American marries Canadian

[bmy 0]

I am very new to this, so please forgive my naivity.... I may become engaged + marry a Canadian. Neither of us have a lot of money. Should we get married first and then apply for all the Visa's? Can we even get a marriage license if he is a Canadian Citizen? He needs to get down here so he can get a job...please give me any suggestions and help as to how to handle this. We are both older and don't want to have to wait forever for Fiance Visa and him to start working down here in the US. Thanks in advance for any help.

BMY

[Little_My 464]

You have basically two options:

1. K1 fiance visa - you apply for him to get a fiancee visa by filling out form I-129F (takes somewhere between 5-7 months), then he enters as your fiancee, and you have 90 days to get married in the US. After that, you would file the I-485 form to adjust his status to legal permanent resident.

2. CR1-spousal visa - you get married wherever (in Canada, in the US, in the Bahamas..) and file for the CR1 spousal visa. According to VJ, the average time it takes to get the visa is around 9 months - you might wanna look for threads from Canadian CR1 filers to see how long the process is currently taking. The benefit of the CR1 route is that once he gets his visa and enters, he is a legal permanent resident with permission to begin working immediately. No adjustment of status needed. He will, however, have to be outside the US while the CR1 is being processed, but probably could come and visit you here as a tourist / VWP while waiting for the visa.

Read the guides and descriptions for K1 and CR1 visas here on VJ, they will give you a better idea of what the processes are like.

And - unfortunately, no matter which route you take, it will cost a lot of money. I don't know the exact costs of these two processes, but I would say it runs somewhere between $1,000-$2,000 for both, including all the medical examination fees, possible vaccinations, passport photos, filing fees, etc.

[HeatDeath 430]

I am very new to this, so please forgive my naivity.... I may become engaged + marry a Canadian. Neither of us have a lot of money. Should we get married first and then apply for all the Visa's?

The cost ends up being similar, call it $2000-$3000 by the time all is said and done. Marrying first and then applying is slightly less paperwork. Either way you will be separated (except for relatively brief visits) for the better part of a year. If you marry first and apply for a CR-1 visa, this separation will occur after you are married. If you apply for a K-1 visa first, this separation will occur before you are married. Some people find the idea of being separated from their spouse much worse than simply being forced to wait to marry.

Can we even get a marriage license if he is a Canadian Citizen?

Yes. you can get married, in either country, regardless of being citizens of different countries. The local wedding registrar (usually city or town hall) will accept the foreign citizen's passport as valid id and will (almost everywhere) issue a marriage license with no problems. Bear in mind though that marrying before you get any visas locks you into the CR-1 path: the K-1 visa is only for people who aren't married yet.

He needs to get down here so he can get a job...please give me any suggestions and help as to how to handle this. We are both older and don't want to have to wait forever for Fiance Visa and him to start working down here in the US.

Unfortunately there is no way to do this quickly [or cheaply]. As I said above, no matter which route you choose, it will be the better part of a year [and the better part of $3000] before he can enter the US to work. With a K-1, you will start the paperwork process. He will get the visa 6-8 months later. Then he will enter the US, marry you, and file for Adjustment of Status (Green Card) and work papers. He will be able to start working when his EAD (work permit) arrives, 6-8 weeks after he files the AOS papers, which he should do as soon as possible after the wedding.

With a CR-1, you get married first (in either country). Then you both return to your homes and you start the application process. 8-10 months later he gets his visa and enters the US. He can then start working immediately.

K-1 visas process a little quicker than CR-1s, but have an extra 2-3 month delay on when you can work, so the total time from first application to being in the US and able to work is about the same.

Thanks in advance for any help.

BMY

No problem at all. You've found the right place for help with this entire process.

Edited April 20, 2011 by HeatDeath