Need help with K1

[Idlikeadviceplz 0]

I have a job, finances are fine. What I wanted was advice for proof of relationship. Thanks anyways.

[CarolAnn&Eddy 12]

For K-1 visa you only need to submit proof of face-to-face meeting with the petition. That would include your receipts for your travel from your home town in the US to her home town in Canada. Dates of trips taken, itineraries, hotel receipts, debit/credit card receipts of purchases you made in her home town. If you Click on "guides" up in the blue bar at the top of the pages here, you will see a guide for K-1. Take some time to read through it.. It is very helpful.

edit: I didn't mean the ONLY proof you send was of the face-to-face meeting. There are other evidences that need sent with the forms such as intent to marry, freedom to marry and such, but that you have meet in the last 2 years in person is the requirement. The "continuing relationship" proof/evidence is taken at the time of the interview.

Edited August 21, 2012 by CarolAnn&Eddy

[canadian_wife 1,829]

I have a job, finances are fine. What I wanted was advice for proof of relationship. Thanks anyways.

The only 2 consulates that deal with these sorts of visas are Vancouver and Montreal for K visas and ONLY montreal for spousal visas. So if you were planning on getting married, you would HAVE to go Montreal. And montreal is strict about domicile so if you got married, you'd probably have to separate.

You've been living in Canada for 3 years, i wouldn't lie about that. You mention a visa, do you have a visa? Is your passport stamped? Do you have pictures?

Good luck

[bigdog 376]

See the Canadian threads, you are not the first to be stuck in this situation.

[ckel11310 10]

Not sure what to do with the K1. I'm an American Citizen and have overstayed in Canada while living with my fiance (she's Canadian) for the past couple of years. We'd like to move legally to the US so we can get married and start a family.

I have a legal residence in the US where I file taxes (grandparents house) but it is a rural area so they do not get mail delivered and need to use a PO Box.

The plan would be to file the K1 from here in Canada, go through to process, and when/if approved move back to the states together with our belongings. (Stay with family a few weeks probably while looking for a place to live and work)

Questions -

1) Proof of meeting in the past 2 years. Obviously we have photos since we live together, I've also written plenty of checks to her to pay bills, plus I can include receipts of things I've bought here with my CC. What we don't have are passport stamps or recent travel documents. Heck when you cross on foot from the US/Canada they generally don't even stamp your passport anyways. What are our options here?

2) Mailing address. The plan now is to send all the documents to my sister to have her place them in the mail for us in the States. All the forms are asking for Residence which would be different than a mailing address. What do we do here?

3) Do I need to return to the States without her? This is really a last resort type of option for us, we desperately do NOT want to part for any long period. We've been together for over 3 years and are very much in love.

Thanks for any help!

I didn't send any passport photos of pictures/copies of boarding passes. I only sent a copy of my birth certificate, 4 photos of me and her, 4 copies of cards I wrote her (I write her one every month), and a detailed explanation of how we met, and I didn't get an RFE. So from personal experience, just wanted to let you know for your first question that you don't absolutely need passport stamps. You just need to show that you met and your relationship is genuine.

[Texas22 50]

I don't think your issue here is going to be proof of meeting... I think your issue is more of proof of domicile. You have lived in Canada (legally or otherwise for 3 years). When they ask you on the I-129F petition what your current address is, what do you plan to put? Because technically your current address is in BC right now... not your grandmother's house in USA.

If they find out you lied on your petition, it's bad news all the way around.

Good luck with your journey.

[Idlikeadviceplz 0]

So if you apply for a CR1 they make the Canadian spouse fly from BC to Montreal for their interview? That's confusing.

My passport is stamped from 2009. I file taxes, have my tax forms delivered, have my DL, and all other mail sent to my grandmothers house, the government doesn't seem to have a problem with that, why would they have a problem with my listing it as my legal residence if they don't in all other cases?

Just seems like putting that I'm overstaying and living in Canada is a bad plan to get a K1 actually approved. Is anyone here an actual immigration lawyer or is this all just personal conjecture? Anyone have any actual experience with this? Thanks for all the replies. I feel like maybe I should talk to an immigration lawyer but I have no idea how to go about finding a good and inexpensive option.

Edited August 21, 2012 by Idlikeadviceplz

[yachachiq12 43]

The US has no right to enforce Canadian immigration laws. I'm not sure why you think it would prevent you from getting a petition approved with USCIS. Claiming to live in the US when you haven't in years is an actual problem.

No one here will claim to take legal responsibility for you. If you doubt the advice and feedback you're receiving, you should indeed consult with a lawyer who is well-versed in immigration law on both sides of the border. Some of the most knowledgeable VJ members have been posting here for you.

[Idlikeadviceplz 0]

If it isn't a problem for every other legal document (taxes), why would it be a problem for this? I'm not even claiming I live there, I'm claiming it's my legal residence. I don't have a lease in Canada, I don't directly pay bills here, I don't pay taxes. I don't claim to know how knowledgeable any complete stranger to me is on any subject, but it seems to me that this is opinion and no one has actual experience with this particular situation.

That's not to say I don't value peoples opinions, but that also doesn't mean I have to agree with them. I obviously want to get this application approved and be legally in the US with my future wife.

Edited August 21, 2012 by Idlikeadviceplz

[yachachiq12 43]

A good start for you would be to read the I-864 instructions, specifically the section on domicile. It might clarify some things for you. You can claim that you have maintained a domicile in the US -- no problem there. The problem is if you try to hide the fact that you have been living and sleeping in Canada all this time. Is that what you are actually planning to do?

Another side of this is your concern with proving a relationship: normally, people either show they live together or that they use technology to keep in touch internationally. You may not have a problem with showing proof of meeting, but what evidence will you use to show you have a real relationship if you are claiming to live in the US?

[yachachiq12 43]

I feel like maybe I should talk to an immigration lawyer but I have no idea how to go about finding a good and inexpensive option.

Many lawyers do free consults. I would see if anyone on the Canada forums here has suggested someone recently.

[Idlikeadviceplz 0]

Reading the I-864 now. We have over 12 thousand text messages between us, we have tons of pictures, and I've written checks to her the past several years. Is that not proof enough? (plus we could probably get witnesses to the fact that we're in a relationship)

[Que Saudade 284]

If it isn't a problem for every other legal document (taxes), why would it be a problem for this? I'm not even claiming I live there, I'm claiming it's my legal residence. I don't have a lease in Canada, I don't directly pay bills here, I don't pay taxes. I don't claim to know how knowledgeable any complete stranger to me is on any subject, but it seems to me that this is opinion and no one has actual experience with this particular situation.

That's not to say I don't value peoples opinions, but that also doesn't mean I have to agree with them. I obviously want to get this application approved and be legally in the US with my future wife.

It is not opinion that you are currently breaking immigration law in Canada. It is a fact. You have openly admitted this fact and you are even concerned about deportation. Your current situation makes giving you advice difficult because you can not go about the process the way it was intended. If your presence were legal in Canada, you could get married there and tons of people here to help you on your journey with a CR1. (should you have decided that route)

Even for the K1, you are having to conceal where you have been living for the last 3 years

What part of breaking the law are you not getting here?

You even asked for advice on how to get around your situation because you were concerned.

2) Mailing address. The plan now is to send all the documents to my sister to have her place them in the mail for us in the States. All the forms are asking for Residence which would be different than a mailing address. What do we do here?

You have asked for advice and you have been given it. No one here on VJ condones active neglect of laws.

If you want to commit perjury by willingly and knowingly conceal information vital to your application, that is your choice.

No one here is going to offer advice on how to do that.

Good luck with your decision.

Edited August 21, 2012 by Que Saudade

[Idlikeadviceplz 0]

That question had zero to do with my legal residence. It has to do with the fact that mail is not delivered to my legal residence because it is in a rural town. You have to have mail delivered to a PO Box. I wouldn't expect people to condone "active neglect of laws," however I'm not quite sure that is what is happening here. My legal residence, the place I have my taxes filed and every other piece of residential information belonging to me (including a bank account that I've had for many years) state that is my legal residence.

I don't feel I'm perjuring myself listing that as my residence for taxes, why would I for this?

I never asked for advice on what I should put as my legal residence, now you seem pretty concerned about this so perhaps I will try to find a lawyer to consult me professionally on that issue, as I'm not seeking legal advice from an anonymous forum. (though I would certainly love advice on finding a lawyer that has specific knowledge of these laws and will do a free consult!)

Thanks for your concern.

Edited August 21, 2012 by Idlikeadviceplz

[Idlikeadviceplz 0]

Perhaps I would list both places? I have no paperwork tying me to this Canadian residence so that would be difficult to prove. I fear that listing both would result in a red flag for them? I don't want an RFE.