Proving domicile when not living in the U.S.

[Boiler 45,733]

You make it sound like you are abandoning your US residency.

 

Anyway a high risk option but I guess you realise that as you are asking here, please let us know what happens.

[n86 1]

58 minutes ago, Boiler said:

You make it sound like you are abandoning your US residency.

 

Anyway a high risk option but I guess you realise that as you are asking here, please let us know what happens.

Yes but I've seen lots of people here stating they are living abroad (in Canada) until the interview appointment. How is it different from mine, because of Green card holder vs US Citizen?

Edited January 30, 2020 by nazgul86

[Boiler 45,733]

They are US Citizens.

[NikLR 13,228]

6 hours ago, nazgul86 said:

Yes but I've seen lots of people here stating they are living abroad (in Canada) until the interview appointment. How is it different from mine, because of Green card holder vs US Citizen?

You can't be a resident of both countries.  So you can't use Canadian health care, (you can't have any benefits only available to a Canadian resident) and you're supposed to make sure taxes from your job are taken off at a non-resident rate. 

[n86 1]

24 minutes ago, NikLR said:

You can't be a resident of both countries.  So you can't use Canadian health care, (you can't have any benefits only available to a Canadian resident) and you're supposed to make sure taxes from your job are taken off at a non-resident rate. 

I'm officially residing in Canada now (work for US company with Canadian branch) and planning to relocate back to US branch shortly before/after the interview.

[Boiler 45,733]

1 hour ago, nazgul86 said:

I'm officially residing in Canada now (work for US company with Canadian branch) and planning to relocate back to US branch shortly before/after the interview.

Certainly a challenging situation, please let us know what happens.

[NikLR 13,228]

14 hours ago, nazgul86 said:

I'm officially residing in Canada now (work for US company with Canadian branch) and planning to relocate back to US branch shortly before/after the interview.

Not sure how that's going to work with your green card. Let us know. 

[gad33 47]

On 1/30/2020 at 10:55 AM, nazgul86 said:

Yes but I've seen lots of people here stating they are living abroad (in Canada) until the interview appointment. How is it different from mine, because of Green card holder vs US Citizen?

There's a huge difference between a green card holder and a Citizen. A US citizen can not be denied entry into the US. It is much more problematic if it is perceived that you have given up your permanent residency.

 

You state yourself that you are officially residing in Canada, so how can you be a Permanent Resident of the US?

[n86 1]

55 minutes ago, gad33 said:

There's a huge difference between a green card holder and a Citizen. A US citizen can not be denied entry into the US. It is much more problematic if it is perceived that you have given up your permanent residency.

 

You state yourself that you are officially residing in Canada, so how can you be a Permanent Resident of the US?

I think these are two different problems
1) Being denied entry to the US whenever I fly/drive back to the states

2) My wife being approved for US Green Card at Montreal consulate

 

I understand that if 1) happens then 2) will be denied. However I would think that the probability of 1) is lower than other cases given my special situation.

In my experience the questions I get at the border have been fairly light. And I'm flying back to the states every few months for work reasons. My team is located in San Francisco, so the questions like "where do you work?" from US officers, I usually answer "in US". Which has been true until few months back, and technically my team is located in the states. Working as a software developer makes things a bit easier, since I don't have to be physically present where I work normally. So it would really require some heavy digging on their side, which I don't believe it would happen so easily at the airport customs. I would also be able to switch back to US payroll quite easily if I wanted to (a matter of weeks).

Regarding 2) all the documentation I've submitted at the NVC stage should be perfectly acceptable, provided last 3 years US Tax / W2 / US driving license. I am still technically on a US lease until June 2020, so I think this covers me a bit. At the interview stage I may have to provide additional more recent docs. I will have 2020 US Tax (was paid in US dollars for the entire year). Only 2021 Tax would show the Canadian payroll, but that's 2 years far out so I doubt it's going to take that long. I may not have up to date pay stubs, as those would be in Canadian dollars, which may a problem if it comes, but may be able to address it by relocating and getting a few paychecks before resubmission or interview.

I think the problem may come if they will look into my in-out entries into Canada and US and determine I spent majority of 2020 out of US. However I would doubt they would do this during for my wife's green card case (at the interview? likely not). Since most of the documentation checks are done for her, it's not like I'm applying for Naturalization where they ask you specifically about this. Perhaps if she gets refused first time and require more evidence, then they may do some more digging. I'm not sure what would be the procedure but I would think that if they would not deny my Green Card between now and the interview, I would have the chance to resubmit additional documentation after the first refusal. My lawyer seems to think similarly, so hopefully it's not just me being hopeful here  I'll definitely update this thread once the time comes!

 

I would like to hear some more feedback about what kind of documentation is usually recommended for proving domicile. From my understanding it's:
1) New or updated lease (presumably with only petitioner's name on it? Otherwise how could the applicant not living in US be even approved?)

2) US Job offer or pay stubs?

Edited January 31, 2020 by nazgul86

[gad33 47]

I think there's just one problem here - you're a green card holder not living in the US.

 

In this thread US Citizens are proving that they will (re)establish residence in the US. This doesn't apply to you because as a green card holder your residence is the US.

[NikLR 13,228]

Using Canadian benefits meant for residents means you're not residing in the USA.  If you plan on doing this in this manner, I highly suggest a re-entry permit or cease using Canadian resident only things.  It doesn't matter that your job's headquarters are in the USA.  Most companies in Canada do not have their headquarters in Canada.  

[Michelle_VM 84]

I (U.S. citizen) have lived in Canada with my husband and our 3 kids for almost 7 years. All of our documents to prove intent to re-establish domicile were approved at the NVC. They included: 

A signed letter from me

A signed letter from family member 

A signed letter from realtor 

Opening u.s. bank account 

*we will bring a lease agreement to the interview

 

Is there a chance it still will not be sufficient at the interview? I do not see moving ahead of my husband as an option as our children all very young, but if I needed to, how many months in advance would it need to be? 

[Boiler 45,733]

3 minutes ago, Michelle_VM said:

I (U.S. citizen) have lived in Canada with my husband and our 3 kids for almost 7 years. All of our documents to prove intent to re-establish domicile were approved at the NVC. They included: 

A signed letter from me

A signed letter from family member 

A signed letter from realtor 

Opening u.s. bank account 

*we will bring a lease agreement to the interview

 

Is there a chance it still will not be sufficient at the interview? I do not see moving ahead of my husband as an option as our children all very young, but if I needed to, how many months in advance would it need to be? 

The issue is one for the Consulate and for them to decide. Looking at the list all you will have is a lease agreement.

[Michelle_VM 84]

10 minutes ago, Boiler said:

The issue is one for the Consulate and for them to decide. Looking at the list all you will have is a lease agreement.

What you are saying is all the other documents are useless? 

[Boiler 45,733]

That is up to the Consulate but not sure why they would take them into account, I could supply you with a signed letter, so what.