Moving my belongings from Canada to the US

[Mclovin 2]

"am I able to move personal belongings to the US before approval?"

Be VERY careful with this! My fiance lived in Buffalo and I am from Canada...The company I work for had originally petitioned for me to get a L1b visa which got denied due to the job I do not qualifying. When we were waiting for the petition I gave hm some stuff that I wasn't using, a crockpot, tupperwear a box of his movies. .. when he was asked who's stuff it was and he told them it was mine all hell broke loose. They thought he was trying to move me over there illegally. Everytime he crosses now he gets drilled. I tried to go shopping a while back and I got denied entry and drilled about my fiance.

We have now applied for a fiance visa If I were you and could hold out on moving your stuff I would wait.

[fuzzypinkboots 0]

Short Visa Rundown (as I understand it. Other VJers, please feel free to correct):

K-1 Visa: You get engaged, file for K-1 which takes around 5 months to receive. During this time, you can visit the US but cannot live or work there. Once you receive your K-1, you can move to the US and get married. Once you are married, you file for AOS which takes an additional 5+ months. During that time, you cannot leave the US unless you are granted Advanced Parole, which takes about 3 months from the time you file. Once your AOS is complete, you get your Green Card and can cross as often as you want and work in Canada.

CR-1 Visa: You get married, and file for CR-1 Visa, which takes around 10 months to receive. During this time, you cannot live or work in the US but you can visit. Once your CR-1 is granted, you get your Green Card and move to the us.

We are doing the CR-1 visa which was necessary for us because my husband is keeping his job in Canada and had to be able to be at work everyday during the process.

ok I see what you did. I was told that this was one of 2 options available to me. The other would be to marry and then file for AOS. I would then need to live in the US and stay put until granted advanced parole. This option, if correct, works very well for us but it also raises many questions.

How do I get married if i'm not "supposed" to cross the border with the intent to stay? At what time can i move my belongings?

[JlovesA 109]

Short Visa Rundown (as I understand it. Other VJers, please feel free to correct):

K-1 Visa: You get engaged, file for K-1 which takes around 5 months to receive.

It has been taking 5 months just to get the petition approved lately, so I'd say 8-11 months is more accurate right now. I'm at 4 months and not approved yet (that I know of) and Montreal is already being filled up for March interviews...it's probably going to be May/June by the time I'm able to schedule, so that's 11-12 months. Without an RFE.

Just wanted to let the OP know more accurate times recently.

[JlovesA 109]

Just wanted to clarify what I wrote above, I meant the available interviews slots will probably be in May or June by the time I'm able to schedule an interview. NOT that it would be May or June before I'm able to schedule one.

[baron555 934]

ok I see what you did. I was told that this was one of 2 options available to me. The other would be to marry and then file for AOS. I would then need to live in the US and stay put until granted advanced parole. This option, if correct, works very well for us but it also raises many questions.

How do I get married if i'm not "supposed" to cross the border with the intent to stay? At what time can i move my belongings?

Why don't you just stay put in your own country and wait until you get the visa in hand and then come over?

That is what the majority of immigrating K-1s do; most can not move so freely back and forth as you and you are trying to circumvent the entire process just for your own selfish reasons.

[JlovesA 109]

No one has addressed over-stays yet. Fuzzypinkboots, you cannot spend more than 180 days (sleeping over, not day trips) in the USA in 12-month time span. If you do and you are caught, you can be banned from the USA for I think 1 year. I'm not sure what the rules are on Americans visiting Canada, maybe someone else knows.

You can get married whenever you want, no one can stop you from that. Visiting your fiance and getting married is not illegal, but it is illegal to stay. Coming into the USA and telling the border guards you have plans to leave when you don't is fraud, and again, you can be barred from entering the USA if the truth is discovered during the AOS process.

It's best to do this legally. I understand where you're coming from, I live on the border too and am a 2 hour drive from my fiance. Just because we're geographically close doesn't mean we get to circumvent the law. From my apartment, I am actually closer to the USA than I am to the grocery store! It seems weird to have to go through all this for a place that I can see from my apartment, but that's how it is. Listen to the advice you receive here and don't try to skirt around the law. It will only lead to trouble.

Edited November 19, 2010 by JlovesA

[CanAmBride 5]

As far as I know, there no visa where you can move immediatly after you file. You need to go through the process and wait until you have the visa in hand before you move, and you cannot move any of your belongings until you have your visa.

[Brandi n Michael 8]

One thing you might want to watch even now. Is the amount of time you spend in CA and in US. I got picked up at my interview for spending too much time in the US ie: only aloud 6mon less a day. Sure I got approved without problem but sounds as though you might be causing some probs for yourself...have him come up to you.

Brandi

[fuzzypinkboots 0]

I would like to thank those of you who provided helpful information. I would like to reiterate the fact that I have never once tried to "circumvent the law" in my efforts to be with my fiance. As originally stated in my first post, I am wanting to do this completely legally and am only seeking information on how to do that. I will not be entering anyone's country on false pretenses. If the law says I have to wait then i am bound by the law. I would prefer to be properly informed before I decide to do anything as important as moving from my home country.

Again, thank you for all the help.

[JlovesA 109]

I would like to thank those of you who provided helpful information. I would like to reiterate the fact that I have never once tried to "circumvent the law" in my efforts to be with my fiance. As originally stated in my first post, I am wanting to do this completely legally and am only seeking information on how to do that. I will not be entering anyone's country on false pretenses. If the law says I have to wait then i am bound by the law. I would prefer to be properly informed before I decide to do anything as important as moving from my home country.

Again, thank you for all the help.

Good.

Sometimes when new people come along, they don't understand what is and isn't allowed and when they suggest illegal things, people here just assume they're trying to get away with avoiding the law.

Make sure you do a thorough read of the 2 different types of visas available to you, the K1 and the CR1 (the K3 is pretty much obsolete now) on this website so you'll have a good idea of how it all work before you decide which route to take.

Edited November 19, 2010 by JlovesA

[Married2009 32]

We did the CR-1, because it was less expensive in the long run, and he was able to start working once he got his social security card. We got married when he was here, then went home, and we filed the paperwork.

Good luck!

[Colleens 40]

ok I see what you did. I was told that this was one of 2 options available to me. The other would be to marry and then file for AOS. I would then need to live in the US and stay put until granted advanced parole. This option, if correct, works very well for us but it also raises many questions.

How do I get married if i'm not "supposed" to cross the border with the intent to stay? At what time can i move my belongings?

Going to the US, marrying and filing for AOS is an option only IF you are not going to the US with the intent to immigrate. And since you have been talking about either a fiance(e) or marriage based visa it may be difficult to prove that you did not have intent on staying when you first entered the US. When you do the AOS process this way you will have an interview and they will ask you about this. If you had been in the US on say a student visa, met your fiance decided to get married...that would be an ok situation to file for AOS, since when you entered the US you had no immigration intent...you were just a student. Your situation seems different.

As for bringing your household goods over, you must have your visa and be crossing at the same time (if using something like a u-haul) or prior (if using a moving company). There is paper work you will need to fill out to cross with your goods duty free, and it is a good idea to make a list of items you are bringing. (ie Box #1 kitchen goods, box#2 clothing etc). If using a moving company you will need to provide them a copy of this paperwork, a copy of your visa and I-94 that you get when you enter on your visa.

If you wish to continue working in Canada and crossing over on a daily basis, I would think that the CR-1 route would be best for you. It initially does take a little bit longer to get your initial visa, but in the long run it is cheaper and you won't have to wait for your AOS. There is a group of Canadians who applied for AOS in May and we are still waiting on our GC's....so it can really vary on how long it takes to get one. And althought you can get AP within 2-3 months, I am not sure how using AP for daily commuting may work. Many people just do an informal courthouse ceremony, file the CR-1 and then plan a more formal event later.

Have a look through the Canadian forum here on VJ and you will find a lot of information about both processes....you may have to search thru the threads a bit to find info. Also the guides at the top of the page can give valuable information on both the K1 and CR-1 process and help you with your decision on which to choose.

Good Luck

[baron555 934]

I would like to thank those of you who provided helpful information. I would like to reiterate the fact that I have never once tried to "circumvent the law" in my efforts to be with my fiance. As originally stated in my first post, I am wanting to do this completely legally and am only seeking information on how to do that. I will not be entering anyone's country on false pretenses. If the law says I have to wait then i am bound by the law. I would prefer to be properly informed before I decide to do anything as important as moving from my home country.

Again, thank you for all the help.

I can personally understand why Canadian to US immigration can be so confusing. You are able to normally travel back and forth so freely, you may not even understand all of the "other" immigration issues that can come into play. And then when trying to do the K-1 or CR-1 and apply these general immigration requirements which apply to all immigrants (virtually all others can not travel back and forth so freely, if even travel at all) it can become quite confusing. Maybe there ought to be a special K-1 and CR-1 rules just for Canadian immigrants because of the relations between our countries.

But that may never happen so you now know what you need to do and how to do it. Dont' forget to be thankful to the CBP folks and to our countrys' governments that allow such free travel; many many others do not have those priviledges.

Edited November 19, 2010 by baron555

[Krikit 1,164]

1) I understand that I am able to come and go in both countries while the K-1 is still pending but am I able to move personal belongings to the US before approval?

No. You will need to wait until you enter with the visa or sometime after. Here is a helpful link:

CBP FAQ's - Moving to the US

I plan to continue working in Canada...is a letter from my employer enough proof of intent to return or do I NEED to show a lease agreement as well?

Visitation FAQ's

Thank you for your response. It seems silly that this should be so complicated when we live only 20 minutes from each other. I have been considering putting my things in storage and bringing only my clothes over to his place and just staying there while continuing to cross into Canada for work and my dtr for school. That way we are only paying 1 mortgage but I still have strong ties to Cda (ie: job, school...) I would continue using my mom as my Cda mailing address to avoid too much confusion with Cda Post till its permanent. Just not sure if this will jeopardize my visa application. I sincerely want to do this completely legally so nothing gets screwed up in the end.

This will not work as they will see you as a de facto resident. At some point, sooner rather than later, you will be denied entry. Please see the last paragraph of this link:

Documents Required for Canadian Citizens and How Long Can They Stay?

Another thing to consider, I'm pretty sure Advance Parole can only be used once. It can't be used for repeat back and forths, so even though it takes 3 months before you get it, it will probably be around 8 months after you file your AOS that you can actually travel back and forth daily.

Advance Parole is a multi-use document but you have to tick that box.

I am going to move your thread from the K-1 Process forum to the Canada Regional Forum where you will find lots of helpful information specific to Canadians. Take a look at the pinned topic at the top of that forum:

Canada Immigration Guide

Welcome to VJ, fuzzypinkboots.

[Abby62 23]

I live 5 min's from the border too.

This is my story.

July 09, I was told by some people at work that if I had a thorough documentatation of things I was leaving with my then boy friend, at his house.

I got yanked into secondary, denied entry, finger printed, photographed and then got entered into the system and was told not to come back without this huge laundry list of required documents, some of them had to be notarized..complete BS.

Anyways, after 15x crossing into the USA, being interrogated into secondayr every single time, being held up for sometimes 2hrs..it passed. During that period, it was HELL!

Be careful, always bring tons of ties to Canada. They will assume you are planning to immigrate and then it will be sooo much fun for you. They can also just flat out deny you entry until your visa has been approved too.

We got married in Canada, he want back and applied for me, we are almost through the NVC part, we applied in May, 2010. We still have a few months ahead of us. I cross now and then into the USA, but always have tons of paperwork with me.

Do your homework here, don't spend the $$ on an attorney if you don't need too. We learned everything here at VJ.

Good luck!!!