The Canuck EI Thread

[RYCK 0]

Your right ..altho idon't see many K-1 people applying for an EAD before getting married considering the cost and the fact will run out with your visa and you can no longer get a temp stamp at the POE ..i think your right i think they were fortunate in slipping through a little loophole that has been closed off recently.....because she did say under the new policies before she started to tell me i was not getting it

so from what i got from the experiece so far ... for a K-1 apply ASAP but expect to be turned down until you apply for AOS and get your EAD

then send that into them and you will then become eligible and they will send you a back payment from the day you apllied until the date on you EAD or your max allowed weeks if your EAD takes a long time to come

[Flames9_RN 358]

ya, even if one isnt "eligible" to work, I believe you have to start your EI claim within a certain time period---the sooner the better. And yes it may not make much financial sense to apply for an EAD right away, if it becomes invalid once you marry.

The EI system is a bit strange. I was initially denied, I appealed and the "judge" ruled against me, BUT the lady at EI said she over ruled him,lol Didnt make any sense to me, but I wasnt going to complain,lol

[lgg 2]

So does that mean people getting a CR-1 can't collect EI? That's not what I've heard...

According to my phone conversation with EI on tuesday .. I am work authorized as far as they are concerned i am a K-1 but i believe that comes from the type of visa you have and not the I-94 card .. every visa type comes with an I-94 it is a departure record and used to mark the day you have entered the USA with your visa i could be wrong but that is my understanding from talking to different sources ... but you can also make 5 different phone calls to the same place get 5 different people and recieve 5 different answers .. like the 2 i made to social security and 1 said i had to have an EAD to get my number and the other said i didn't....

no, cr-1, or ir-1 do not get an I-94 card--in case anyone is wondering,lol

[Flames9_RN 358]

So does that mean people getting a CR-1 can't collect EI? That's not what I've heard...

According to my phone conversation with EI on tuesday .. I am work authorized as far as they are concerned i am a K-1 but i believe that comes from the type of visa you have and not the I-94 card .. every visa type comes with an I-94 it is a departure record and used to mark the day you have entered the USA with your visa i could be wrong but that is my understanding from talking to different sources ... but you can also make 5 different phone calls to the same place get 5 different people and recieve 5 different answers .. like the 2 i made to social security and 1 said i had to have an EAD to get my number and the other said i didn't....

no, cr-1, or ir-1 do not get an I-94 card--in case anyone is wondering,lol

No with a CR-1 its a very clear and cut--if ur elgible, you CAN collect EI right away as one can work right from the on start. (you don't need a EAD with cr-1 or ir-1)

[Carlawarla 1]

One of the things I'm wondering about now, in terms of having to wait the 90 days before collecting EI now, or so it seems is what they're saying is that the laws have actually changed now. Now this is confusing but...

We used to be able to collect EI from when we quit our job to move here and other than the 2 week waiting period our claim ran until our I-94 expiry date, then was suspended until our EAD, then it resumed again. There was a print off that people could take into the office that basically said that a K-1 could work. (We all know that's false, but it was in the wording...) This was whether we got a stamp at the POE or not.

Now, I don't know what date it came into effect. I think it was just this year...but stamps are no longer given to anyone. That whole JFK work authorization stamp etc. or whoever could get it to work up to 90 days when you got here....has been eliminated.

So I'm thinking that because that's changed, and I'm sure the Canadian government has been notified, then perhaps they know now that loophole has been closed and a K-1, NO MATTER WHAT cannot work now, until they receive their EAD or GC.

So, people should be asking, and I hope getting back to us...do they just put in their claim after they get their EAD, no matter when they quit? Can they put in their claim, and just not expect any EI until they get their EAD? Or, have they just eliminated Canadians from participating in the program when they move to the US now? I would really like to know so that we can update our information.

Hope someone can fill us in. Thanks!

[Flames9_RN 358]

Things are always changing,lol I belive one still has to file a claim for EI, even if they can't collect right away (k1, k3). I guess the frustrating thing for many, is that one gets a different response from different officials.

[Texanadian 10]

So, people should be asking, and I hope getting back to us...do they just put in their claim after they get their EAD, no matter when they quit? Can they put in their claim, and just not expect any EI until they get their EAD? Or, have they just eliminated Canadians from participating in the program when they move to the US now? I would really like to know so that we can update our information.

Hope someone can fill us in. Thanks!

EI is still allowed to be collected in the USA.

Very VERY important to file immediately after moving to the US. If you wait until your EAD comes in, they'll ask you why you didn't file right after leaving your Canadian job. More importantly, you'll lose a whole bunch of weeks off your ROE.

I waited until my EAD NOA1 was received before I applied. My EI was based on 1500 hours on the ROE even though I had 2200 hours on there. The thing to remember is that they count back how many hours you've worked from today until 12 months before the day you filed.....If you wait (3 months) for your EAD to come in, you'll only get hours counted from 9 months (since the last 3 months you haven't been working and thus have 0 hours for those months. So basically the ROE hours are only accurate if you file immediately.

Using myself as an example. My 2200 hours easily put me over the 1820+ hours = 36 week max limit. But since I waited to file, I missed out on the 90 days of collecting on the K-1 (11 weeks) and then when my EAD was approved, I was only allowed 27 weeks on my claim (since I had roughly 1500 hours according to them)

Do not, I repeat do not wait for your EAD to file for EI.

[Carlawarla 1]

So, people should be asking, and I hope getting back to us...do they just put in their claim after they get their EAD, no matter when they quit? Can they put in their claim, and just not expect any EI until they get their EAD? Or, have they just eliminated Canadians from participating in the program when they move to the US now? I would really like to know so that we can update our information.

Hope someone can fill us in. Thanks!

EI is still allowed to be collected in the USA.

Very VERY important to file immediately after moving to the US. If you wait until your EAD comes in, they'll ask you why you didn't file right after leaving your Canadian job. More importantly, you'll lose a whole bunch of weeks off your ROE.

I waited until my EAD NOA1 was received before I applied. My EI was based on 1500 hours on the ROE even though I had 2200 hours on there. The thing to remember is that they count back how many hours you've worked from today until 12 months before the day you filed.....If you wait (3 months) for your EAD to come in, you'll only get hours counted from 9 months (since the last 3 months you haven't been working and thus have 0 hours for those months. So basically the ROE hours are only accurate if you file immediately.

Using myself as an example. My 2200 hours easily put me over the 1820+ hours = 36 week max limit. But since I waited to file, I missed out on the 90 days of collecting on the K-1 (11 weeks) and then when my EAD was approved, I was only allowed 27 weeks on my claim (since I had roughly 1500 hours according to them)

Do not, I repeat do not wait for your EAD to file for EI.

Thanks for posting, and while I do agree with your last statement, I was only asking because there are people who have recently been denied and I don't know why. As there isn't any more "work authorization" stamps anymore, there is no way a K-1 can work anymore, hence this may be why people are being denied until they get their EAD. I agree, you still have to apply with 30 days of leaving your job, no matter when you might start receiving your cheques or when your eligibility might be. There might however be some recent changes.

[RYCK 0]

Well from what i was told to me on the phone by the woman deciding on my claim ... is that "as soon as i got married" my visa was no longer valid so i had no work authorization. it seems to me that NOONE knows what the hell is going on .... some people get it some don't different rules for different people ... same with social security numbers ... some get it without an EAD and some do .. you can make phone call after phone call and get dfferent answers each time but yes one thing remains constant YOU MUST FILE FOR EI RIGHT AWAY NO MATTER WHAT. after that it's kind of a ####### shoot

[RYCK 0]

OK here's my update for K-1's

This is how my claim went but no guarantee's for anyone else .. Basically as a K-1 in the eyes of EI i was work eligible up until the date i was married ... I made my claim the day after i moved and was married 1 month after .. so for the first 2 weeks i'll get nothing for the waiting period and the 2 following weeks i am recieving 2 checks for the time up until i got married.. and that stops until i get my EAD into them. So translation to me yes you can claim on a K-1 with no EAD but only until the date you get married .. ok hope this post is somewhat helpful to people

[Jenni and Bo 0]

OK here's my update for K-1's

This is how my claim went but no guarantee's for anyone else .. Basically as a K-1 in the eyes of EI i was work eligible up until the date i was married ... I made my claim the day after i moved and was married 1 month after .. so for the first 2 weeks i'll get nothing for the waiting period and the 2 following weeks i am recieving 2 checks for the time up until i got married.. and that stops until i get my EAD into them. So translation to me yes you can claim on a K-1 with no EAD but only until the date you get married .. ok hope this post is somewhat helpful to people

Wow you're lucky to have gotten those checks...

I applied the day after I arrived in the US...filled out report cards for 3 months, recieved nothing and got a letter at the end of my 90 days saying that I wasn't eligible. I called to ask, as I knew others had received it, and all the lady said was that the other people "were wrong".

biometrics for EAD on tuesday, so hopefully its not too far away and I can start collecting then...

Every effin person in that office has a different take on the laws. I think it's stupid and they really should get their stuff straight *end rant*

[TimandJoyce 1]

OK here's my update for K-1's

This is how my claim went but no guarantee's for anyone else .. Basically as a K-1 in the eyes of EI i was work eligible up until the date i was married ... I made my claim the day after i moved and was married 1 month after .. so for the first 2 weeks i'll get nothing for the waiting period and the 2 following weeks i am recieving 2 checks for the time up until i got married.. and that stops until i get my EAD into them. So translation to me yes you can claim on a K-1 with no EAD but only until the date you get married .. ok hope this post is somewhat helpful to people

Whaaaaa I'm always late for the party!!!!

At least there's a "possibility" of collecting something before I get married. I'll be down a month before the wedding too. And when I do find a job, legally of course, I hope to only work a few hours a week, rather than full time, so hopefully should still be able to keep a partial claim going until it runs out. I'd like something that will only be a couple to three days a week, for now.

[SapphireDreams 71]

I think it makes sense that we don't get EI until our EAD comes in. I mean technically we can't look for a job... I'm okay with that I wasn't expecting that money anyways.

Now, when i get my EAD, then I hope I get something. I plan to file next week when I'm there. I guess I'll see what happens!

I'm getting married June 9th and filing my AOS asap after that...

[JillA 2]

Does anyone know the address offhand where to send the report cards? My latest one arrived with no return envelope, and I've never taken note of the address. I know it's in Belleville

[Flames9_RN 358]

Business Building, Floor 2

1 North Front Street

Belleville, Ontario

on one of my letters from them it was addressed as:

Out of Canada Claims Unit 3503

1 north front street

PO box 4800

belleville ON

K8N 5E2