My husband and I are just starting the process and would greatly appreciate some insight from others based on our unique situation. Here is our story:
I am a USC and my husband is a Canadian citizen. He was born in Canada but moved to the US in the early 80s as a child when his dad got a job here. Through this he became an LPR and lived here until 2004. He went to college here, married a US citizen, worked as a biomedical engineer, and owned houses here. After a bad car accident and his marriage falling apart, he had no supports here so he moved back with his parents who had returned to Canada by that time. He never officially surrendered his LPR status since he was not sure if he was going to stay in Canada. He was severely injured and the paperwork just got lost in the process. Since then he made an amazing recovery and rebuilt his career and bought a house in BC. We met in early 2022 and have travelled back and forth to see each other since then. We were married here on 8/12/23. His intention is to move here with me and pursue a career change. Our original plan was that he would stay in Canada for two years while completing a degree program which would allow time for the consular processing route. That planned changed due to unforeseen circumstances and he would like to come here as soon as possible and go to school here. Unfortunately, by the time this change came about, it was too late to postpone the wedding and apply for a K-1 visa, so it seems that we are stuck with the consular processing route. If that is the case, here are our questions:
1. What, if any, impact would his previous LPR status have on the process? He still has an active US SSN. Is the CR-1/IR-1 still our only option or would he be able to do the I-90?
2. Is he able to travel back and forth during the entire process? If so, up until now as a Canadian he has never had to have a formal visa to come here has a tourist. He simply fills out the brief form online and goes straight through customs at the airport. Does this change once you are in the application process? I apologize if this is a dumb question, but we just don't want to jeopardize anything unknowingly.
3. He has a criminal record from his early 20s here in the US. Not a violent or drug related crime and no other offenses since then. Will this be an issue?
Thank you for any advice!!