Canadian marrying an American

[Wendy J 0]

So my fiance and I want to get married this summer in Canada where I am from. He is American and will be returning to the USA because of his job. He will eventually be moving here to Canada within the next 3-5 years.The process of getting him here will be dealt with after the marriage. My question is...If we get married this summer will he be able to come back to Canada to visit on occasion without getting hassled or having to fill out a mound of paperwork? Both of our jobs are keeping us where we are for the time being so no chances of either of us moving in the near future.

Also, what kind of information is needed on his part to be able to marry in Canada?

I'm new to all this so please be gentle with your answers!

Thanks much,

W.

[Krikit 1,165]

Hi Wendy. I'm moving this to the Canada Forum. You'll find a bunch of threads in there on the same topic. Welcome to VJ.

[Wendy J 0]

Hi Wendy. I'm moving this to the Canada Forum. You'll find a bunch of threads in there on the same topic. Welcome to VJ.

Thank you!!!

[canadian_wife 1,829]

Hi Wendy

My husband visits me regularly in Canada and always says "I'm visiting my wife" and he has never had a problem. As long as your husband doesn't overstay his Canadian welcome, he should be fine.

Another smarter member will correct me if I am wrong

[DeadPoolX 9]

So my fiance and I want to get married this summer in Canada where I am from. He is American and will be returning to the USA because of his job. He will eventually be moving here to Canada within the next 3-5 years.The process of getting him here will be dealt with after the marriage. My question is...If we get married this summer will he be able to come back to Canada to visit on occasion without getting hassled or having to fill out a mound of paperwork? Both of our jobs are keeping us where we are for the time being so no chances of either of us moving in the near future.

Also, what kind of information is needed on his part to be able to marry in Canada?

I'm new to all this so please be gentle with your answers!

Thanks much,

W.

That's a hotly debated topic in this forum and presumably others. Some people will say you should "always be truthful and never lie" while others suggest not telling the "whole truth." I don't believe anyone here has promoted outright lying, but I'm sure there are some who would swear by it.

Unfortunately, every situation is different. You could go through a POE and never get hassled or you could get turned away. What happens is primarily dictated by the time of year, the Customs officer himself/herself and what evidence you bring to prove ties to your home country. Some officers will ask for multiple forms of proof or send you to secondary inspection while other officers won't ask for much (a flight itinerary, for instance) and some may not even ask at all.

Two examples I've had are:

1. I came through YVR (Vancouver) during the holidays and when I told the Customs officer I was "there to visit my fiancee" he freaked. He sent me over to secondary inspection where I spent the next 30-to-40 minutes relating my entire life story, how I met my fiancee, my job, how much money I had one me, etc. They finally let me enter Canada, but there were extremely hesitant to do it, despite having all documentation with me.

2. Once again during the holidays, I arrived at YYC (Calgary) and when I approached the Customs officer, he asked for my passport, quickly stamped it and sent me on my way. He didn't ask a single question.

Edited April 4, 2009 by Sentinel

[Old Dominion 26]

Requirements for marriage in Canada vary by province. Look up your province's official website online, and search for marriage licenses.

[Krikit 1,165]

With regard to what information he will require in order to marry..... it will be dependent upon the Province you live in. Check your municipality webpage for marriage information.

With regard to visiting.... most of our spouses/partners have never had much of a problem. In fact, they seem to have more of a problem going through US Customs & Border Protection as opposed to the Canadian side. This link is helpful. It specifies K-1 visa applicants coming to America but is applicable to all. Visitation FAQ's

The most important thing is to answer only the question(s) asked and offer nothing further until prompted, and to make sure all those answers are truthful.

[Reba 2]

for more detailed info regarding Canadian immigration and visiting see http://roadtocanada.com

[Krikit 1,165]

for more detailed info regarding Canadian immigration and visiting see http://roadtocanada.com

Oh right. Good point! Here's another one: Visiting Canada

[DeadPoolX 9]

You could also ask me. I immigrated to Canada (instead of the usual "move to the U.S.") and I got married there in Vancouver.

[Wendy J 0]

You could also ask me. I immigrated to Canada (instead of the usual "move to the U.S.") and I got married there in Vancouver.

Hey! Thanks for all the info everyone! I feel so much better knowing that the chances of him being turned away for a simple visit is probably not going to happen! He would have no problems showing information stating his want/need to return to the USA.

We were thinking of getting married in Mexico but with him being american, me canadian and all the paper work that has to be done, it just seems like it would have taken forever!

This the the better way to do things, he needs all the regular info and it can be done easily here in manitoba where I live!

Sentinel~ Any advice you care to share will be of great value!! It's good to have someone like you to help and support a good cause!

[DeadPoolX 9]

You could also ask me. I immigrated to Canada (instead of the usual "move to the U.S.") and I got married there in Vancouver.

Hey! Thanks for all the info everyone! I feel so much better knowing that the chances of him being turned away for a simple visit is probably not going to happen! He would have no problems showing information stating his want/need to return to the USA.

We were thinking of getting married in Mexico but with him being american, me canadian and all the paper work that has to be done, it just seems like it would have taken forever!

This the the better way to do things, he needs all the regular info and it can be done easily here in manitoba where I live!

Sentinel~ Any advice you care to share will be of great value!! It's good to have someone like you to help and support a good cause!

Wendy, try PMing me if you have any questions in particular. I can't guarantee that I can answer all -- or even any -- of them, but if I can help, I most certainly will. Just don't tell anyone. I need to keep my reputation for being an a$$hole.

[Wendy J 0]

Hi all! Remember me? LOL!

Ok, so heres the deal....we are getting married in June!!!! We'll be getting married here in Canada and he will be going back and forth for awhile because of a) him not having a work visa, B) him having to sell his stuff c) medical things. etc.

So really, we don't know where to start to get him here, I suppose a work visa is the main goal right now but how hard are they to obtain and how long is the process to have him approved? Like I said before I am a total newbie to all this so any help to lead us in the right direction is greatly appreciated!

[Kathryn41 3,205]

Once you are married you can sponsor him as a spouse to come to Canada. There are two ways of doing that - the longest is that he comes as a visitor to Canada, keeps his visitation status valid by obtaining a temporary resident permit while waiting for immigration within Canada to happen. You would sponsor him from within Canada, and while he would not be allowed to work doing it this way you would be together. Or, you could sponsor him to become a permanent resident with the processing taking place outside of Canada. This would be the fastest - probably about 9 months to a year, would allow him to stay in the US but visit you in Canada, keep working and have a window of opportunity within which to activate his visa and move permanently to Canada.

You can find all of the information and all of the forms you need here: http://www.cic.gc.ca/english/immigrate/sponsor/index.asp

Good luck to you - and yes, DeadPoolX is very familiar with the process - he has just gone through it.

Edited May 6, 2009 by Kathryn41

[Wendy J 0]

Once you are married you can sponsor him as a spouse to come to Canada. There are two ways of doing that - the longest is that he comes as a visitor to Canada, keeps his visitation status valid by obtaining a temporary resident permit while waiting for immigration within Canada to happen. You would sponsor him from within Canada, and while he would not be allowed to work doing it this way you would be together. Or, you could sponsor him to become a permanent resident with the processing taking place outside of Canada. This would be the fastest - probably about 9 months to a year, would allow him to stay in the US but visit you in Canada, keep working and have a window of opportunity within which to activate his visa and move permanently to Canada.

You can find all of the information and all of the forms you need here: http://www.cic.gc.ca/english/immigrate/sponsor/index.asp

Good luck to you - and yes, DeadPoolX is very familiar with the process - he has just gone through it.

Thanks Kathryn!! DeadPoolX~ I sent you a PM!!