I am Canadian and will be marrying an American and relocating there..options available?

Question

This is the situation. I am a Canadian & my fiance American. We met online over 2 years ago & have travelled back & forth during that time. He proposed & wants me to move there. No objections here. The thing is we want to live together (to truly further get to know eachother before we marry & make sure we are making the right choice) I know I can legally stay as a visitor in the US for up to 6 months, after that I must return. We dont want to file for a K1 visa before I enter the US because we'd have to marry within 90 days of me entering the US, & the point is we want to wait, live together & be sure. I'm wondering if anyone is familiar with US Immigration Lawyers. If I enter the US as a visitor and we wait let's say 3-6 months over when a visitor should stay, will an Immigration Lawyer still process papers for us? Like I said we want to be sure, and wait a bit on things and we hate the thought of having "timelines" in which we need to make our decision. Any thoughts would be great.

As well, if I enter the US for 6 months and return home, I can not re-enter for 6 more months. It also isn't financially, physically feesible for me to uproot and move tehre for 6 months, than him uproot and move here for 6 months, etc. We just don't want to get into any trouble with Immigration at all, but want to be sure that marriage is the right thing.

Apparently ttpawpaw is a bitter person...but moving on... If I just go into the US as a visitor for 6 months stating that I will be staying with my b/f they wouldnt have any grounds to deny me entry would they? I just returned early jan from a 9 day stay down there, but wouldn't be going again until July.

Answer 1

I don't know how you go about immigrating from Canada to the USA as I went the other way! I'm an American who married a Canadian and I immigrated to Canada.

But there is a Yahoo group for Can-Am couples that specializes in immigrating to the USA! They can give you advice and support and help you throughout the process.
Here is the URL:
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/canamcouples/

In case you decide to have him immigrate to Canada instead, this is the Yahoo group for help:
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/canadian_immigration/

Good Luck!

Answer 2

Entering the US as a visitor for 6 months may be difficult, especially if you need to tell the CBP that you will be staying with your BF, as they will automatically assume that you will try to move permanently to the US without the appropriate visa, and maybe subjected to an intense interrogation at the border. However, lying to the CBP is also not an option, because it will cause you great difficulties later if you do decide to pursue an immigrant visa.

If you do attempt to enter for 6 months, to improve your chances of being allowed to enter I would suggest you gather as much documentation as you can to prove strong ties to Canada that will show you have no intention of circumventing immigration law by moving to the US as a tourist and remaining. Suggested documentation would be: Mortgage/lease papers, letter from employer/school stating date of return, bank account statements showing sufficent funds for your visit, etc.

Answer 3

You need to go back to Canada on time and not ignore your deadlines UNLESS: Your lawyer files for an extension and it succeeds (medical reasons perhaps), you enroll in a school here, you get a job here that gives you an H1B visa (temporary green card), or you make another visa change, like applying for fiance status.
I don't know why an immigration lawyer would not work for you. Just don't do anything stupid like not filing the required paper work, etc. Also, if you do go back to Canada for a while then come back in, make sure you bring all the important papers with you both ways.

Answer 4

What ever happened to love. Forty years ago people didn't jump in bed together and live together for months or years before you got married. By the was the divorce rate was only about half of what it is now. Some things to think about.

Why buy the cow when you get the milk for free.
What incentive is there for him to marry you?
If you even have one argument all he has to do is wait six months, report you and you are gone.
You have absolutely nothing to protect you.
You are putting everything at risk, what is he doing?

If none of that makes any sense, then you deserve each other and I will see you back in Canada in six months.

Answer 5

If you've known each other for over 2 years and than live together for 6 more months that should give you a pretty damn good idea if he's a keeper or not.

As long as you submit the paperwork for becoming a permanent resident alien before your visa expiration date you can legally stay in the US until you're called in for an interview and you're given a decision. Good luck!

Answer 6

My advice would be to move in together for that period of 6 months... if it seems like things are going well and you could possibly want to stay together, get married the cheap way because you have a year to get it annulled. The later on if you want the ceremony for the marriage just renew your vows with family like you are gettin married for the first time. Other than that, I have no clue and it seems impossible. Goodluck and best wishes!

Answer 7

The answer remains the same. Yes you can marry an American. THere are no laws that prevent it. However, you need to apply for the appropriate visas to move to the US and stay with him. Marriage does not guarantee citizThe same applies to him, marrying a Canadian does not mean he get's to move to Canada.

Answer 8

DO NOT overstay visitors visa. You will be totally screwed up. (canada seem to be close to US, but once you screwup, it will take couple years the best to reunite).

Try tourist visa for 10 years or something. Even though yu can go to US fow/o visa, you still can apply for one.

Hope that helps.

OVERSTAY - NO!