How does the 180 day visit limit apply for americans?

[Adelaid3 1]

hello everyone,

I just had my interview on Tuesday (Woohoo!) and it went swimmingly. My husband who is American is visiting with me. He's been here, in the past year, from september ->december and he visited again from march to the present, so it would equal about 180 of visiting cumulatively once it hits the 10th of May. I'm waiting on my visa in the mail though, and I wonder if it matters if he 'overstays' or not. I tried looking it up online and saw the 180 day visit limit applies per visit but I would like to make sure. I don't want it to adversely affect future visits!

Anyone have any insight?

[Udella&Wiz 325]

Are you asking what happens if he over stays in Canada?

[Adelaid3 1]

I'm asking how it works, that is, does it count as overstay if he stays past 10th of may from CUMULATIVE visits in the past year? Or does it count 6 months per visit? Some sites state per calendar yr but I dont know for sure.

[Transborderwife 4,666]

I don't believe anybody knows for sure aside from immigration a officers

[Adelaid3 1]

I don't believe anybody knows for sure aside from immigration a officers

Maybe I should give them a call.. I don't want to leave it up to chance.

I do recall them stating that it was up to them to judge. For example, if someone was spending more time in Canada than America, then they would be strict or possibly deny future entry if it was too soon.

Edited April 30, 2015 by Adelaid3

[TwoChickies 105]

An officer once explained it to me as being 6 months out of the calendar year. However, like the poster above said, it's really up to the officer. He can always apply for a visitor visa extension if you guys are not planning to move to the states as soon as you get your passport back.

[Adelaid3 1]

sorry to bump this guys, but I wanted to clarify, we had some delays and had to stay a few more days. My husband wasn't given any visas or stamps in his passport at all. Are we safe in assuming he is able to stay 6 months from when he entered canada this time around? We just want to know if there will be any issues if he has to stay longer because he has visited a few times over the past year and we don't know if they only look at visit duration from point of entry. We just don't want issues when I immigrate to America since he will be with me when we cross the border in two days or so.

[Transborderwife 4,666]

They'll have a record of his visits. Don't kid yourself

[Adelaid3 1]

They'll have a record of his visits. Don't kid yourself

I know, I am asking if it will cause problems when we leave Canada. You seem to know, can you please explain how it works?

[Transborderwife 4,666]

I would be more worried about him being given a limit of stay or possible refusal

[Adelaid3 1]

I would be more worried about him being given a limit of stay or possible refusal

Limit of stay? I'm sorry if I communicated wrong (Kind of bad at this) but he is already in Canada visiting. He came with me to the consulate and has been with me since early March. Unless you mean limit of stay/refusal back to America, which I don't think because he is an American citizen. Or if you mean next time he wants to come to Canada.

Edited May 12, 2015 by Adelaid3

[Transborderwife 4,666]

I mean for a subsequent visit.

[Adelaid3 1]

I mean for a subsequent visit.

ok thanks. So I should understand they judge it not per calendar year or per visit (since no stamp) but in the past 12 months, correct?. I don't see us returning to Canada to visit for at least 8 months regardless. I know they don't like it when you spend more time in Canada than America when you're a us citizen but we have no need for that anymore.

Kind of surprised personally, since my research (i.e. rampant googling) has shown either it is 100% up to their judgement or per calendar yr. Answers from all over the place are confusing to say the least.

Edited May 12, 2015 by Adelaid3

[Transborderwife 4,666]

I don't think that it's clear and there's a reason for that. They want to cut down on how long people stay for.

[Adelaid3 1]

I don't think that it's clear and there's a reason for that. They want to cut down on how long people stay for.

Makes sense. Thanks for the help