Engaged to a canadian citizen, but she's currently visiting

[ezekial3 0]

Hey all, I want to marry a foreign woman here on a visiting visa which expires at the end of 90 days... I don't want her to have to leave the country so we can get started on our new life together with the quickness.... can i marry her here and then file for a Application of STatus change or how does this process work? Will she have to leave the country if we get married in cali or vegas let's say? Any help and insight would be appreciated. This is/was a last minute/spontaneous/random decision that we came to and her 90 day period is almost over so we need to get this process started asap. Any help is greatly appreciated. Thanks!!

Regards,

ezekial

[RosaMystica7 0]

Well, the answer starts with a question - did she intend to marry you when she came into the country? If not, you can get married and file for AOS without her leaving. If she did... then either don't get married and file the K1 or do get married and file the K3. What state does the USC live in? That'll help us know what service center you'd have to file to if you had to go the K1/K3 route, which have different processing times.

[mozplay 29]

Hi,

A couple of things:

As a Canadian, she is allowed to stay in the US for up to 6 months in a calendar year or at a time.

You can get married, have her remain and then AOS provided that you are able to prove that when your now fiance came to the US that this was not your intention. It is perfectly legal to get married in the US while visiting, but staying is another thing altogether. It is not legal to enter on the VWP with the intent of marrying AND staying.

Just be sure you can prove that when your now fiancee entered the US that there was intent to go back to Canada and that the engagement and marriage was decided upon during the visit.

Please someone else.. correct me if I'm wrong here.

[raymaga 25]

Canadians do not need a "visitor visa" to enter the U.S. What "expires" in 90 days?

If your fiance entered the U.S. without intentions of marrying a U.S. citizen AND staying in the U.S. to live, then yes, you can file for AOS (Adjustment of Status) after your marriage. It is NOT illegal to enter the U.S., marry a U.S. citizen, and then return to your home country to process either a K-1 or K-3 visa.

It is visa fraud to intentionally enter the U.S. to marry AND stay in the U.S. If you planned on getting married before she entered the U.S., then you will have to either file for the K-1 Visa (Fiance Visa) or the K-3 Visa. Both these visas require the foreign fiance/spouse to return to their home country for the interview. They can stay in the U.S. during the processing (for as long as they are legally allowed to "visit" the U.S.), but must have the medical exam and interview in their home country.

Edited December 8, 2006 by raymaga

[ezekial3 0]

Well, the answer starts with a question - did she intend to marry you when she came into the country? If not, you can get married and file for AOS without her leaving. If she did... then either don't get married and file the K1 or do get married and file the K3. What state does the USC live in? That'll help us know what service center you'd have to file to if you had to go the K1/K3 route, which have different processing times.

Thanks for your response and happy holidays!! She/we did not intend to get married when she came into the country, but have both decided to after hanging out with each other. Just as an FYI for myself, if we did intend to get married, and we file a k-3 would she still have to leave the country until that's processed and then come back in?

I'm not exactly sure what USC is... i'm going to matlock this one out and assume that's United States Citizen... and that state would be California, but we've talked about potentially doing this all in las vegas, Nevada... not sure if one has a benefit over the other. Forgive me for any naivity as this is all completely new to me in the last two days!! Thanks again for any help!

[mozplay 29]

Just as an FYI for myself, if we did intend to get married, and we file a k-3 would she still have to leave the country until that's processed and then come back in?

She could stay in the US for up to the allotted 6 months. Be very careful not to overstay this.

There is no rule that she could not visit while the visa application is in process. Many have done this with no problems at all but many have also been turned away at the border. Check out the Canada forum for more border crossing stories.

Just so you know, I am a Canadian, currently in the US waiting out the process. I've been here since August. Good luck to you!

Mo

[ezekial3 0]

She is under the impression that the visit limitation for a canadian entering the US is 90 days. Not six months... there is no actual/physical visa for visiting hte US from Canada, however, isn't there a time limit? This is what I'd be referring to when I say "it" expires in 90 days. After a certain period she must leave the US am i incorrect here?

[mozplay 29]

The time limit for Canadians is 6 months. 180 days to be exact. But that is cumulative. Make sure to count up ALL the times that she has visited this year.

[ezekial3 0]

Just as an FYI for myself, if we did intend to get married, and we file a k-3 would she still have to leave the country until that's processed and then come back in?

She could stay in the US for up to the allotted 6 months. Be very careful not to overstay this.

There is no rule that she could not visit while the visa application is in process. Many have done this with no problems at all but many have also been turned away at the border. Check out the Canada forum for more border crossing stories.

Just so you know, I am a Canadian, currently in the US waiting out the process. I've been here since August. Good luck to you!

Mo

Thanks for the tip on the Canada forum. So, can you provide some insight on how I might start this process? If Canadians can in fact reside for six months (she's already been here for 3) before being required to leave, do you think we can get the k-1 or k-3 visa before then? or is that pushing it? Also, if six months expires and she leaves just before the last day, can she come back into the country for another six months? If so, how long does she have to wait before she re-enters.

Thank you all for you help - already I'm starting to feel I'm getting a better grip on this.

[ezekial3 0]

She is under the impression that the visit limitation for a canadian entering the US is 90 days. Not six months... there is no actual/physical visa for visiting hte US from Canada, however, isn't there a time limit? This is what I'd be referring to when I say "it" expires in 90 days. After a certain period she must leave the US am i incorrect here?

She's come into the country only once this year... we are approaching the 3 month mark on Jan 5, 07... can she remain until May or June without having to exit the country and re-enter? If so, we have more time to work on the visa and also, she can stay past the holidays... thanks

[mozplay 29]

Thanks for the tip on the Canada forum. So, can you provide some insight on how I might start this process? If Canadians can in fact reside for six months (she's already been here for 3) before being required to leave, do you think we can get the k-1 or k-3 visa before then? or is that pushing it? Also, if six months expires and she leaves just before the last day, can she come back into the country for another six months? If so, how long does she have to wait before she re-enters.

Thank you all for you help - already I'm starting to feel I'm getting a better grip on this.

the best way to get started is to read for the next week and a half. real ALL the tips and guides provided here and read through the posts on the pertinent forum. i'm not giving you the brush off at all - trust me - the best thing to do is get as much info as you can BEFORE you file any papers. mistakes can cause delays that you obviously do not want.

3 months? do you have a personal relationship with a magician? lol. well - it's an imaginable time frame but not likely. most Canucks will tell you to budget about 6 months (that is if you do the K1 or K3). I don't have a clue what it would be if you are getting married and filing AOS - this is the wrong forum for that.

as for her re-entering. there are no hard and fast rules. it is up the discretion of the customs officer. what they want to see (of visitors) is an intent to return home. however, if your fiance simply leaves and then tries to re-enter, i would tend to think that would be a red flag for her.

though i have no experience with this, you may be best off getting married and filing for AOS IF the scenario you described really was the way it happened. you will need to speak to others who have done it that way for more help though.

[RosaMystica7 0]

Thanks for your response and happy holidays!! She/we did not intend to get married when she came into the country, but have both decided to after hanging out with each other. Just as an FYI for myself, if we did intend to get married, and we file a k-3 would she still have to leave the country until that's processed and then come back in?

I'm not exactly sure what USC is... i'm going to matlock this one out and assume that's United States Citizen... and that state would be California, but we've talked about potentially doing this all in las vegas, Nevada... not sure if one has a benefit over the other. Forgive me for any naivity as this is all completely new to me in the last two days!! Thanks again for any help!

Thanks, and happy holidays to you as well! Yes USC is united states citizen, sorry about that. If you file for K3 she can stay until the end of her allowed time, but with California Service Center the visa process will take more than 3 months. Question for someone who knows - she was here for 3 months this year... does that re-set on January 1st? So like, she was here for 3 months in 2006 and she can be here for 6 months in 2007? Or is it cumulative, like she can leave after 6 months total and then have to remain in Canada for 6 months total?

As I understand it, the state you get married in doesn't decide what service center you go through... the state you live in does. So say you pick up and move to New York - then you could go through Vermont Service Center which has a faster processing time than CSC (California Service Center) does. Not sure how the USCIS would view re-locating like that, though.

But no need to think about a K3 - she didn't intend to get married and stay when she came into the country, so you're safe to marry and file for AOS (adjustment of status) without her having to leave! If she had intended to marry you and stay in the country when she came then it would be visa fraud to marry and file for AOS, but that's not the case here, so you don't have to worry about that.

[ezekial3 0]

Thanks for all your help guys!!! The basic questions have been answered and I really appreciate that! I think the only other way to get that info is to pay an attorney lol. I will definitely read on here and i wonder if I can find a board that is focused on the whole AOS thing... that will help immensely as well. Thanks again - and happy holidays!!

[RosaMystica7 0]

Yup there's an AOS board, go to the forum index and look for Adjustment of Status (Green Card) General Discussion .

[aussiewench 9]

ezekial3

Have a read here http://www.visajourney.com/forums/index.php?autocom=custom&page=i130guide2