Can. Citizen with US perm. res. status wants to move back to Canada with family

[nazirv]

Hello,

I am a Canadian citizen with US permanent resident status living in the USA since 1999. I am married to a US Citizen and we have 3 children (under 18) who were all born in the USA.

In the near future, we would like to move back to Canada (Toronto area). Could you please tell me what is the best process to follow in order to make this a smooth transition for us and the kids with schooling, etc.? Here are some questions that I have:

1) Should we complete paperwork in the USA or once we arrive in Canada?
2) How long is the processing time?
3) While our application is in process, can my kids attend school in Canada?
4) Can we simply take all our belongings with us?
5) We would most likely drive up since we are about a 10 hr drive away. Would taking our car with us across the border be a problem with taxes or duties?
6) Can we simply transfer our retirement & other accounts to Canada?

Thank you in advance for any information you can provide.

Nazir

 

[Leon]

Did you apply for citizenship certificates and Canadian passports for your kids when they were born? If not, it might be a good idea to do that now. Your kids are citizens anyway so you should not have to worry about it.

Your wife, you can either start sponsorship of right now but you'd have to prove that you are moving to Canada when she gets her PR or you can wait until you are in Canada. It takes between 5 and 10 months for her to get PR if you apply from outside Canada or apply from inside but opt to have it processed in the US. If you apply from inside Canada and opt to have it processed in Canada, she might get first stage approval and open work permit (if you applied for it at the same time) in 6 months and the PR has been taking 1-2 years but there are some cases of people recently getting PR with inland in as little as 9-10 months. When you have an inland application like that, it's not advised to leave Canada while it's in process.

Whichever you do, if your wife is in Canada on a visitor status and it's about to expire, make sure you apply for a visit visa extension to keep her legal.

I don't know how it works with taking all your belongings. You'd have to import your car, I think you need a detailed list of all your stuff. Your wife coming as a visitor would not be able to come with a truck full of stuff without raising some eyebrows but you as a citizen can. If you are worried about your kids status to prove their citizenship, you could ask the embassy to get them temporary passports. Getting them a citizenship certificate if you didn't already takes about 10 months.

 

[nazirv]

The kids were born in the US and just last year we obtained US passports for them so they are able to visit family in Canada without any issues crossing the border. Can I still apply for Canadian citizenship for them even though they were born in the US and hold a US passport?

So, I can apply from the US or once we all arrive in Canada? Which do u think is the best approach? If being in Canada first is the best approach, I can maybe go to Toronto first with all our belongings then have my wife and kids fly up after?

Thank you

 

[Leon]

Your kids are entitled to dual citizenship, US and Canada. You just need to register them. When they enter Canada on their US passports, they enter as tourists. That kind of messes up the system since Canada has them in the system as tourists and probably assumes they are overstaying if they don't leave. Call the embassy and ask them what you should do. It might be fine to take them with you on visit status. The school might possibly give you problems to register them but if they do, you have their birth certificates showing you as the father and your passport proving that you are Canadian should be enough to prove their status for the school. Ultimately, you should apply for their citizenship certificates and Canadian passports though.

Being in Canada yourself means that you don't have to prove intent to live in Canada to sponsor your wife. You could absolutely go yourself with all the stuff and let the wife and kids come later. Might be a good idea to do it that way.

 

[nazirv]

Dual citizenship? That is news to me! I thought u have to be a Canadian Citizen first then US Citizen to be considered dual? If you are correct, that is very good news!

You said to contact the embassy....I'm assuming you are referring to contacting the Canadian embassy once they arrive into Canada as tourists?

Having the wife and kids join me later meaning......I would would drive up with all our belongings, then have the wife and kids fly up a day or two later.

Thanks for all your advice!

 

[Leon]

Yeah, lots of people have dual, US and Canada both allow dual. Well, the US doesn't exactly like it but they don't interfere with it.

When I say contact the embassy, I mean contact the Canadian embassy BEFORE you leave. Once they arrive in Canada as tourists, there will not be any Canadian embassy in Canada, know what I mean? So ask the Canadian embassy in the US if it's ok to bring the kids on their US passports or if you should get temporary Canadian passports for them (from the embassy) because you will not have time to get theim citizenship certificates (unless you want to wait 10+ months to move).

Yes, drive up with all the stuff yourself and have the wife and kids fly out separately or if the kids get Canadian passports before going from the embassy, you can take some of the kids with you.

 

[nazirv]

Do I need to go through the Canadian embassy in the US to get the kids their Canadian citizenship certificates or can I do that online by completing paperwork and mailing them in?

We have time and it may be a year before we can move as there is much to consider including selling our home and other personal matters.

Thanks

 

[Leon]

You can get the forms here: http://www.cic.gc.ca/english/information/applications/certif2.asp but you do need to go through the embassy to order them. Once you get the citizenship certificates, you can find the passport ordering information here: http://www.ppt.gc.ca/cdn/form.aspx?lang=eng&region=USA

 

[nazirv]

Hello,
I am now going to start the process of applying for the citizenship certificates and noticed the links provided above do not work. Can you provide an updated link?
Thank you in advance,
Nazir

 

[Leon]

The updated link for the citizenship certificate is here: http://www.cic.gc.ca/english/information/applications/certif.asp but the passport link still works, at least for me. If you are having problems with it, you can start at http://www.ppt.gc.ca/index.aspx?lang=eng and work your way through.

 

[faylen]

Nazirv: Do you intend to stay in Canada forever and give up your permanent residency in the US? I'm not sure if you are aware of this, but as a permanent resident in the US, you are only allowed to be absent from the US for no more than 6 months, beyond this time frame would mean that you've abandoned your PR status. How soon are you planning to move back to Canada? What I suggest is that you apply to become a US citizen first, that way, if you and your family decide that you'd like to move back to the US, you won't have any problems doing so. Hope this helps.

 

[nazirv]

Hello,

You bring up a very good point! If I become a US Citizen, I won't forfeit my Canadian Citizenship will I? I definitely do not want to do that. If I become a US Citizen, it would make it much easier (and without any paperwork) to live in either country for any period of time? Also, once I'm a citizen of the US, I can move to Canada anytime thereafter? Our plan currently is to move in about 1-2 years and not immediately.

Thanks for the advice!

Nazir

 

[Leon]

Yes, you can be a dual citizen. As a US citizen, you are obligated to always file taxes in the US, no matter what you live but they have a tax treaty with Canada so you wouldn't be double taxed.

 

[nazirv]

So, even if I live in Canada for 10 years, I have to continue filing taxes in the USA and not Canada? This could be a nuisance.....

 

[GK]

Both US and Canada