Some important questions involving my Kamloops Bride to be

[surfndan 0]

Hey everybody!

I hope everyone had a great weekend. I have a couple of questions that hopefully I can get some clarity on. My Fiance and I were recently engaged and have begun the conversations as to when and where we would like to get married. We filed for the k1 in the beginning of April and presume, if all goes well, to have the visa by mid-October. Obviously, that is subject to change. So, since we are trying to determine the smoothest process in getting married and starting life together in Washington DC, my first question is

1.) We are planning to have a ceremony in Kamloops, Canada in December and then leaving from there with, Lord-willing, a k1 Visa in hand. Once we crossed the border, we are planning on making the marriage official by applying for a marriage license. Does this present a problem?

2.)If we have guests that come from the US and are questioned by the Canadian Border Patrol as to the nature of their visit and they say they are attending our wedding, will the Canadian Patrol notate that? I guess I am concerned we might be screwing ourselves by having a ceremony in Canada before getting married in the US with our k1. Does anyone have any advice on this?

3.) If we do decide to have a ceremony in Canada before entering the US, do we just lie and tell them we are not married?

Now, for a different set of questions that is not exactly related.

4.) Once we are married and living in Washington DC. how long is it before my fiance can start working?

5.) What does she have to do to be able to have a job, have a driver's license and receive health benefits?

6.) How long does my fiance have to wait before being able to go back home to Kamloops to visit family and friends?

If these questions can be answered, I would greatly appreciate it! Thank you guys!

[Emancipation 2]

i guess I can speak to your first few questions as we did something in Canada before coming to the US..

You cannot get "married" before coming to the US, so try not to blur that line.. My fiance and I had an open house and a "church blessing" before we came to the US though... the open house really was a wonderful time for everyone to come by and say goodbye and wish us well (our version of a reception) and then the church ceremony was another time for everyone to celebrate our relationship and enjoy seeing us together before we left.. Again, not a wedding, just a blessing, and so when we crossed the border we really were not in the eyes of the law married. might be a blurry line but it's what we did as no one in mid-winter could possibly travel to attend a ceremony in the US.

Having guests come up from the US sounds tricky and something I wouldn't want to mess with for fear of the things you listed above. keep it simple and low key or you will probably be drilled and questioned about it.

[JillA 2]

This is just a suggestion, that many of K-1ers do.... When the K-1 is activated, you can have a simple civil ceremony to make it legal in the US. After AOS is approved, why not have your wedding in Canada then? You will already be legally married, and won't have to worry about any repercussions. Many people do the civil ceremony and the party a year or so later.

Oh and one word of advice: NEVER, EVER LIE!! I see you asked "Should we lie" the answer is NO! If you get caught lying to a border guard you can get in big trouble.

[Hugglebuggles 60]

Right, a ceremony or a celebration or a blessing is perfectly ok, a marriage is not! As long as you don't make it legal, you are not married and you are not lying. Just be careful not to make it appear as though you've married already, you don't want to present any red flags. For me, that was the first thing they asked at the POE, "you guys didn't get married yet right?" because that would make your fiance inadmissible.

After the legal wedding your fiance will adjust her status in the US and with that, will apply for a work permit (EAD) to allow her to work in the US. The normal processing times for the EAD are about 3 months. So she won't be able to work in the time she spends in the US before the wedding, or until the EAD comes through. For me, this will probably end up being about 5 months. As far as I know, to be legally entitled to get a job she would just need the EAD and a SSN which she can apply for with her visa before the marriage and the AOS. Normally, its smart to wait at least 2 weeks after entry to go apply as your name will probably not be in "the system" yet. Each state has their own laws for acquiring drivers licenses. Some allow you to apply with your visa, others make you wait until you have an EAD, and some even require a green card. As far as health benefits go, that would depend on the nature of your coverage. Most companies allow you to add your wife after marriage, but some will allow you to do it before.

When your fiance adjusts her status (AOS) and applies for the EAD, she can and should also apply for Advance Parole (AP) which allows her to travel back to Canada and back into the US while her adjustment case is being processed. These are normally received around the same time as the EAD.

[Tankgurl38 0]

What Hugglebuggles has said is right on the button.

And as they have mentioned previously, on a K1 Visa you can not legally get married before you cross the border to use the K1 Visa, you have to still be single and have the intent to get married within 90 days of crossing the border.

As for when she might be able to go back into Canada, it seems like most AOS is taking about 90 days to happen after you apply for it. So...in my case, we are getting married in July, I am not planning to be able to leave the US or work until at least October/November. If it happens earlier, than it is a bonus.

Edited June 15, 2009 by Tankgurl38

[Udella&Wiz 325]

Hey everybody!

I hope everyone had a great weekend. I have a couple of questions that hopefully I can get some clarity on. My Fiance and I were recently engaged and have begun the conversations as to when and where we would like to get married. We filed for the k1 in the beginning of April and presume, if all goes well, to have the visa by mid-October. Obviously, that is subject to change. So, since we are trying to determine the smoothest process in getting married and starting life together in Washington DC, my first question is

1.) We are planning to have a ceremony in Kamloops, Canada in December and then leaving from there with, Lord-willing, a k1 Visa in hand. Once we crossed the border, we are planning on making the marriage official by applying for a marriage license. Does this present a problem?

2.)If we have guests that come from the US and are questioned by the Canadian Border Patrol as to the nature of their visit and they say they are attending our wedding, will the Canadian Patrol notate that? I guess I am concerned we might be screwing ourselves by having a ceremony in Canada before getting married in the US with our k1. Does anyone have any advice on this?

3.) If we do decide to have a ceremony in Canada before entering the US, do we just lie and tell them we are not married?

Now, for a different set of questions that is not exactly related.

4.) Once we are married and living in Washington DC. how long is it before my fiance can start working?

5.) What does she have to do to be able to have a job, have a driver's license and receive health benefits?

6.) How long does my fiance have to wait before being able to go back home to Kamloops to visit family and friends?

If these questions can be answered, I would greatly appreciate it! Thank you guys!

I'll answer 4,5,6 since justice has been done to the first 3 - have a look at my timeline since we're from the same area and I just did each last year......

4) She needs the E(mployment) A(uthorization) D(ocument) which is part of applying to Adjust her status after you marry here - was about 2.5 months - it came only a week or 2 before the actual 2 yr GC itself

5.) What does she have to do to be able to have a job, have a driver's license and receive health benefits?

She needs to have the EAD or 2 yr gc to be legal to work - she could even start applying for jobs once she receives notice that it's coming in the mail if she'd like to get a head start - as long as she has it ready to present when the new employer needs proof of her legal status to work. She may or may not need her SSN to get on your health benefits - this is a sticky point. Some companies are fine knowing you're going to have it shortly, other's insist that it be shown befroe they add ehr on your health plan. You could go ask your HR/Benefits person now in preparation. Read a couple thread here about how long it too and when to apply for the SSN (my timeline shows mine). can't answer the DL thingy since I don't drive, but plenty of others will answer.

6.) How long does my fiance have to wait before being able to go back home to Kamloops to visit family and friends?

About the same time as her EAD - Advanced parole (part of the Adjustment of status pkg) took me about 2.5 months approx. Keep in mind times depend on current service standards which can be looked up online. Everyone here is really helpful and you'll find many threads addressing these very issues

[BermyCat 1]

Phil and I considered having a non-legal ceremony before entering the US. We found it quite difficult to find a priest that would be willing to ( or allowed to ) perform a ceremony that could be confused with a legal wedding. A renewal of vows after the legal wedding they were all fine with.

~ Catherine

[July09Bride 1]

Plus, something to think about... the purpose of a K1 is to enter the US as a fiance' and get married in the USA within the 90 days of activating the Visa. If I'm not mistaken, you will have to show proof of the date of marriage with a valid/legal US marriage license as a part of the AoS (Adjustment of Status).

Just as a suggestion, you might want to rethink your plans and go with Jill's suggestion of civil wedding in US then go back after AoS for "church" wedding and reception or go with the other option suggested of having an "open house"/party to have your relationship blessed and say goodbye to everyone before you leave, then come to the USA for the wedding.

Good luck to you!