Overstay In The US

[Canuck5 0]

Hello.

I just had a question that I am hoping I can find the answer to. I entered the US in Jan 2010 and have been here ever since. I am over my 185 days by 3 months. I am 6 months pregnant and wanting to return to Canada for the birth to avoid the medical bill and then plan to return to the US after the baby is born. My question is this: when does the 185 days of a calender year reset? If it resets in Jan 2011, does that mean that I am able to return to the US in January and stay for another 185 days? I am very concerned about this since the baby's father is American citizen and he would not be able to stay with me in Canada if I was to be denied entry due to his other children here in the US. What do you think my chances are of being denied entry back into the US with a newborn baby would be if I could provide proof of residency back in Canada?

Thank you!

[Otto 83]

**Topic moved from Immigration News and Discussion to General Immigration Discussion.

[Sweetcheeksss 91]

There is no "official" date the clock resets, it's totally at the CBP officer's discretion on whether or not he/she thinks you are staying too long in the US without significant time in Canada. In other words, it's part of the border guards' job to assume you are entering the US with immigrant intent - it's up to YOU to convince him (through various evidences) that you intend to return to the US.

And if you have an overstay, it's doubly difficult to prove to the guard that you're not intending to overstay - cause if you did it before, what's stopping you from doing it again?

Also, if you overstay more than 6 months but less than a year, you'll incur an automatic ban when you leave the US (least I think that's correct)

Good luck with everything.

*EDIT* - you may have to prove more than just residency, ie - letter from job/school to say you are returning, utility bills in your name, car title, etc

Edited October 12, 2010 by Sweetcheeksss

[Brother Hesekiel 2,236]

The moment you leave the US, your overstay will trigger a 3-year bar from reentering.

Even if that escapes CBP's attention and you manage to enter the US again, it will still prevent you from doing anything in regard to immigration, whether filing for AOS or CR-1. You then will be bared for 3 years and you'll need an I-601 waiver which is hard to come by.

Worse yet, if they declare you inadmissible at the border when trying to enter, you can ad an I-212 waiver on top of that.

Advice? Don't leave until you have a Green Card or Advance Parole.

P.S.

Read your post again and have to correct myself.

If you entered in January, you have not accumulated enough overstay for the 3-year bar yet. You are allowed to stay 180 days and you overstayed just about 3 months. If you leave, you will not trigger an automatic bar. The bar will be triggered once you are present for a year here.

Edited October 12, 2010 by Just Bob

[Krikit 1,164]

I entered the US in Jan 2010 and have been here ever since. I am over my 185 days by 3 months. I am 6 months pregnant and wanting to return to Canada for the birth to avoid the medical bill and then plan to return to the US after the baby is born.

Once you have been absent from the country for 183 days, Canada deems you a non-resident and your health benefits are cancelled. There is a minimum amount of time you must be present in each province in order to establish eligibility. In Ontario it's 153 days. Link

My question is this: when does the 185 days of a calender year reset? If it resets in Jan 2011, does that mean that I am able to return to the US in January and stay for another 185 days? I am very concerned about this since the baby's father is American citizen and he would not be able to stay with me in Canada if I was to be denied entry due to his other children here in the US.

There is no set period of time Canadians must wait to re-enter the US but if it appears to the CBP Officer that you have taken up residence in the US (which you have) then you will be denied. Link

What do you think my chances are of being denied entry back into the US with a newborn baby would be if I could provide proof of residency back in Canada?

I think your chances of being denied entry back into the US with a newborn baby are high. Make that extremely high.

[canadian_wife 1,822]

Great response Krikit

[leahandlucas 15]

Have a home birth?...without the big expenses of the doctor/hospitals?....you can't leave the U.S....you will be banned for a very long time which will cause a lot of stress on top of that...

Stay, have the baby and get your husband to file AOS to avoid any serious problems

[cartaverde 12]

As you've seen from the othere replies, if you leave US it will become a very long and expensive process to enter back and to stay with your husband.

The cost of the birth is one thing, the paperwork is another... even if the paperwork would cost the same whether filed in or out of US, you'll want to be with your husband - the idea that he (or you) might miss many first months of the life of your child is horrible. So just save as you can and file for the AOS ASAP.

Are there any university hospitals etc around you that might be a bit cheaper option for the birth?