Canadian Gal - American Guy

[JohnDeerePiano 0]

Hi there,

Here`s a quick synopsis of our situation: He`s American (born in the United States) and I am Canadian (born in Canada). Neither of us have children, and neither of us have been previously married. He`s 39 and I`m 38 years old. Neither of us have a criminal record, so I`m thinking that this will be favourable for us. He is VERY slow with typing, so I got nominated to do the posting!! We are fortunate, in that we live relatively close to one another; it`s just a 4-hour drive, so we see each other every weekend. We take turns going back and forth between each other`s houses. Because of our location, we use a relatively small port of entry, so the border guards on both sides are beginning to recognize us!! lol We`re both fluent in the English language. Both of our families are very supportive and very happy for us; my mother told me that she instinctively knew that we would be getting married the first time she met him. His mother said the same thing after meeting me for the first time. We are in the process of becoming engaged; we`ve looked at rings together, now he just needs the opportunity to ask my father for my hand in marriage. He`s the man of my dreams and I know that we will have a very happy life together. It`s a very exciting time!

Here`s where we have questions. We will be marrying, and we hope to have babies and raise a family together in the United States. We want to follow the best process for getting me to the United States. Obviously, because of my age, I`d like to be residing in the U.S. as his wife as soon as possible, so that we can start a family.

Here are the questions:

1. Should we use the fiancée visa ... is it worthwhile, or is it a waste of time

2. Should we just get married, then apply for a spousal visa. If so, is it better (i.e., easier) if we marry in the States ... We will be having a large wedding; we both have HUGE families and lots of dear friends. It`s important to both of us to be married in a church, but other than that, it doesn`t matter on which side of the border we have our wedding.

3. How long since the beginning of our relationship should we wait before applying for the fiance visa, if we choose to go that route ... should we be together a certain number of months or years in order to have success with our applications

4. How or where do the K1 or K3 visas play into the immigration process

5. If we decide to have a wedding in Canada, what should we do in terms of the immigration process

6. Which forms do we need to submit, and in what order

I`m hoping to get a little guidance with this process. I thank you in advance for any advice.

[C-ma'am 684]

**Moved from Progress Reports to main K1 forum

[Harpa Timsah 13,258]

Because you travel back and forth, the spousal visa sounds better for you. For the fiance visa, there is a period of time when the new immigrant (you) cannot leave the US. With the spousal visa, you trigger your permanent residence when you enter the US with the visa, and can travel immediately. You can continue to visit throughout the process, like now, but you might be asked to show strong ties to home.

If you agree with that plan, where you get married does not matter. Up top there are guides to the processes and also comparison guides. (Ignore the K-3, it is no longer available).

Good luck and congrats!

[amykathleen2005 441]

Hi there,

Here`s a quick synopsis of our situation: He`s American (born in the United States) and I am Canadian (born in Canada). Neither of us have children, and neither of us have been previously married. He`s 39 and I`m 38 years old. Neither of us have a criminal record, so I`m thinking that this will be favourable for us. He is VERY slow with typing, so I got nominated to do the posting!! We are fortunate, in that we live relatively close to one another; it`s just a 4-hour drive, so we see each other every weekend. We take turns going back and forth between each other`s houses. Because of our location, we use a relatively small port of entry, so the border guards on both sides are beginning to recognize us!! lol We`re both fluent in the English language. Both of our families are very supportive and very happy for us; my mother told me that she instinctively knew that we would be getting married the first time she met him. His mother said the same thing after meeting me for the first time. We are in the process of becoming engaged; we`ve looked at rings together, now he just needs the opportunity to ask my father for my hand in marriage. He`s the man of my dreams and I know that we will have a very happy life together. It`s a very exciting time!

Here`s where we have questions. We will be marrying, and we hope to have babies and raise a family together in the United States. We want to follow the best process for getting me to the United States. Obviously, because of my age, I`d like to be residing in the U.S. as his wife as soon as possible, so that we can start a family.

Here are the questions:

1. Should we use the fiancée visa ... is it worthwhile, or is it a waste of time

2. Should we just get married, then apply for a spousal visa. If so, is it better (i.e., easier) if we marry in the States ... We will be having a large wedding; we both have HUGE families and lots of dear friends. It`s important to both of us to be married in a church, but other than that, it doesn`t matter on which side of the border we have our wedding.

3. How long since the beginning of our relationship should we wait before applying for the fiance visa, if we choose to go that route ... should we be together a certain number of months or years in order to have success with our applications

4. How or where do the K1 or K3 visas play into the immigration process

5. If we decide to have a wedding in Canada, what should we do in terms of the immigration process

6. Which forms do we need to submit, and in what order

I`m hoping to get a little guidance with this process. I thank you in advance for any advice.

I would get married and then do a spousal visa. That way when it is approved you can enter with a green card with work and travel privileges. You can be together for any amount of time to file either application. K-1 is the fiance visa, K-3 is an old spousal visa which is now not used. You should go with a CR 1 visa. If you want to marry in Canada all you have to do is have him come over and wed. That's it.

Here is how to file CR1:

http://www.visajourney.com/content/i130guide1

[Kathryn41 3,205]

I've moved this topic from the K-1 forum to the Canada Regional forum as it is not K-1 specific and the OP is currently exploring immigration opportunities between Canada and the US, which can best be answered in this forum.

[Canadiandggal 49]

Hi there,

Here`s a quick synopsis of our situation: He`s American (born in the United States) and I am Canadian (born in Canada). Neither of us have children, and neither of us have been previously married. He`s 39 and I`m 38 years old. Neither of us have a criminal record, so I`m thinking that this will be favourable for us. He is VERY slow with typing, so I got nominated to do the posting!! We are fortunate, in that we live relatively close to one another; it`s just a 4-hour drive, so we see each other every weekend. We take turns going back and forth between each other`s houses. Because of our location, we use a relatively small port of entry, so the border guards on both sides are beginning to recognize us!! lol We`re both fluent in the English language. Both of our families are very supportive and very happy for us; my mother told me that she instinctively knew that we would be getting married the first time she met him. His mother said the same thing after meeting me for the first time. We are in the process of becoming engaged; we`ve looked at rings together, now he just needs the opportunity to ask my father for my hand in marriage. He`s the man of my dreams and I know that we will have a very happy life together. It`s a very exciting time!

Here`s where we have questions. We will be marrying, and we hope to have babies and raise a family together in the United States. We want to follow the best process for getting me to the United States. Obviously, because of my age, I`d like to be residing in the U.S. as his wife as soon as possible, so that we can start a family.

Here are the questions:

1. Should we use the fiancée visa ... is it worthwhile, or is it a waste of time (In my opinion, Extra cost and hard to plan a wedding when you dont know when you will be approved)

2. Should we just get married, then apply for a spousal visa. If so, is it better (i.e., easier) if we marry in the States ... We will be having a large wedding; we both have HUGE families and lots of dear friends. It`s important to both of us to be married in a church, but other than that, it doesn`t matter on which side of the border we have our wedding. I say go for the cr-1 spousal visa, It doesn't matter where you get married, although it might be easier to plan it in canada.

3. How long since the beginning of our relationship should we wait before applying for the fiance visa, if we choose to go that route ... should we be together a certain number of months or years in order to have success with our applications As long as you have met in the past 2 years (In person), I would say a good 6 months since your first meeting.

4. How or where do the K1 or K3 visas play into the immigration process : Guides are up top, cr1 starts by filing a I130 (5months) then nvc stage (1 Month) then interview (2 months)

5. If we decide to have a wedding in Canada, what should we do in terms of the immigration process Nothing special, take pictures and make sure to order a copy of your marriage certificate

6. Which forms do we need to submit, and in what order I use to know but they have change some things

I`m hoping to get a little guidance with this process. I thank you in advance for any advice.

[Rob & Monika 87]

Both the K-1 and CR-1 have their advantages. Personally, I asked the only US-Canadian couple I know about what they did. They had the CR-1 and had told me they wished they had done the K-1. I don't remember why they said that, I think it was being married and not being able to live together that bothered them most.

The K-1 you can start immediately even if you haven't picked out a ring, or if he hasn't officially proposed, where the CR-1 you will have to wait until you marry to begin the process. The K-1 route costs about twice as much. K-1 will give you 7-10 months to plan out a big wedding if that is your fancy.

I think the big thing to look at is travel. The K-1 will keep you stuck in the US for about 4-6 months after you enter to get married. The CR-1 you technically cannot move here until the process is complete, so you will be married and still living 4 hours apart. You also run the risk of being denied entry into the US until the process is complete. There are several members here that got stuck in this situation. There are measures you can take to prevent this situation but no guarantees. If they get any feeling that you will not return home, they will turn you around. Sometimes it just takes "I'm visiting my husband" to get turned around. It just depends on who you talk to at the border and what mood they are in. I have yet to hear of a USC getting denied entry to visit a Canadian spouse, so you should be able to at least see each other regularly.

[Flames9_RN 358]

http://www.visajourney.com/content/compare compares the different visas--disregard the k3!!

Everyone is different...Were glad we got married and went the cr-1 route!! Less paperwork, etc etc Everyone has a different opinion on marriage. We had a courthouse wedding, so we could get the paperwork rolling....then later on had a fake wedding,lol We didn't tell anyone,lol so no 1 knew, 99% still do not.

If you go the k1 route, like others have stated, you can't leave the USA--that includes canada until u get Advance parole (AP) or ur greencard!! But take a look at the chart, everyones situation is different. If you don't need to work right away and dont care about leaving the USA, then k1 is propbably the better decision(but more $$$) As well you can't collect CDN EI until your work elgible--where the CR-1 you are work elgible, so can collect (if you qualify--whole thread on that) cheers

[Udella&Wiz 325]

You may also choose which to go with depending on how you like to wait. Would you prefer to marry in Canada and spend the first months living apart,although you can visit or would you prefer to get engaged (still visit eachother)and then eventually marry in the US. As the previous poster says some folks on the K1 don;t like the idea of not being able to leave the US after marrying until authorized which can take 4-6 months sometimes. It's a little bit of a rough go no matter where the waiting occurs but everyone gets through it and life continues on!

No one can say which is better for you. There are plenty of people on both sides in the Canadian forum.

One thing I would say (since you've mentioned your age and desire to have children) I wouldn't sit on it because you are looking at a wait - hard to say whether it's 8 months, 10 months a year etc....but you can't rush immirgation all you can do is be prepared for each stage, have your ducks and documents in a row.

Edited September 13, 2012 by Udella&Wiz