Getting married in the US while on visitor- because of covid (merged)

[pushbrk 12,893]

3 hours ago, Reagan & Vish said:

 

To my knowledge, there is no specific documentation to disprove fraud simply because you got married in the US.

Not that it's needed, but LEAVING the USA, is all the documentation you need to disprove fraud....

[Vero Kir 0]

On 12/28/2021 at 11:10 AM, canadian_wife said:

 

Make sure you arrange proper medical care in the US prior to your final move, as you will lose your provincial health care once you become a US resident and move on your Cr-1 visa. 

 

Good luck 

thank you ❤️! didnt even think about that !! 

[Vero Kir 0]

On 12/28/2021 at 12:19 PM, millefleur said:

Just a little confused: so you both live in Canada now, but you want to get married in the US and not Canada? I'm not familiar with Canada's laws so forgive me if this is a dumb question.

We used to live in Canada, he got a job in USA, so we are in the US now (im here on a B2 traveler visa)

On 12/28/2021 at 12:19 PM, millefleur said:

 

No special document or rule to get married in the US as long as you can both enter freely with the right documents. I guess my only concern is, if you live together in Canada - why not just get married in Canada? I could see CBP maybe finding it odd should the purpose of travel question come up and marriage is named as the reason yet you both live together in Canada. I'm not trying to be harsh, just trying to understand your situation and reasoning.

thank you for asking for clarification! 

[Vero Kir 0]

On 12/28/2021 at 6:51 PM, Kor2USA said:

Has your partner moved back to the US or are you both still living in Canada and this trip is a vacation?

You can get married in the US or Canada. Doesn't matter. 

You can file the I-130 while you're still in the US or you can wait until you return to Canada. 

You might want to wait to file after you've left as some Canadians report issues filling out Part 4: Beneficiary's Entry Information. 

 

thank you ! may i ask , what issue do they run into when filling out Part 4? 

[Vero Kir 0]

21 hours ago, Reagan & Vish said:

This is exactly what my husband and I did on his ESTA. During the UK travel ban, we flew to Serbia for two weeks before coming back here and getting married. Actually, we got married within 2hrs of landing in fear of another lockdown. We were just sure to not tell CBP upon entry that we were planning to marry (they didn’t ask questions anyhow), because I’d heard of them denying entry and instructing to file a K1. We filed the I-130 a week later, and husband then stayed for almost the entirety of his 90 days before returning to the UK. 
 

Anyway, I say that to say that there have been no issues thus far. It wasn’t even mentioned in the interview, probably because we had several years of “bona fide” evidence in addition. Fingers crossed for the same luck when we remove conditions!
 

To my knowledge, there is no specific documentation to disprove fraud simply because you got married in the US. Just be sure to include lots of evidence spanning over a long period of time such as photos, bank statements, rental agreements in Canada, etc. anything you can think of that you have jointly. And definitely do not overstay your allowance while waiting! 
 

Best of luck as you begin this process! 

thank you so much for this information and taking the time to discribe your situation !!!

we definitely have lots of pictures and documents, that should not be an issue ! 

 

Did he attend the interview in the UK? 

how long is the I-130 taking do far? 

and was he able to visit you again while waiting for the I-130 ?

 

thank you !!!!

[Redro 4,611]

3 hours ago, Vero Kir said:

thank you ! may i ask , what issue do they run into when filling out Part 4? 

Part 4 Question 45 asks for Class of Admission information and I-94 Arrival-Departure Record Number. And sometimes Canadians don't receive that number (their arrival is not recorded for whatever reason). 

If you can have that information you should be fine. 

Edited December 30, 2021 by Kor2USA

[Redro 4,611]

4 hours ago, Vero Kir said:

thank you ! may i ask , what issue do they run into when filling out Part 4? 

This is what I'm talking about:

 

[BeansOnToast 37]

4 hours ago, Vero Kir said:

thank you so much for this information and taking the time to discribe your situation !!!

we definitely have lots of pictures and documents, that should not be an issue ! 

 

Did he attend the interview in the UK? 

how long is the I-130 taking do far? 

and was he able to visit you again while waiting for the I-130 ?

 

thank you !!!!

He did attend the interview in the UK back in March 2021.
 

Our I-130 processing time was extraordinary and only took 70 days, from late July 2020 to early October 2020. I have no explanation for the time because we did not expedite. Unfortunately, I have to say definitely do not expect such a fast approval. The most recent average times are always on the USCIS website. From there, we waited 4 months for the interview to be scheduled; however, this timeline is country/embassy specific, so some wait much longer or shorter than others.
 

My husband was able to come visit while we were waiting. It was after the approval, but before the interview was scheduled. Again, this was during the UK travel ban so he was questioned a lot at the Delta counter (they even asked about our pending visa),  but CBP still did not seem to mind and asked minimal questions. Of course, my husband was sure to depart the country in a timely manner well before his allowance was up. 
 

Let me know if you have anymore questions! I am happy to answer what I can, although there are lots more folks here with much more knowledge than me!

 

Good luck! 

[Vero Kir 0]

Me (Canadian) and my US partner have been together for 11 year (while he lived in Canada on student, and that work visa; In Canada we are considered common law spouses)

 

My American partner suddenly got a job in US, accepted the offer, had to start ASAP and moved . Im currently visiting him in USA on B2 visa. 

We plan to get married in US in the next week (to make our union legal by US standards). And apply for I-130

 

I found a "I-130 Petitions in Exceptional Situations" that allows to file in case of , quote: "Short notice of position relocation – A U.S. citizen petitioner, living and working abroad, has received a job offer in or reassignment to the United States with little notice for the required start date."

 

does this apply to us?

and  

Where do we file (do i fly to Canada and file with an embassy or can we file in US since im currently here?)

 

 

Any experience and advice is very appreciated. 

Thank you !!!!

 

P.S. potentially relevant information: : I dont work due to a recent neurological condition. My partner is my “caregiver” aka- my support system. Therefore, Id like to be with him as much as possible. Would love to be still being able to visit Canada (as the rest of my support system is there (and some doctor appointments) 

[powerpuff 6,704]

11 minutes ago, Vero Kir said:

does this apply to us?

It doesn’t apply anymore as he already moved. He should have emailed the consulate to inquire about DCF while he was still in Canada to see if they would accept your case. Filing for CR1 spousal visa (i.e going the ‘regular’ route) is your option right now. You can also stay in the US and file for adjustment of status. Downside: you won’t be able to work and travel for 8-9 months.

Edited December 30, 2021 by powerpuff

[aaron2020 11,651]

Hi,

You have two choices.  Pros and cons to both.

 

1.  You can marry in the US and file to adjust status for a green card (legal permanent residency).  Pro: you get to stay together.  Con: You must stay in the US for at least 6-8 months to get your EAD/AP.   If you leave the US during this time, you will automatically abandon your adjustment and have to wait outside the US for up to 2 years to get an immigration visa.

 

2.  Go back to Canada.  Spouse files for you.  It can take up to 2 years to get a spousal immigration visa.  Pro: you get to go home.  Con: long wait to be together because visiting my not always be possible . . . i.e Covid.  

 

Ignore the "exceptional situations" thing.  It doesn't matter and doesn't apply to you.  Your adjustment as the spouse of a US citizen is super easy.  

 

Best of luck.

Edited December 30, 2021 by aaron2020

[aaron2020 11,651]

1 minute ago, powerpuff said:

It doesn’t apply anymore as he already moved. He should have emailed consulate to inquire about DCF while he was still in Canada to see if they would accept your case. Filing for CR1 spousal visa (i.e going the ‘regular’ route) is your only option.

A CR1 is not their only option.

 

OP is currently in the US.  OP can marry and adjust status as the spouse of a US citizen.  (Option 1 in my post above.)

 

[powerpuff 6,704]

Just now, aaron2020 said:

A CR1 is not their only option.

 

OP is currently in the US.  OP can marry and adjust status as the spouse of a US citizen.  (Option 1 in my post above.)

 

Already edited my post to add that.

[millefleur 5,046]

47 minutes ago, Vero Kir said:

I found a "I-130 Petitions in Exceptional Situations" that allows to file in case of , quote: "Short notice of position relocation – A U.S. citizen petitioner, living and working abroad, has received a job offer in or reassignment to the United States with little notice for the required start date."

This is what we call DCF and it's no longer an option because he already moved. There's also no guarantee, it's at the embassy's discretion to accept or deny an I-130 based on short notice job relocation. Perhaps they would have rejected the request anyway and told you to file like everyone else.

 

50 minutes ago, Vero Kir said:

P.S. potentially relevant information: : I dont work due to a recent neurological condition. My partner is my “caregiver” aka- my support system. Therefore, Id like to be with him as much as possible. Would love to be still being able to visit Canada (as the rest of my support system is there (and some doctor appointments) 

I think in your situation, since both of you are in the States already, AOS makes the most sense, however, you won't be able to leave the US until AP. It's a bit of an extreme situation: either adjust, stay in the US and then wait for AP to travel (can take months), or you have to leave the US and remain in Canada until you get CR-1 but you can visit for short periods during that time.

 

It seems like you need to decide which matters more during this immigration: doctors and support system in Canada or being with your caregiver spouse in the US. You have to pick one or the other, there's not really an option for anything in between and either option (AOS or CR-1) will be slow. I also believe if you move to the US (saying you went with AOS), your Canadian insurance might be cancelled (I can't say 100% but I've seen it mentioned on VJ) so you need to make sure you have a plan of action for health insurance in the US right away if you decide to stay.

[SalishSea 17,834]

1 minute ago, millefleur said:

This is what we call DCF and it's no longer an option because he already moved. There's also no guarantee, it's at the embassy's discretion to accept or deny an I-130 based on short notice job relocation. Perhaps they would have rejected the request anyway and told you to file like everyone else.

 

I think in your situation, since both of you are in the States already, AOS makes the most sense, however, you won't be able to leave the US until AP. It's a bit of an extreme situation: either adjust, stay in the US and then wait for AP to travel (can take months), or you have to leave the US and remain in Canada until you get CR-1 but you can visit for short periods during that time.

 

It seems like you need to decide which matters more during this immigration: doctors and support system in Canada or being with your caregiver spouse in the US. You have to pick one or the other, there's not really an option for anything in between and either option (AOS or CR-1) will be slow. I also believe if you move to the US (saying you went with AOS), your Canadian insurance might be cancelled (I can't say 100% but I've seen it mentioned on VJ) so you need to make sure you have a plan of action for health insurance in the US right away if you decide to stay.

Right.  And OP, you won't be eligible for your provincial health coverage, according to many Canadians here on VJ.  I'll tag @Ontarkie because maybe she can clarify.  With a chronic health condition, you will want to make sure that your US spouse's workplace insurance covers the type of care that you need.

 

Currently, it is taking around 8 months to get advance parole/work permit.  I know you said you don't work, but you would have to decide whether being unable to travel back and forth for 8 months would be too much of a hardship.