a K3, you may not enter the US until you receive the K3 visa, unless of course you can get a tourist visa, although I have heard it's somewhat difficult while you are in the process of getting a K1 or K3.

So yea, if you guys are 100% getting married in Canada, then you gotta go K3.

Good luck!

[landa 1]

i am worried now..so i can't go to us to apply for k3 visa..or just visit her for a few weeks then come back until the k3 visa process is taken care of. how long will it take for the process usually? thanks

[Devkpaik 1]

i am worried now..so i can't go to us to apply for k3 visa..or just visit her for a few weeks then come back until the k3 visa process is taken care of. how long will it take for the process usually? thanks

Landa,

I want to make sure you and I are on the same page here before I comment further.

Your plan:

To marry your fiance (US Citizen) IN Canada

You then plan on applying for a K3 Visa (AFTER you and your "husband" are OFFICIALLY and LEGALLY married.

After you have filed for a K3 Visa, you plan on VISITING America WHILE you are in the process of waiting for the status of your K3 Visa.

Please correct me if I am mistaken with what your plans are.

Have you been to the US before? You are currently living in Canada correct? I am not 100% sure with a K3 Visa, as originally I thought you were talking about a K1.

while you are applying for the K3 you can't be living in the US unless you are on some type of other visa (not even sure you can apply for a K3 or K1 while you are in the US).

The K3 process is known to take longer than the K1 process. Both processes are long.

[Krikit 1,164]

Welcome to VJ, Landa. I am going to move your thread to the Canada Forum because you will receive more informed information.... there are people there who have experience with this. (No offense, LittleAsianMan7.)

Just a quickie note.... Canadians do not require a tourist visa to enter the US and, yes, you can visit while your visa is processing.

Off we go to the Canada Forum!

[Reba 2]

Hi guys, i am very confused and lost. my girlfriend lives in california and iam in canada. we are getting married in canada in july. after that we will be going to us to get married. I will be moving to the US. I am not sure if what we have planned is the right way. I would appreciate if someone ccould tell me and guide me about the procedures. will i have to go back to caanda until i am allowed to be back to the us>?

why do you say you're getting married in both countries? You really only need to do it once to satisfy immigration.

K3s are currently taking about a year ot process out of Canada, but please read the guides regarding the CR1 immgrant visa. It is by far the least expensive visa, and as it grants you permanent residency and the K3 does not, it is also the superior visa IMO. They're both taking about the same amount of time to process as well.

Yes, you can visit the US during the process, but not for the entire time. Canadians are allowed to visit the US for up to 6 months at a time, if you can prove to the border officials that you have ties to Canada. So it is not a wise idea to go and quit your job and sell your home or cancel your lease, because the visa process is going to take longer than you're allowed to stay legally.

Read the Guides up top of the page for all the info and comparissons of all the different visas.

[warlord 73]

Yes there are many 1000's of people who did this route and found themselves married but both living in different countries. You're best bet is to forget the Canada wedding, and just go to the US and get married there after a month or so.

This way if you 'visit' for say 2-3 months, you then get married it won't look like your original intent was getting married when you crossed the border. If you went over and immedialtly got married, it looks like you did have intent (which you would need a visa for and could run into issues)...

[~Laura and Nick~ 5]

I agree with Warlord.

The spousal visa's take quite a bit longer than the K1's do.

I would simply apply for a K1 visa, and then get married in the U.S. once you have visa in hand. You have 6 months to enter the country once you have the K1 visa in your passport and you must be married in the U.S. within 90 days once you arrive.

Click on the Guides and start at the part where it says "BEGIN HERE" in red letters. That shows a comparison of the different visas.

If you do decide to go for a spousal (K3, CR/1, etc.) you may enter the U.S. to visit as long as you show proof that you will be returning back to Canada. Letter from your employer stating you are coming back to work, bank statements, visa statements, mortgage or rent agreements, etc. etc.

As Canadians we do not require a visitors visa to enter the U.S. so that's not a problem, you just have to show strong ties showing you will be returning.

Read over the guides with your fiance and discuss what will be the best course of action for you both.

Nick and I went with the K1 simply because we did not want to be living in different countries while married. We want our first year of married life to be together, not apart waiting for it to begin.

Best of luck to you both!!!

[Kathryn41 3,205]

I think Warlord is saying, forget the visa route all together, visit the US and then get married there after a few months on a visitor's visa. (If I am wrong, correct me, but that is how I interpreted your post.) To the OP - if I am correct in understanding what Warlord wrote, you need to know that doing this is actually illegal since we already know you have the intent of getting married and staying in the US. You are allowed to go to the US and get married - but you cannot stay and live in the US. You need to 'live' in Canada while a K-3 or a CR-1 visa is being processed. They are processed outside of the US only. If you had no intention of getting married and while you were on a visit to the US made the spur of the moment decision to marry and stay, that is actually allowed. Entering the US with the intention of getting married and staying without getting the appropriate immigration visa is not. Nor is it legal to enter the US as a spouse of a US citizen with the intent to stay unless you have the appropriate immigration visa - either the K-3 or the CR-1.

Except for her agreement with Warlord (VBG), I agree with what Laura and Nick suggested. Definitely read the guides at the top of the page. If you want to live in the US together in the shortest amount of time, then you are looking at a K-1 fiance visa. Your US fiance sends an I-129f petition to USCIS (Immigration) to start the process. Once that is approved, USCIS sends the information to the appropriate US Consulate - in this case, either Montreal or Vancouver - and they send you an application kit for a K-1 visa along with the list of other things you need to have. When you notify the Consulate that you have everything you need, they then schedule you for an interview. When you are approved, they give you a K-1 visa. You have 6 months in which to 'activate' the visa. Once you activate the visa, you have 90 days to get married. Then you need to apply to adjust your status from a non-immigrant fiance to an immigrant spouse. This is done inside the US. When that is completed, you have your green card. (there is a bit more to it than that, but that is the basic summary).

The processes are viritually the same for the K-3 and the CR-1, except that your spouse has more paperwork and with the CR-1 you get your greencard when you arrive in the States and don't have to apply for it.

[~Laura and Nick~ 5]

Oh!

I didn't think that's what Warlord meant.

What I meant was, in my opinion, I would skip the spousal visa and go for the fiance as it's a shorter waiting time.

Don't want to be doing anything illegal!!

Edited June 3, 2008 by ~Laura and Nick~

[Galateia 1]

Something else to consider is that when you enter the US on a K-1 Fiance visa (K-3 too, I think) you need to plan to be unemployed and stuck in the US, unable to visit Canada, for a minimum of 3 to 6 months. This is because you will apply to become a resident with a greencard so you can work and ask for Advance Parole, which allows to to leave the US for visits, etc.

If you are planning a wedding in both countries so that both families can see you get married, you might be able to have an Anna Nicole Smith-style ceremony in Canada that isn't legally binding, and then the legal marriage in the US once you've entered on your K-1.

[Marilyn. 340]

I think the Cr1 visa is the cheapest way to go too because you don't have to pay the $1010 adjustment fee once you move to the US...

[warlord 73]

No I wasn't promoting doing that route, I was saying that would be the other option you would do other then waiting for a visa route. Now it's not uncommon for people to do that. It will be up to the IO who interviews you or the border guard to determine if you are valid or not. It is not illegal to come over to the US to visit, and then all of a sudden decide to marry. It theoretically is if you plan on getting married and then lie to the immigration officers about your intent.

This is the only other way of doing it without going by K1 and K3. Didn't say it was the best route, but if they are wanting to get married like they are planning, they're either going to have to wait in different countries or they're going to attempt something like what I mentioned.

Is there a consequence to it? Yes. If found you are entering with the plans of getting married you could get a ban from entering the US. Does that happen often? Not sure.

There are people who legitly come over for a extended visit to see their significant others and then a few months later (while on their stay) decide they want to get married. They then get married in the US and file for AOS. In this case they entered the US legitly (by not originally planning on marriage when they crossed the border for the visit). This is how people are doing it without a visa.

Also remember at your interview for your Green Card a lot of things do get waived including how you entered in the country. INS knows this happens all the time and gives people the pardons.

So those are pretty much just the 3 ways you can go about this situation in the posters case. Some more risky then the others, but done on quite a frequent basis the INS knows all about it and really isn't really doing anything to enforce or punish it like they probably should, hence why it's happening pretty frequently.

Best bet is to just get the K-1 and hold off on the marriages all together or just get married in Canada and have her stay there. Immigrate to the US at a later date after going through the K3 process from Canada (which you should be able to do)...

Edited June 3, 2008 by warlord