Crossroads! So confusing how to go about being together

[Allie Wabbit 1]

Nice Avatar

Anyway, you will not interview in Toronot, you will interview in Montreal. Only 2 consulates will do K-1 visa interviews, Montreal and Vancouver.

You may also do your medical in Toronto or Montreal.

Do you have country specific questions we can help you with?

Thanks... probably swiped the avatar from you

Do you know if it would be any faster for him to move to Canada? Is there any info on this site to go the other way across the border?

Also I read a comment somewhere that someone had applied for a K-1 and a CR-1, and to my understanding that is impossible, right?

If we were to begin the K-1 visa and decide to tie the knot in the middle of the application process, is there a way to switch to a K-3 or CR-1 without restarting the application?

Thank you!

[Allie Wabbit 1]

that dog of yours might be harder to get into the states than you

I thought that I can just drive through with proof of her rabies shots.... Am I wrong? We saw something to that effect on an immigration lawyer's website (in the general information section)....

[Allie Wabbit 1]

I chose K1 because I needed to be working during any process. K1 has me out of work for only 3 months compared to other options. I don't have trouble going to from the US other than the odd time I go into a secondary check as I clear US customs. They usually just ask questions to make sure I have a job in Canada and I still intending to return to Canada. Always have a return ticket.

I go down once a month and she come when she gets enough time from work. Its like having a long distance relationship. However it's been lucky for us as we have already lived together for 1.5 years in Orlando. The time apart before getting married just makes it all the more special when we can live together again.

What do you mean by a secondary check? The last time I went via Megabus, they told me the person in the passport is not me and asked for extra IDs (which I didnt have) so I can identify myself. Obviously, I will have plenty of other photo IDs to avoid this nonsense... They did not even ask if I had a return ticket....

[Allie Wabbit 1]

1. While you are waiting for the K1 or the CR-1 to be processed you can still travel into the States. Be prepared that you may be looked upon with greater scrutiny than you might be otherwise, because of your relationship to a USC. However, if you bring proof of ties to Canada (lease or mortgage papers, proof of employment) and show a return ticket, you should be okay.

2. Other posters are correct that you cannot come to the States, marry, and then adjust your status from tourist to spouse (or fiance) from within the States. You can, however, as a Canadian, stay in the US for up to 6 months out of a 1-year period. You will still need to travel to Montreal to complete your interview and the interview process (for a spousal visa) and Montreal or Vancouver (for the fiance visa, depending on where you reside in Canada). Your friend's experience from the UK may have also taken place when the immigration system was moving quicker - they customarily can stay for 90 days as a visitor, and maybe everything was wrapped up in this time.

3. You can apply for the K3 at the same time that you apply for the CR1. This may or may not get you down here quicker.

Even with the single entry on the K1, you could still come across the border with a UHaul to bring all your things, I believe.

We went with the CR1 because it meant only one round of waiting - when our visa is approved my husband will be able to work, rather than having to wait for many more months and another round of approval for that to happen. You can decide what works for you.

And no, the process is definitely not quick, or fair. Unfortunately that's just the way of the legal process right now.

Thank you for the comprehensive response - very helpful!

If I went down and lived with him for 4 months while they are processing the application how can I prove that I intend to come back to Canada (for the interview, etc.) - obviously I wont keep an apartment or my job... I will also enter with some personal belongings and my dog... they will probably view it as me trying to move in and marry and change status on the spot. We wont risk 6 months, because we are not sure when they start counting that period - January to December or the last first instance of entry i.e. September 2012 (when I entered USA to go on another cruise).

[stevie b 141]

I thought that I can just drive through with proof of her rabies shots.... Am I wrong? We saw something to that effect on an immigration lawyer's website (in the general information section)....

I am not sure how it works out, but there is definitely some kind of process

[smrowe 12]

Do you know if it would be any faster for him to move to Canada? Is there any info on this site to go the other way across the border?

Also I read a comment somewhere that someone had applied for a K-1 and a CR-1, and to my understanding that is impossible, right?

If we were to begin the K-1 visa and decide to tie the knot in the middle of the application process, is there a way to switch to a K-3 or CR-1 without restarting the application?

Thank you!

You could try roadtocanada.com. I've heard that it has helpful info for immigrating to Canada. Friends we know who went through the process found it to be much more humane - you actually get to be with your spouse while your visa is finalized!

And as far as I understand, you have to pick one road and stick with it, or start over with a new application and new fees.

I thought that I can just drive through with proof of her rabies shots.... Am I wrong? We saw something to that effect on an immigration lawyer's website (in the general information section)....

A friend of ours (USC student studying in Toronto) goes back and forth with her dogs all the time. She brings proof of rabies shots, but rarely even gets asked for them.

Thank you for the comprehensive response - very helpful!

If I went down and lived with him for 4 months while they are processing the application how can I prove that I intend to come back to Canada (for the interview, etc.) - obviously I wont keep an apartment or my job... I will also enter with some personal belongings and my dog... they will probably view it as me trying to move in and marry and change status on the spot. We wont risk 6 months, because we are not sure when they start counting that period - January to December or the last first instance of entry i.e. September 2012 (when I entered USA to go on another cruise).

Proving those ties can be a tricky thing for a long visit. In our case, my husband is a doctoral candidate (done with classes but not the degree), so his advisor wrote a letter saying that he had to come back. His name was still on his leased apartment that he shares with friends (so he still has a residence to come back to and obligations to it), and another friend lived in his room while he was gone to help pay rent. We were very careful not to bring too much stuff as well.

[kc247 22]

I thought that I can just drive through with proof of her rabies shots.... Am I wrong? We saw something to that effect on an immigration lawyer's website (in the general information section)....

My grandparents go to Florida from New Brunswick every year for 6 months and have only just had to show proof of vaccinations. Never have had a problem with the dogs at the border. My plan is for my parents to take my dog with them after I am settled, they will drive with him for their visit, and leave him with me. I have done some research and it doesn't seem like people have too much trouble with dogs at the border as long as you have the proper paperwork. (Maybe I'm wrong? Just what I've heard..I sure hope I don't have problems as I can't live without my boy!) I wonder if it's easier to fly? I really don't want to have to ship him on a plane.

[Cliff&Liz 10]

The cr1 takes long than the K1

[NikLR 13,227]

The cr1 takes long than the K1

Not necessarily. My CR1 process has taken 8 months from filing to moving day. Another lady interviewed with me today and hers has been 6 months. Some are less. Some are more.

I think the advantages of a CR1 far outweigh the disadvantages. Especially if you're already on the eastern side (like Ontario.) It's cheaper and you can work or travel immediately. Plus you can get married WHEREVER you want, you're not stuck getting married in the USA if that's not what you want to do, but you do have to wait for the marriage certificate which can take a long time in some provinces like Ontario and even some countries should you choose to marry abroad.

The important thing to do when you do EITHER process when you travel back and forth is make sure you bring proof of ties to your home country. So if you're travelling to the USA, you need to bring your lease, a letter from your employer, pay stubs, bills, mortgage, anything that shows you have a need to return to Canada. Stuff that normal people just don't up and leave. But you also have to be prepared to be denied. They don't have to let you in. You have no rights. You're not a USC. Sucks but it's how she goes.

It takes longer to move to Canada than it does to the USA and we have many of the same rules, some are even more strict. For instance unless you have children, you still have a 2 year conditional period where you MUST live together as a marital couple or else the foreign spouse/common-law etc... has to return to their own country. It used to be you only had to support someone for 3 years and they've upped it to 10. http://www.cic.gc.ca/english/index-can.asp Here is the Canada immigration website. I found calling them to be rather helpful when my husband and I were weighing all our options. My manager at my last job was from boston and it took 2 full years before he was a Canadian permanent resident. They did give him a work visa though (rather like the EAD) so that he could work, but that was after 6 months? Which is something that could have changed too when they did the overhaul of the system.

Edited June 4, 2013 by NikiR

[canadian_wife 1,822]

Thanks... probably swiped the avatar from you

Do you know if it would be any faster for him to move to Canada? Is there any info on this site to go the other way across the border?

Also I read a comment somewhere that someone had applied for a K-1 and a CR-1, and to my understanding that is impossible, right?

If we were to begin the K-1 visa and decide to tie the knot in the middle of the application process, is there a way to switch to a K-3 or CR-1 without restarting the application?

Thank you!

roadtocanada.com I think is what you might be looking for regarding immigrating to Canada

You cannot petition for the fiancé visa AND the spousal visa, you are either married or you aren't.

Sorry, no switching. You would have to restart the whole process with new fees if you marry mid K-1 process

good luck

[Allie Wabbit 1]

Not necessarily. My CR1 process has taken 8 months from filing to moving day. Another lady interviewed with me today and hers has been 6 months. Some are less. Some are more.

I think the advantages of a CR1 far outweigh the disadvantages. Especially if you're already on the eastern side (like Ontario.) It's cheaper and you can work or travel immediately. Plus you can get married WHEREVER you want, you're not stuck getting married in the USA if that's not what you want to do, but you do have to wait for the marriage certificate which can take a long time in some provinces like Ontario and even some countries should you choose to marry abroad.

The important thing to do when you do EITHER process when you travel back and forth is make sure you bring proof of ties to your home country. So if you're travelling to the USA, you need to bring your lease, a letter from your employer, pay stubs, bills, mortgage, anything that shows you have a need to return to Canada. Stuff that normal people just don't up and leave. But you also have to be prepared to be denied. They don't have to let you in. You have no rights. You're not a USC. Sucks but it's how she goes.

It takes longer to move to Canada than it does to the USA and we have many of the same rules, some are even more strict. For instance unless you have children, you still have a 2 year conditional period where you MUST live together as a marital couple or else the foreign spouse/common-law etc... has to return to their own country. It used to be you only had to support someone for 3 years and they've upped it to 10. http://www.cic.gc.ca/english/index-can.asp Here is the Canada immigration website. I found calling them to be rather helpful when my husband and I were weighing all our options. My manager at my last job was from boston and it took 2 full years before he was a Canadian permanent resident. They did give him a work visa though (rather like the EAD) so that he could work, but that was after 6 months? Which is something that could have changed too when they did the overhaul of the system.

Thank you Niki. We have now decided to pursue this route - the CR1 Visa application. However, it seems like a lot of drama regarding where and how to marry. I dont dare go to the States (since I have been across the border a total of 9 times for the year and each time they get more and more suspicious even though I dont overstay, nor give them attitude.... they do give me a harder time each time - fact) and that leaves him coming here - which is in 3 weeks (he just left an hour ago).... I cant help but think that marrying him in the States with his family (or the majority of it as he has a large one) present would look better than marrying in Ontario with my mom and some girlfriends in tow. It is very hard to sync up everyone's schedules and to boot the expenses of everything (including flying my mom there and paying for a hotel for her) are staggering.

The other option is to tie the knot on his next visit to Toronto. Which is also uncertain - he has been to Toronto double the amount of times I have gone to the USA since the beginning of the year and they are giving him an increasingly hard time too upon entry. We could get the marriage licence and get married in the same day, but then the wait commences..... Service Ontario told me that it takes 3 months to issue the marriage certificate unless I write and provide proof of urgency as to why my application be processed earlier than usual. I probed to see if it is 3 months in each instance and was told that no, I cant pay extra to have it expedited and yes, it can take shorter time than the 3 months stated, sometimes a day or so depending on volume. So I guess it is a hit or miss and you randomly luck out or dont.

As far as proof of ties - not sure how to demonstrate that because I have been on month to month tenancy in my one bedroom apartment here - my original lease was for a year which was years back. I am lawfully renting (as once the lease expires it is considered a month to month tenancy), but if the officer at the border wants to argue that he does not know this part of the Tenant Protection Act or if he says well, you could have very well given notice and moved out prior to getting to the border I have no response to that (other than I havent, which would be the truth) nor would I have proof. Paystubs and bills = same thing. Just shows that I have been paid (could have quit prior to traveling) and same with the bills - paid them before cutting them off and getting to the border. I am not sure what I can ask my employer to write - usually I have email correspondence regarding my vacation being approved, including dates - to my mind this should suffice, but border patrol and I do not share a mind....

Edited June 5, 2013 by Allie Wabbit

[canadian_wife 1,822]

Canada is a very low fraud country. Don't let what 'looks better' influence your wedding. It matters that you are legally married.

You can get the marriage license whenever you want, but you'll need the official marriage certificate from the province, ours took 8 weeks.

You can show your monthly rent being taken out of your bank account or go for receipts for rent. You can show that you've been paid recently, or that you are up to date on your bills,

But you are right, it is up to the CBP.

good luck

[NikLR 13,227]

I was asked at the interview if his family was at our wedding. I said no and then stated because his mother has severe RA and a hard time travelling, he doesn't really talk to his dad and his brother is in the Navy so couldn't get the time off. My mom is a minister and conducted our wedding. That's kinda a bonus IMO. LOL! Find out which of his family members could be there or of yours could be in the USA and then stop worrying about it. They also understand that people have small, very informal weddings and then perhaps a big party later after moving or when you've had more time to have a real big ta-do.

As for bills, yes if you look at them that way, it hinders but THEY don't generally look at it that way. Granted I haven't travelled as much as you have but I've never been asked to show the proof of ties either. I brought proof of my renter's insurance which came out monthly (and showed each month it was due to come out) and had my address on it, a copy of my phone bill, and a letter from my employer on company letterhead simply stating I was their employee from Date A, held position X, and was due back to work at date B. Signed by my general manager with his phone number and card so they could contact him if they choose. I also brought along with a recent pay stub which collaborates that.

To be honest, have a small wedding in the USA, really a civil ceremony because Ontario takes FOREVER to get back the wedding certificate. And if anything is wrong on it, it takes even longer to fix it. Most of the time in the USA you can get it back, same day. Just to add, we had a very small wedding and went out to lunch vs having a reception. Everyone was supposed to pay for their own lunch but my step father was marvelous and paid for it all. We were married outdoors in a park where you didn't need a permit. There was maybe 20 people total.

Edited June 5, 2013 by NikiR

[mpheonix 7]

Hi! Congrats on your engagement!

I wanted to toss in my 2 cents, for what they're worth, which isn't much on here.

My fiance and I set up a joint Gmail account with a Google Drive. I scan EVERYTHING to do with the visa process and application and put it in the folder so we all have access to the digital copies and we can print it out if necessary. We also have all the email notifications from USCIS going there, and since we both access it, we both see it! It's really nice to have because we're both kept up to speed and everything we need is available to both of us as we need it.

You can apply for a K1 visa, and you're still able to visit while your K1 application is being reviewed. If you do it'll take a while (right now I believe it's between 5-8 months). The visa is one-time entry visa, and it's valid for 6 months. You'll have to marry within 90 days of your entry or you're sent back. My fiance and I decided that when he comes here on his K1, we'll just elope to get legally married, and plan out our "big wedding" once the immigration stuff was settled.

You can get married in the US or Canada, return to your homes and apply for a CR-1 visa. If you go this route (which is cheaper fees wise), I believe you can visit while this is pending as well, but you should check with a more seasoned person on the forum to be 100% sure. The plus to this (which was mentioned previously) is that you don't have to wait for your Adjustment of Status (AoS) to be approved to work, because you're considered a permanent resident as soon as you enter.

Side note is that you still stand a chance at being denied entry at the border on a visitor visa while your K-1/CR-1 visa is in processing. This will not effect your K-1/CR-1 however, so don't worry too much if it happens, a thread here has people who are coming from Canada on a CR-1 who visited multiple times.

As far as I am aware both take around the same amount of time. But which one is shorter varies depending on the queue.

You most definitely do not want to enter the US on a visitor visa with the intent to get married, stay and apply for an AoS, this is considered visa fraud. This can get you banned from ever entering the US again! BIG red flag to immigration.

We used a service to prepare our paperwork, and there are several available RapidVisa, Easy Fiance Visa, etc. They are NOT lawyers but offer services such as answering questions, checking over your application to make sure there are no major mistakes (You'll have to verify that all the information is correct, however). The supporting evidence needed is all there, documents are together, etc. I used RapidVisa myself and I'm SO thankful for their knowledge an help. You might not need or want a service, but I don't speak lawyer and I don't have enough time (I work 60+ hours a week) to be calling USCIS all the time to get answers.

Edited June 5, 2013 by mpheonix

[VanessaTony 3,567]

Hi! Congrats on your engagement!

I wanted to toss in my 2 cents, for what they're worth, which isn't much on here.

My fiance and I set up a joint Gmail account with a Google Drive. I scan EVERYTHING to do with the visa process and application and put it in the folder so we all have access to the digital copies and we can print it out if necessary. We also have all the email notifications from USCIS going there, and since we both access it, we both see it! It's really nice to have because we're both kept up to speed and everything we need is available to both of us as we need it.

You can apply for a K1 visa, and you're still able to visit while your K1 application is being reviewed. If you do it'll take a while (right now I believe it's between 5-8 months). The visa is one-time entry visa, and it's valid for 6 months. You'll have to marry within 90 days of your entry or you're sent back. My fiance and I decided that when he comes here on his K1, we'll just elope to get legally married, and plan out our "big wedding" once the immigration stuff was settled.

You can get married in the US or Canada, return to your homes and apply for a CR-1 visa. If you go this route (which is cheaper fees wise), I believe you can visit while this is pending as well, but you should check with a more seasoned person on the forum to be 100% sure. The plus to this (which was mentioned previously) is that you don't have to wait for your Adjustment of Status (AoS) to be approved to work, because you're considered a permanent resident as soon as you enter.

Side note is that you still stand a chance at being denied entry at the border on a visitor visa while your K-1/CR-1 visa is in processing. This will not effect your K-1/CR-1 however, so don't worry too much if it happens, a thread here has people who are coming from Canada on a CR-1 who visited multiple times.

As far as I am aware both take around the same amount of time. But which one is shorter varies depending on the queue.

You most definitely do not want to enter the US on a visitor visa with the intent to get married, stay and apply for an AoS, this is considered visa fraud. This can get you banned from ever entering the US again! BIG red flag to immigration.

We used a service to prepare our paperwork, and there are several available RapidVisa, Easy Fiance Visa, etc. They are NOT lawyers but offer services such as answering questions, checking over your application to make sure there are no major mistakes (You'll have to verify that all the information is correct, however). The supporting evidence needed is all there, documents are together, etc. I used RapidVisa myself and I'm SO thankful for their knowledge an help. You might not need or want a service, but I don't speak lawyer and I don't have enough time (I work 60+ hours a week) to be calling USCIS all the time to get answers.

Few notes:

1. USC files the I-129F petition. Once approved the Beneficiary files for a K1 visa in their country of residence

2. If you do not marry within the 90 days you are not "sent back". You can no longer adjust status based on the approved I-129F petition, but as long as you marry your original K1 petitioner you CAN still adjust status, you just also need to file the I-130. Also, a K1 cannot marry anyone other than the K1 petitioner and adjust status. A K1 entrant can marry someone else while here on a K1, but they would need to leave the US and file a CR-1. Their relationship would be under greater scrutiny of course given the circumstances

3. The K1 visa is USUALLY valid for 6 months. It can be shorter depending on the validity of your medical. I recall an instance where it was valid only for a month due to the medical expiration date

4. Also, the forms are so simple to complete you don't need a service to help you, but some people don't have the time and prefer to use a service or attorney. These services do not guarantee approval, and these services do not care about your process as much as you do. Using an attorney or service often results in greater delay and errors are you are not checking your forms/packet before sending things, you also rarely hear as soon as there are updates (as you would if you did it yourself).

5. The online site is sometimes right, sometimes wrong. I was fine for K1 and AOS, ROC never updated, and N-400 is going well.

6. You can marry ANYWHERE and apply for a CR-1, need not be the US or home country of the beneficiary.