US Citizenship Residency Requirement

[Cocacola7890 0]

Hello Everyone,

 

I am a US Citizen and Married to a Canadian Citizen. My Wife has a US Green Card from Last 5 years and Canadian Passport. However After Marriage both of us moved to Canada. Both of us are filing Tax Return every year. We both have a bank account also in US. We have one child also born in Canada, however he Is also a US Citizen by CBRA. Is there a way to apply for a US Citizenship for my wife by not meeting the residency requirement? Or Does she need to stay in US for 18 months out of 3 years to meet the residency requirement?

 

Thanks

 

[Ontarkie 14,221]

Sounds like your wife gave up her GC. She cannot be living in Canada and be a US resident. If she's used the Health Care system then she definitely is not a US Resident. 

[canadian_wife 1,822]

So you both have been living in Canada for the past 5-ish years?  Has she spent any time in the US?  Has she been claiming Canadian health-care?

 

I would worry less right not about getting citizenship and start worrying about whether your wife has lost her PR status, specifically by being a resident or claiming resident benefits of another country. 

 

Good luck

[KVE 29]

If she left the USA for more than 6 months without getting a re-entry permit she probably lost her permanent residence status. If you want to move back to the USA you will probably need to apply for permanent residence again, then 3 years after that she can apply for naturalization.

[Cocacola7890 0]

20 hours ago, canadian_wife said:

So you both have been living in Canada for the past 5-ish years?  Has she spent any time in the US?  Has she been claiming Canadian health-care?

 

I would worry less right not about getting citizenship and start worrying about whether your wife has lost her PR status, specifically by being a resident or claiming resident benefits of another country. 

 

Good luck

Yes Both of us are living here for 5 years. She is Canadian Citizen so she is allowed to take the health care system. She has traveled to US with Green Card back and forth and sometime more than 1 year and the officer did not say anything about loosing the PR Status.

 

 

Edited February 9, 2018 by Cocacola7890

[nightingalejules 678]

Well, then, you've gotten really lucky. Someday the officer might not be so lenient, so watch out for that. At any point, a border officer may notice that your wife is not really a US resident at all (much less a permanent one!) and require her to surrender her card and status.

 

Meanwhile, as far as becoming a US citizen, no - there is no way to circumvent the residency requirement. She will, at the very least, have to move to the US and stay there for the better part of (at least) 3 years. (And of course you would too, since the 3 year marriage based option requires you to be married and living together.)

[NigeriaorBust 4,087]

 The problem with using the Canadian health care is you must be a resident to use it  you can't reside in 2 places. You live in one and visit the other. By using the system there you have declared Canada as your place of residence.   

[Going through 5,671]

 

On 2/9/2018 at 3:47 PM, Cocacola7890 said:

Yes Both of us are living here for 5 years. She is Canadian Citizen so she is allowed to take the health care system. She has traveled to US with Green Card back and forth and sometime more than 1 year and the officer did not say anything about loosing the PR Status.

 

 

She's allowed to use the health care system because she would have first had to prove residency in Canada to use it---thus, she obviously demonstrated that she resides in Canada rather than resides in the US (which can result in her losing her PR status.)

 

Sounds like you've run into nice POE officers so far....the next one may not be so nice.  When she was abroad for more than 1 year, I'm curious how she answered the question of "how long did you stay in Canada" at the border when returning?