Anyone try traveling to the US while DCF is in process?

[laura428 0]

You know, I'm kicking myself for not taking care of this before filing... ugh.

We've got plans to fly down to see my parents in the States at the end of this month. Our I-130 was approved in Calgary just a week and a half ago, and we've heard nothing from Montreal (and wouldn't expect to, yet). What kinds of problems can we expect to run into if we head down while this whole thing is already started? I (the USC) be with my husband (the sponsored immigrant) and our two children (filing for documentation of citizens born abroad, but haven't filed yet). I'm trying to think of what we could bring with us to show that we are definitely coming back, like our mortgage papers, maybe a letter from my husband's employer...?

Help, please... eeeeek... I just knew I should have waited to file until after we got back.

[Flames9_RN 358]

Your probably in the same boat as any one that is attempting to get a visa, your at the mercy of the POE officer. I travelled monthly to DC, never had a problem, but there have been others on here that have been denied. If the POE has any feeling you may stay in the USA, he may deny you entry!! Like I said though, many dont have a problem. Show ties to Canada(lease, letter from employer), in case they do ask. Only answer their questions, but dont add on to much! If you do a search, this sort of question (travel from canada to usa) comes up every week on VJ. Best of luck

[zyggy 9]

Your probably in the same boat as any one that is attempting to get a visa, your at the mercy of the POE officer. I travelled monthly to DC, never had a problem, but there have been others on here that have been denied. If the POE has any feeling you may stay in the USA, he may deny you entry!! Like I said though, many dont have a problem. Show ties to Canada(lease, letter from employer), in case they do ask. Only answer their questions, but dont add on to much! If you do a search, this sort of question (travel from canada to usa) comes up every week on VJ. Best of luck

The fact that you're coming with your husband who is a resident of Canada would probably deal with any difficulties. If your husband was a USC AND a resdient of the US, well that could set off some alarm bells in a CBP officers mind. But coming with a USC husband who is resident in Canada would not be a big deal...

However, the bigger problem is your children must enter the US as US Citizens. If you don't have the report of birth abroad, that could present some problems. You need to get those certificates before you try to enter the US...

Edited March 20, 2006 by zyggy

[laura428 0]

The fact that you're coming with your husband who is a resident of Canada would probably deal with any difficulties. If your husband was a USC AND a resdient of the US, well that could set off some alarm bells in a CBP officers mind. But coming with a USC husband who is resident in Canada would not be a big deal...

However, the bigger problem is your children must enter the US as US Citizens. If you don't have the report of birth abroad, that could present some problems. You need to get those certificates before you try to enter the US...

Ok, now I'm really confused.

My husband is not the USC, I am (and am a landed immigrant in Canada as well). He is a Canadian citizen applying for his green card.

And about our kids... we've been traveling to and from the States from Canada since he was born, and only had his Canadian birth certificate with us (as he is a Canadian citizen, soon to be dual when I file). (As Canadian citizens, all they need to provide is a birth certificate, at least until 2007 when passports will be required.) We've never even been asked to show his birth certificate. So why would that be any different now? Why do they have to enter the US as citizens? Maybe I'm missing something glaringly obvious...?

Edited March 20, 2006 by laura428

[zyggy 9]

The fact that you're coming with your husband who is a resident of Canada would probably deal with any difficulties. If your husband was a USC AND a resdient of the US, well that could set off some alarm bells in a CBP officers mind. But coming with a USC husband who is resident in Canada would not be a big deal...

However, the bigger problem is your children must enter the US as US Citizens. If you don't have the report of birth abroad, that could present some problems. You need to get those certificates before you try to enter the US...

Ok, now I'm really confused.

My husband is not the USC, I am (and am a landed immigrant in Canada as well). He is a Canadian citizen applying for his green card.

And about our kids... we've been traveling to and from the States from Canada since he was born, and only had his Canadian birth certificate with us (as he is a Canadian citizen, soon to be dual when I file). (As Canadian citizens, all they need to provide is a birth certificate, at least until 2007 when passports will be required.) We've never even been asked to show his birth certificate. So why would that be any different now? Why do they have to enter the US as citizens? Maybe I'm missing something glaringly obvious...?

Sorry... what I said about you and your husnad is the other way around. The easiest way to say it is if the USC spouse is resident in the alien's spouses country, it's not a problem.

All US Citizens must enter the US as US Citizens as the US does not recognize the other citizenship. For small children (younger than 2 or 3) it may not be much of a deal, but if the children get any older, a CBP officer may go into a tizzy over it. The first time they'll probably give you a warning and tell you to get it. If you don't have it the second time, they probably won't let you in until you do it. Get the Consular Record of Birth done as fast as you can, preferably before you leave for the US. I'd hate to see you have to fly back home because of it. The child IS a US Citizen.. you just don't have the evidence that it is...

Edited March 20, 2006 by zyggy

[laura428 0]

All US Citizens must enter the US as US Citizens as the US does not recognize the other citizenship. For small children (younger than 2 or 3) it may not be much of a deal, but if the children get any older, a CBP officer may go into a tizzy over it. The first time they'll probably give you a warning and tell you to get it. If you don't have it the second time, they probably won't let you in until you do it. Get the Consular Record of Birth done as fast as you can, preferably before you leave for the US. I'd hate to see you have to fly back home because of it. The child IS a US Citizen.. you just don't have the evidence that it is...

Ok... but if this is just a 10-day holiday, why would they not allow them in just as visitors, like any other Canadians who are there for vacation? Because their mom is a USC? There's no way we'll get the records of birth done before we leave - we may get to the Consulate to file, but I'm not sure what processing times are and we're leaving next Thursday.

And... another question... should we make it known that we've filed an I-130? Will this come up when they scan my passport? I want this to go as easily as possible... if there is anything I can say (or not say) to further that, I'd love to know it in advance.

Edited March 20, 2006 by laura428

[Marilyn. 340]

I wouldn't bring up anything unless they ask, be honest but don't divulge more info then asked for

Edited March 20, 2006 by MarilynP

[zyggy 9]

All US Citizens must enter the US as US Citizens as the US does not recognize the other citizenship. For small children (younger than 2 or 3) it may not be much of a deal, but if the children get any older, a CBP officer may go into a tizzy over it. The first time they'll probably give you a warning and tell you to get it. If you don't have it the second time, they probably won't let you in until you do it. Get the Consular Record of Birth done as fast as you can, preferably before you leave for the US. I'd hate to see you have to fly back home because of it. The child IS a US Citizen.. you just don't have the evidence that it is...

Ok... but if this is just a 10-day holiday, why would they not allow them in just as visitors, like any other Canadians who are there for vacation? Because their mom is a USC? There's no way we'll get the records of birth done before we leave - we may get to the Consulate to file, but I'm not sure what processing times are and we're leaving next Thursday.

And... another question... should we make it known that we've filed an I-130? Will this come up when they scan my passport? I want this to go as easily as possible... if there is anything I can say (or not say) to further that, I'd love to know it in advance.

They are US Citizens and must be admitted to the US as US Citizens.... They cannot be admitted as alien "visitors"... sorry, that's the way it works... You are either a US Citizen or an Alien. You cannot be both. If you're a USC, then you cannot be an alien and therefore be admitted to the US as such. Yes.. if their mom (or dad) is a USC, they will reasonably assume they are USC's. The processing time for a consular record of birth is pretty fast... they may do it for you when you're there, like the I-130 or have you pick it up later in the day...

Like I said, if the children are relatively young, they probably will be lenient on it and let you know that you do indeed need to file for it. If you don't do what they say the second time, there could be problems. But I'm of the opinion that if you have the ability to take care of a potential problem before hand, then you should take the steps to do it. If you have the necessary items to file for the Consular Report of Birth, you should do it before you leave.

They probably won't know about the I-130 because you did it through consular processing, unlike if you did it through USCIS where they would know. All you have to say is that you live with your USC spouse in Canada. That in itself will take away the Immigrant intent aspect of things. In addition, you should go through the CBP immigration checkpoint as a family. That is, your USC spouse should downgrade themselves to the Non-USC line and go through with you. If it does come up, just tell them that you're going through the Immigrant Visa process and are awaiting your interview in Montreal.

Edited March 20, 2006 by zyggy

[Marilyn. 340]

I don't see why it should be a problem.... the OP said her children are Canadian citizens

Edited March 20, 2006 by MarilynP

[laura428 0]

They are US Citizens and must be admitted to the US as US Citizens.... They cannot be admitted as alien "visitors"... sorry, that's the way it works... You are either a US Citizen or an Alien. You cannot be both. If you're a USC, then you cannot be an alien and therefore be admitted to the US as such. Yes.. if their mom (or dad) is a USC, they will reasonably assume they are USC's. The processing time for a consular record of birth is pretty fast... they may do it for you when you're there, like the I-130 or have you pick it up later in the day...

Like I said, if the children are relatively young, they probably will be lenient on it and let you know that you do indeed need to file for it. If you don't do what they say the second time, there could be problems. But I'm of the opinion that if you have the ability to take care of a potential problem before hand, then you should take the steps to do it. If you have the necessary items to file for the Consular Report of Birth, you should do it before you leave.

They probably won't know about the I-130 because you did it through consular processing, unlike if you did it through USCIS where they would know. All you have to say is that you live with your USC spouse in Canada. That in itself will take away the Immigrant intent aspect of things. In addition, you should go through the CBP immigration checkpoint as a family. That is, your USC spouse should downgrade themselves to the Non-USC line and go through with you. If it does come up, just tell them that you're going through the Immigrant Visa process and are awaiting your interview in Montreal.

Argh.

Well, if we get what we're waiting on (registration of live births and my school records proving the minimum residency requirement), we'll get down to the Consulate and hope that it gets processed right away. It just seems so strange to me that if they've always entered as Canadian citizens, and the US recognizes and accepts dual citizenship with Canada, that it shouldn't be a problem. But you've got more experience with this than I do...

And again... it's me who is the USC and landed Canadian immigrant, not my husband (the Canadian citizen and sponsored US immigrant). But as you mentioned, with one of us being a USC, we've never had problems at the border and we've traveled back and forth at least several times a year over the last five years.

[Marilyn. 340]

the kids enter the United States as Canadian citizens because that is what they are.....

[laura428 0]

the kids enter the United States as Canadian citizens because that is what they are.....

And see, this is where I'm totally confused. I understand that they're US citizens by birth (which I quite honestly didn't understand until recently), but the US recognizes dual citizenship. They don't give up their Canadian citizenship when they claim their US citizenship, so I'm not sure why they cannot enter as Canadian citizens. Maybe by being US citizens also they MUST enter as such...?

Funny thing is I never would have known ANY of this if we hadn't started the immigration process for my husband. What would have happened if, say, a few years from now when my kids are a little older, we were traveling to the States on holiday. Would they seriously have prevented them from entering because we never filed for documentation of their citizenship? This just isn't one of those things most folks know to do. I actually thought that they would have to apply for their US citizenship because they were born on foreign soil and had prepared I-130s for each of them to submit along with my husband's. Yeeesh.

[Marilyn. 340]

yeah, I am not sure.... I just figured taht if they were born in Canada, they were Canadian citizens and could come and go from the United States but maybe I am wrong

[zyggy 9]

the kids enter the United States as Canadian citizens because that is what they are.....

And see, this is where I'm totally confused. I understand that they're US citizens by birth (which I quite honestly didn't understand until recently), but the US recognizes dual citizenship. They don't give up their Canadian citizenship when they claim their US citizenship, so I'm not sure why they cannot enter as Canadian citizens. Maybe by being US citizens also they MUST enter as such...?

Funny thing is I never would have known ANY of this if we hadn't started the immigration process for my husband. What would have happened if, say, a few years from now when my kids are a little older, we were traveling to the States on holiday. Would they seriously have prevented them from entering because we never filed for documentation of their citizenship? This just isn't one of those things most folks know to do. I actually thought that they would have to apply for their US citizenship because they were born on foreign soil and had prepared I-130s for each of them to submit along with my husband's. Yeeesh.

This is where you have been misinformed... The US does NOT recognize dual citizenship in that if you are a citizen, the US only recognizes you as a US Citizen and does not acknowledge your other citizenships. They recognize dual citizenship in the fact that they cannot control how another country recognizes their own citizens. But the US only recognizes you as a US Citizen if you are a US Citizen. if you are a US Citizen, then you MUST enter as a US Citizen. There are only two types of entries .. as an alien and as a US Citizen. A US Citizen cannot enter the US as an alien, period.

Most CBP officers understand that most people don't know what it takes to get their children registered and such until some point in time that they actually need to get the proof... But as I said, the first time they recognize it, they'll tell you to register the birth at the consulate. They will likely make a notation of that on their system. If you haven't acted on the suggestion the next time that you visit, they'll be a little harder on you.

All I'm trying to do is save you some potential grief. What you've gone through is much like those individuals who keep on going over the border to visit their fiancees without knowing about the immigrant intent provision of the law. You never know if the next time is the time when you are going to get in trouble. Just trying to save you some potential headache at the border.

Edited March 21, 2006 by zyggy

[laura428 0]

All I'm trying to do is save you some potential grief. What you've gone through is much like those individuals who keep on going over the border to visit their fiancees without knowing about the immigrant intent provision of the law. You never know if the next time is the time when you are going to get in trouble. Just trying to save you some potential headache at the border.

I know you are, and thank you.