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Transfer US H1B Visa to Canadian Passport or to surrender my Indian citiziten

kanwar_2015

Member
Apr 23, 2015
17
0
My question is:

I am Canadian Citizen now n before i was a Indian Citizen n work US n commute weekday on H1B. Now getting my Canadian Citizenship i have to surrender my Indian passport, but i have a work visa on it for good 2.5 years. Please suggest me, what are my options?

Thanks in Advance.
 

tmota

Star Member
Nov 24, 2016
94
4
Montreal - Quebec
Job Offer........
Pre-Assessed..
That's fairly specific, kanwar.

My suggestion is to ask directly to an US embassy. After all, they are the only ones that can give you official information.
 

thecoolguysam

VIP Member
May 25, 2011
4,821
384
Canada
kanwar_2015 said:
My question is:

I am Canadian Citizen now n before i was a Indian Citizen n work US n commute weekday on H1B. Now getting my Canadian Citizenship i have to surrender my Indian passport, but i have a work visa on it for good 2.5 years. Please suggest me, what are my options?

Thanks in Advance.
You need to read this link carefully in regards to your renunciation of Indian Citizenship.
http://www.blsindia-canada.com/renunciation_ppt.php

Someone in this forum can shed more light on if you need VISA or any other paperwork to work in USA
 

justinline

Hero Member
May 19, 2009
365
107
As far as I know for Canadian passport holder don't need to go for H1b stamping. You just need the I797 and Canadian passport and you are good to enter at POE.

Please do confirm.
 
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HSD

Star Member
Mar 22, 2015
75
2
kanwar_2015 said:
My question is:

I am Canadian Citizen now n before i was a Indian Citizen n work US n commute weekday on H1B. Now getting my Canadian Citizenship i have to surrender my Indian passport, but i have a work visa on it for good 2.5 years. Please suggest me, what are my options?

Thanks in Advance.
I don't think canadian citizens need a visa to work in USA if one already has a job offer.You just have to go to the border with your canadian passport and job letter and get a stamp on it.But I may be wrong as well.Better contact your company's hr dept or some immigration laywer.
 

keesio

VIP Member
May 16, 2012
4,795
396
Toronto, Ontario
Category........
Visa Office......
CPP-O
Job Offer........
Pre-Assessed..
App. Filed.......
09-01-2013
Doc's Request.
09-07-2013
AOR Received.
30-01-2013
File Transfer...
11-02-2013
Med's Done....
02-01-2013
Interview........
waived
Passport Req..
12-07-2013
VISA ISSUED...
15-08-2013
LANDED..........
14-10-2013
HSD said:
I don't think canadian citizens need a visa to work in USA if one already has a job offer.You just have to go to the border with your canadian passport and job letter and get a stamp on it.But I may be wrong as well.Better contact your company's hr dept or some immigration laywer.
No, it is a bit more complicated than that. And Canadians do not (usually) get their passport stamped.
 

HSD

Star Member
Mar 22, 2015
75
2
keesio said:
No, it is a bit more complicated than that. And Canadians do not (usually) get their passport stamped.
Oh.Then You can better explain the procedure.It might be of some help to the concerned person.
 

keesio

VIP Member
May 16, 2012
4,795
396
Toronto, Ontario
Category........
Visa Office......
CPP-O
Job Offer........
Pre-Assessed..
App. Filed.......
09-01-2013
Doc's Request.
09-07-2013
AOR Received.
30-01-2013
File Transfer...
11-02-2013
Med's Done....
02-01-2013
Interview........
waived
Passport Req..
12-07-2013
VISA ISSUED...
15-08-2013
LANDED..........
14-10-2013
HSD said:
Oh.Then You can better explain the procedure.It might be of some help to the concerned person.
This article is a good simple summary
http://www.wikihow.com/Get-a-TN-Visa-to-Work-in-the-United-States

It simplifies it a little too much but it is a good primer.
 

itsmyid

Champion Member
Jul 26, 2012
2,250
649
justinline said:
As far as I know for Canadian passport holder don't need to go for H1b stamping. You just need the I797 and Canadian passport and you are good to enter at POE.

Please do confirm.
Tons of Canadian people working in the US are on H1B, especially those who are seeking green card
 

chikloo

Hero Member
Feb 6, 2014
544
24
Job Offer........
Pre-Assessed..
kanwar_2015 said:
My question is:

I am Canadian Citizen now n before i was a Indian Citizen n work US n commute weekday on H1B. Now getting my Canadian Citizenship i have to surrender my Indian passport, but i have a work visa on it for good 2.5 years. Please suggest me, what are my options?

Thanks in Advance.

There are two options. You can apply for visa stamping with your existing approval notice. I hope you have more than 6 months of validity if not you have to apply for H1 renewal with new details.

either way you need to inform your employer as they have to assist you in both.


The second option is that you can leave that H1 and apply for TN Visa if your occupation is under NAFTA. With TN your spouse cannot work . You cannot apply for green card if you have intention to apply for immigration.

So tough choice to make. If you want things not to alter much then choose option 1 where you are allowed to apply for green card as well.
 

LTBOYS

Newbie
May 2, 2019
5
1
My question is:

I am Canadian Citizen now n before i was a Indian Citizen n work US n commute weekday on H1B. Now getting my Canadian Citizenship i have to surrender my Indian passport, but i have a work visa on it for good 2.5 years. Please suggest me, what are my options?

Thanks in Advance.


Can you please let me know how did you enter USA on H1B after acquiring Canadian citizenship ?
 

sainswapna

Star Member
Jul 8, 2011
50
6
Ottawa
Category........
App. Filed.......
27-08-2018
Doc's Request.
NA
Nomination.....
NA
AOR Received.
30-08-2018
IELTS Request
Sent with application
Can you please let me know how did you enter USA on H1B after acquiring Canadian citizenship ?
Here are my observations (based on my prior experience, applicable only for land crossings)
You should be able to enter the USA with the current valid passport (eg: Indian passport) while you wait for Canada passport. You can use Canadian citizenship certificate and a valid travel document (Indian passport) to enter Canada.
Once you have a Canada passport, take all your H1B related documentation (I797 approval notice, recent pay stubs, employment letter, LCA, etc.) to the port of entry. CBP POE officer will check documents and stamp your Canadian passport and issue paper I-94. You can start with renunciation of the previous passport now.
You can apply for Nexus, it won't replace your Canada passport entering states as CBP officers will still need to see/verify your paper I-94 stapled to Canadian passport every time you cross the border. You can use Nexus card entering Canada without pulling out Candian passport.

Questions, feel free.
 
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LTBOYS

Newbie
May 2, 2019
5
1
Here are my observations (based on my prior experience, applicable only for land crossings)
You should be able to enter the USA with the current valid passport (eg: Indian passport) while you wait for Canada passport. You can use Canadian citizenship certificate and a valid travel document (Indian passport) to enter Canada.
Once you have a Canada passport, take all your H1B related documentation (I797 approval notice, recent pay stubs, employment letter, LCA, etc.) to the port of entry. CBP POE officer will check documents and stamp your Canadian passport and issue paper I-94. You can start with renunciation of the previous passport now.
You can apply for Nexus, it won't replace your Canada passport entering states as CBP officers will still need to see/verify your paper I-94 stapled to Canadian passport every time you cross the border. You can use Nexus card entering Canada without pulling out Candian passport.

Questions, feel free.
Thanks for the reply.
 

dbss

Champion Member
Jun 22, 2012
1,088
43
Here are my observations (based on my prior experience, applicable only for land crossings)
You should be able to enter the USA with the current valid passport (eg: Indian passport) while you wait for Canada passport. You can use Canadian citizenship certificate and a valid travel document (Indian passport) to enter Canada.
Once you have a Canada passport, take all your H1B related documentation (I797 approval notice, recent pay stubs, employment letter, LCA, etc.) to the port of entry. CBP POE officer will check documents and stamp your Canadian passport and issue paper I-94. You can start with renunciation of the previous passport now.
You can apply for Nexus, it won't replace your Canada passport entering states as CBP officers will still need to see/verify your paper I-94 stapled to Canadian passport every time you cross the border. You can use Nexus card entering Canada without pulling out Candian passport.

Questions, feel free.
One should not and cannot use Indian passport once Canadian citizenship has been granted. India does not allow dual citizenship.
 
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sainswapna

Star Member
Jul 8, 2011
50
6
Ottawa
Category........
App. Filed.......
27-08-2018
Doc's Request.
NA
Nomination.....
NA
AOR Received.
30-08-2018
IELTS Request
Sent with application
One should not and cannot use Indian passport once Canadian citizenship has been granted. India does not allow dual citizenship.
Get your facts right. One can use Indian passport for 3 months while waiting for the foreign passport, after taking up foreign citizenship. It's illegal to use Indian passport after acquiring foreign passport.
https://www.cgitoronto.gov.in/eoi.php?id=surrender_certificate
Under Indian law, Persons of Indian Origin (PIOs), who have acquired foreign citizenship are required to surrender their Indian passports to the nearest Indian Mission/Post immediately after acquisition of foreign citizenship.
Even after acquiring the Canadian citizenship, the Indian passport can be used to travel for 3 months from the day of getting the Canadian citizenship. The grace period is only for such cases where foreign citizenship has been acquired but a foreign passport is not available to the person. It is also mentioned that it is illegal to travel on an Indian passport, where a person has obtained a foreign passport.