US Citizen Marrying Fiancee in Canada Needs Advice Please!

[svirac 0]

Hi all;

I just found this forum, and was hoping for some advice on what the best approach to take as I prepare to get married.

I am recently engaged to a Canadian citizen - she lives in Canada (Toronto area).

I am a US citizen living in the US (Pennsylvania).

Our plan is to get married in June of 2009 in Canada. Until then, we would both continue to live in our respective countries. After the wedding, I was hoping to immediately bring her down to my home in the US to live with me, with the goal of finalizing all her paperwork for immigration after that point.

Is this a realistic goal? If so, what's the best way of going about this?

If this is not a realistic goal, what options do I have here? I know there's a fiancee visa, but I'm under the impression that it requires marriage within the US. But we are getting married in Canada. Not sure how this affects things.

Any and all feedback is truly appreciated! Thanks for any forthcoming help!!!

[Mononoke28 135]

If you want to continure the immigration process here in the US, your only option is to go for a K1 visa (fiancée).

If you want to get married in Canada, then you will need to file for a K3 or CR1 visa.

K3s take a little bit less time than the CR1s but once the beneficiary gets to the US, he/she will have to file for AOS which has an additional cost of $1,010. Plus, he/she cannot legally work until their Employment Authorization Document is approved. All of this can take at lease 3-6 months.

CR1s take a bit longer but once the beneficiary gets here, all he/she has to do is wait for their green card to arrive in the mail within 2-7 weeks.

But bottom line is you cannot bring her to the US to live with you as soon as you get married. She may visit you while her petition is being processed, but she cannot establish residency.

Diana

Edited October 21, 2008 by Mononoke28

[pushbrk 13,166]

If you want to continure the immigration process here in the US, your only option is to go for a K1 visa (fiancée).

If you want to get married in Canada, then you will need to file for a K3 or CR1 visa.

K3s take a little bit less time than the CR1s but once the beneficiary gets to the US, he/she will have to file for AOS which has an additional cost of $1,010. Plus, he/she cannot legally work until their Employment Authorization Document is approved. All of this can take at lease 3-6 months.

CR1s take a bit longer but once the beneficiary gets here, all he/she has to do is wait for their green card to arrive in the mail within 2-7 weeks.

But bottom line is you cannot bring her to the US to live with you as soon as you get married. She may visit you while her petition is being processed, but she cannot establish residency.

Diana

If allowed to enter the US, the Canadian Citizen may "visit" not "reside" in the US for up to six months regardless of any or which visa process.

Start with the guides to get a basic understanding of what you are facing and then come back to the appropriate forum with remaining questions.

[Anixter 0]

Hi,

My fiancee is American and I'm Canadian. We're also planning for a June 2009 wedding (in the USA though). Our path started in June 2008 and we elected to go the K1 Fiance Visa route. If you marry outside of the USA, I believe you would indeed have to go with a K3 Marriage Visa.

The guides on this website are absolutely incredible. Check out the one that determines which visa is best for you!

Best of luck!

[Completely 3]

Hi all;

I just found this forum, and was hoping for some advice on what the best approach to take as I prepare to get married.

I am recently engaged to a Canadian citizen - she lives in Canada (Toronto area).

I am a US citizen living in the US (Pennsylvania).

Our plan is to get married in June of 2009 in Canada. Until then, we would both continue to live in our respective countries. After the wedding, I was hoping to immediately bring her down to my home in the US to live with me, with the goal of finalizing all her paperwork for immigration after that point.

Is this a realistic goal? If so, what's the best way of going about this?

If this is not a realistic goal, what options do I have here? I know there's a fiancee visa, but I'm under the impression that it requires marriage within the US. But we are getting married in Canada. Not sure how this affects things.

Any and all feedback is truly appreciated! Thanks for any forthcoming help!!!

It will be better to file CR 1 VISA..

Below is the information on the difference of CR1 and K3 VISA

What is the CR-1 Visa?

The CR-1 (Conditional Resident) visa allows applicants to receive conditional permanent residence upon arrival in the US. Recipients of the CR-1 are able to work immediately upon arrival in the US. Conditional Residents usually receive their green card in the mail 2 - 3 months after arrival. Permanent resident status is considered conditional, because the immigrant must prove that they did not get married merely to circumvent the immigration laws of the United States.

The conditional resident and the US citizen spouse must apply together to remove the conditional status of permanent residence. It is advisable to apply 90 days before the end of the spouse’s second year as a conditional resident. If the application to remove conditional status is not filed in time, the immigrant spouse could lose her conditional resident status and be subject to removal from the country.

What is an IR-1 Visa?

An IR-1 (Immigrant Resident) visa is for a spouse of a US citizen that has been married to the US citizen for two (2) or more years. The IR-1 is basically the same as the CR-1 except that upon arrival in the United States the holder of an IR-1 visa is an unconditional permanent resident with the immediate right to work. There is no conditional period of residence and the IR-1 holder does not need to file to have his/her residence made permanent. IR-1 holders usually receive their green card in the mail 2 - 3 months after arrival.

The K-3 visa vs. the Immigrant (CR-1, IR-1) visas:

The K-3 visa was created with one intention: to allow spouses of U.S. citizens to swiftly get a visa to the U.S. without waiting for an immigrant visa (CR-1, IR-1) to become available. However, for spouses of U.S. citizens, there is no annual limit to the number CR-1 or IR-1 visas that can be issued each year, so an these visas are always immediately available.

The only difference between the K-3 and the immigrant visas (CR-1 and IR-1) is processing time. The USCIS must apply the exact same standards to both the CR-1 and IR-1 petitions for spouses of US Citizens as it does for K-3 visa petitions for spouses of US Citizens. It usually takes 2-3 months longer for the CR-1 and IR-1 Visa’s to be processed because the National Visa Center takes more time to process these visas.

The K-3 visa is faster up front, but a spouse who enters the country on a K-3 visa must adjust his or her status to conditional residency after he or she enters the United States. The time and money saved by getting the K-3 visa is made up because the adjustment of status demands an additional investment of time and money.

The bottom line: If you are looking to get your spouse into the United States as soon as possible then the K-3 visa is the way to go. However, if speed is not essential and if it is important that your spouse is a permanent resident from the moment he/she enters the US and will be able to work upon entry into the country, then the Immigrant (CR-1 and IR-1) visas are a better fit.

[Carlawarla 1]

Read all the Guides here before embarking on your petition avenues. You can marry in Canada in June 2009, but you won't be bringing your bride down with you after the ceremony!

See which of the visas would best suit your situation or see if your situation might change when you see what each visa has to offer. Whatever you don't understand or want clarification on, please know that we're here to help you with any questions you may have.

We also have a Canada forum here on VJ with specific Canada/US immigration issues...as well support and encouragement! Drop in here and check us out!

http://www.visajourney.com/forums/index.php?showforum=93

[Krikit 1,165]

Welcome to VJ, Svirac. There has been some good information given here. What this all boils down to, if you follow your original plan, is that the processing to bring your wife here will begin AFTER the wedding. And that process will take many months. One other option is to have a civil marriage immediately and then apply for the K-3. By the time you have your official ceremony in June you will be close to receiving your visa.

Good luck, and congratulations.

[svirac 0]

Welcome to VJ, Svirac. There has been some good information given here. What this all boils down to, if you follow your original plan, is that the processing to bring your wife here will begin AFTER the wedding. And that process will take many months. One other option is to have a civil marriage immediately and then apply for the K-3. By the time you have your official ceremony in June you will be close to receiving your visa.

Good luck, and congratulations.

Thanks to everyone for the advice and help!!! It's greatly appreciated. I suppose I thought this would be a bit easier due to the somewhat lax restrictions between US and Canada travel. It's never as simple as you would hope, I suppose.

Thanks again for all the advice!!

[Other 0]

Welcome to VJ, Svirac. There has been some good information given here. What this all boils down to, if you follow your original plan, is that the processing to bring your wife here will begin AFTER the wedding. And that process will take many months. One other option is to have a civil marriage immediately and then apply for the K-3. By the time you have your official ceremony in June you will be close to receiving your visa.

Good luck, and congratulations.

Thanks to everyone for the advice and help!!! It's greatly appreciated. I suppose I thought this would be a bit easier due to the somewhat lax restrictions between US and Canada travel. It's never as simple as you would hope, I suppose.

Thanks again for all the advice!!

There is one more option. That is to file now for a K1 and in June do the ceremony in Canada, but don't officially get married. I call this being married in spirit, but not yet on paper. Then when you get here run down to the courthouse and get a marriage license.

Other

[pushbrk 13,166]

Welcome to VJ, Svirac. There has been some good information given here. What this all boils down to, if you follow your original plan, is that the processing to bring your wife here will begin AFTER the wedding. And that process will take many months. One other option is to have a civil marriage immediately and then apply for the K-3. By the time you have your official ceremony in June you will be close to receiving your visa.

Good luck, and congratulations.

Thanks to everyone for the advice and help!!! It's greatly appreciated. I suppose I thought this would be a bit easier due to the somewhat lax restrictions between US and Canada travel. It's never as simple as you would hope, I suppose.

Thanks again for all the advice!!

There is one more option. That is to file now for a K1 and in June do the ceremony in Canada, but don't officially get married. I call this being married in spirit, but not yet on paper. Then when you get here run down to the courthouse and get a marriage license.

Other

Quite risky in Canada because of their marraige laws. Clergy performed marriages are legal, license or not.