American US soldier marrying Canadian woman

[angiemarie24 0]

Hello all,

I have been dating an American soldier from Fort Drum, NY for several months. I live in Canada north of Watertown, NY. We are only 30 minutes apart, however, he will be leaving the military soon (after 7 years and 3 tours), to go work and live in San Antonio, Texas, where his relatives are.

We would like to be married soon, as we would like to start our lives together in San Antonio.

Can anyone out there give us any information on what steps we should take? We have looked into the Fiance visa, it doesn't appear that that will be of any use to us, as we are not planning a big wedding.

Our main concern is to marry, as well as I would like to maintain my Canadian Citizenship, as my family is in Canada, however would like to be employable in the U.S.

Any help on this topic is greatly appreciated.

Thank you!

[Skribs 6]

Hi!

Well congratulations on your plans to get married first off! I just wanted to share with you my experience. We went the fiance visa route despite us only having a very small and informal wedding. This appeared to be the only route open to us that was totally legal. What gives you the impression you need to have a big wedding to apply for a fiance visa? We didn't even have to provide proof that he had even given me an engagement ring or of our wedding plans. I was just asked when we planned to get married and gave an estimated date.

I hope this helps some.

[NikLR 13,227]

Fiance visa isn't necessarily for a big wedding, its so you can stay together after marriage.

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

ignore the part about not visiting, you' should be able to visit. Also ignore the part about the K3, they're rarely granted. Instead concentrate on the pros and cons of the CR1 and K1 and decide which is best for the two of you.

[teanet 20]

It is same process as he would be civilian and since he will retire, he won't get pcs orders. It's different for military when requesting expedite because of deployment or pcs orders and than different rules when stationed overseas and how spouse maintain green card status. Here you can find all instructions how to fill out visa either K1 or if you marry than CR1. K1 are faster bout than you still have to apply for AOS. CR1 takes longer but you receive green card few weeks after arrivel.

[NikLR 13,227]

It is same process as he would be civilian and since he will retire, he won't get pcs orders. It's different for military when requesting expedite because of deployment or pcs orders and than different rules when stationed overseas and how spouse maintain green card status. Here you can find all instructions how to fill out visa either K1 or if you marry than CR1. K1 are faster bout than you still have to apply for AOS. CR1 takes longer but you receive green card few weeks after arrivel.

Please note that hard copy green cards take 1-3 months normally to get after arrival, but the endorsed visa becomes a temporary green card valid for one year. So a CR1 has a green card immediately upon arrival.

[funkymunky 11]

Fiancé visa is a safe option but I'm cheeky and got married while on visa waiver, went home came and came back on a visa waiver. Filed Cr1 asap after that. Yes I did get hassled at the border but I had all the documents to proof my marriage and dependant iD. It is extremely risky and I can't say I would recommend it! If he is still in the military and you are married when you guys apply, use the military immigration lawyer because it will be a teeny bit quicker (they will also look through your paperwork and file it for you). Not to mention your medical exam will be free too.

Edited July 11, 2014 by funkymunky

[keysjangle 145]

I married a man in the U.S. Navy (I'm Canadian) and we went the I-130/CR-1 route. This would mean you are applying for Conditional Residence (green card good for two years) as you would have been married less than two years at the time of application. 90 days before your GC would expire, you would apply for Removal of Conditions (ROC) which will grant you a 10 year green card. When they first receive your ROC packet, your GC status is extended for one year to allow for processing even though it should only take ~5 months depending on which service centre has your paperwork (which is determined by which state you live in).

It worked out well for us because it left me plenty of time to work and save up money, get paperwork together (medical records, immunization records, police checks, taxes, evidence of bonafide marriage, 9000 passport photos, etc) and also finish my BA.

You can check my signature for an idea of what the timeline looks like. My CR-1 process didn't have any serious delays, it's this ROC business that's killing me.

http://www.visajourney.com/content/i130guide1 This is a good place to start, but definitely look up forms, filing fees, instructions, and required documents on USCIS' website as things may have changed since this got published.

[keysjangle 145]

Oh my god, I had a huge edit to add to that and VJ just wrecked me when I tried to submit it.

Ugh. In short:

- The USA does not officially recognized dual citizenship, but Canada does

- If you become an American citizen (after getting a GC via K-1 or CR-1), you denounce all ties/sovereignty to your previous home

- Canada doesn't care, you're still a Canadian citizen

- You can carry passports for both countries (enter CAN with your CAN one, return to the US with American one, etc)

- If you go CR-1, you'll have your two year green card and SSN within a month of entering the US, so you can work right away pretty much

Here are some more good links:

CR-1 forum: http://www.visajourney.com/forums/forum/110-ir-1-cr-1-spouse-visa-process-procedures/

ROC forum: http://www.visajourney.com/forums/forum/86-removing-conditions-on-residency-general-discussion/

Lindsay's Journey, she's a Canadian poster here who is super smart and helpful!: http://journeythroughimmigration.blogspot.com/

[Jana636 0]

I'm a Canadian citizen and was in similar shoes early this year. I'm still not entirely familiar with all of the processes, however I can tell you we are currently awaiting for our I-130 to be approved. Our lawyer is telling us it can take anywhere from 3-6 months before we'll be reunited, but from what I've read on VJ it can be anywhere 6 months to over a year! In hindsight, we should have forked over the extra money and just gone for an Adjustment of Status, but we figured we'd done the long distance route for so long it'd be no problem - worst. logic. ever. We miss each other so much, and all of the money we've "saved" by going the "cheaper" route has actually cost us more on visiting/flights/hotels, etc.

If we could start all over again, we would have gone with the fiance route. They can be issued sooner and at least you can actually be together as husband and wife permanently after your wedding. You don't need to have a big fancy wedding with the CR1 you simply get married and will never have to part again!

[thelastpetitioner 218]

The biggest difference is, in any marriage related visa, you need to prove a MARRIAGE, and that's hard to do being married to someone in the military and living in a foreign country even tho you're 30 mins apart considering you want to leave with him for San Antonio . For k-1 you just have to prove that you have met within the past two years, so producing evidence wise , k-1 is easier.