Canadian marrying American, moving to Canada process?

[courtneyls]

Hi everyone,

I'm having a really hard time getting firm answers on this so I'm really hoping someone will be able to grant insight.

My boyfriend (at the time) whom I met online came to visit me and arrived on the 10th of September, intending to stay until the 13th of October. I've known him for approx. 7 years and can easily prove our relationship. He drove from Oklahoma to the border at Buffalo but they gave him a lot of trouble, called me to verify that he was coming to visit me, questioned him relentlessly etc. They issued him a visitor's visa saying that he must leave on the 13th of October, which he will be doing. They were concerned that he wasn't going to leave and was going to try to stay in Canada. While at the border he said he was going to visit a friend.

He ended up proposing to me while here and we are now engaged to be married! We would like to 'elope' via an office ceremony and then have a larger ceremony later with family/friends as we are very concerned they will not let him return across the border to visit (plus, we're not really into big weddings, haha). From what I understand it is easier for us to start his sponsorship application to move here while he is in OK. Is this correct? During the process is he allowed to return to Canada to visit/move things here? He is also a gun owner and will be following the correct processes to bring some of his guns into Canada - will this be allowed to take place during the sponsorship process? As a final question, he would like to look for work here (as we'd like to start a family soon , when in the process may he apply for a work permit? He was told explicitly at the border than he can't even INQUIRE about work in Canada during his visit here.

Any assistance would be greatly appreciated...

Thank-you!

 

[mitamata]

Oh, he ran across some very paranoid border officers.

For sponsorship, you have two options: inland or outland. Inland would be processed in Canada, takes longer than outland but you have the option of applying for an open work permit, which would allow him to work - it usually takes 5-6 months since applying to get it though.
I would recommend the outland application - this would be processed in Buffalo. They are usually processed faster, often you're done before you'd get to the open work permit in inland. He's allowed to come to Canada to visit you while the application is being processed, but he can't work until everything is done.
As for moving his possessions... if they gave him this much grief now, imagine how it would be if he had loads of stuff with him. If they think he's trying to move to Canada, they can refuse him entry. Personally, I'd wait with moving things until later.

 

[courtneyls]

Hello!

Thanks so much for your response... All of my family members/friends also couldn't believe they'd issued him a visitor's visa; none of us had EVER heard of it before. He was planning on going home around that time anyways, regardless, but it was really strange.

Applying outland seems to be the best route for us... I think my question is now: when he comes into Canada to visit me should he be honest at the border and let them know he's coming to see his wife and is in the process of being sponsored, or will they think he is trying to stay early? Is there something he needs to show at the border during this process to visit? Or, should he just saying he's "coming to see a friend"? I just want the most straightforward, honest route.

I think we'll wait until all is said and done to move his possessions/firearms to Canada (which is another process entirely).

Thanks again.

 

[mitamata]

Honesty is the best policy. That way the lies can't come back to bite you in the ... well, you know

I'd recommend visiting Road To Canada, you'll find a lot of US/Canadian couples there and might be able to get more 'tried-and-tested' advice. But from what I heard, he should be able to come for a visit. I've heard it recommended to bring a copy of the PR application with him or at least a copy of the receipt, to show he's really doing it right.

 

[JimM]

I got a good bit of questioning when I mentioned my fiance and I met on line as well. However it helped that she and her father were there, (they drove down to pick me up at the train station in Minot ND), and that I had my return tickets with me.

What I find curious is that they told him that he couldn't even look for a job while he was there. When they asked what I was planning to do on my trip I said I was visiting my fiance and intended to look for a job. They just reminded me I'd need a work visa and wished me luck.

 

[Eric Parker]

I got married to a Canadian in May after 8 years of being engaged. This was because of the border agents sending me back (and getting banned) in 2002 because it was "Not proper or appropriate to visit Canada because you met someone on-line".

Do not be suprised if the person from the States is now "flagged" and will have to be double screened (screened twice) when entering Canada. Even if I get a PR, I will forever be double screened because of a "Moral" border agent who felt impelled to exert his interpretation of Canadian Law. He told me as I was sent back " unless you have the cure for Cancer, you are never coming back"

However, I have been back several times, got married in Alberta (in May) and spent my honeymoon in Victoria, BC. We filed an application (with her sponsoring me) soon afterwards. I expect to wait a long time due to "Mr. Morality - Border Agent" and the fact that immigration officials do thorough jobs when considering applications from the US.

I plan to look for work after I get there to Alberta and settle. My ultimate advice is to get the PR first, through the sponsorship, then ask those questions about guns and such afterward. It is not advisable to make IO's nervous while you have an application in the works.

 

[mnieves79]

Hello everyone,

I am in the same situation now. I have been engaged to a Canadian in Ottawa for 2 years now. We are going to have a civil ceremony in November then a larger wedding in the summer. I currently live in Massachusetts. After the civil ceremony I will return home to work and she will remain in Canada until immigration process is completed. I usually drive to Canada once a month. For 9 years before we got engaged in lived in Buffalo, NY and crossed into Canada very often so I usually do not confront any problems going back and forth. Honesty is the best policy when answering border patrol questions.

My doubt is when I tell them in November that I am on my way to marry her in Ottawa. They usually ask where we intend to live which is Canada. I won't have much with me on the way as to not make it look as I am going to stay there. Anyone know how long after our civil ceremony we can begin the sponsorship process? I was told when I got the marriage license a few weeks ago that the Marriage Certificate takes about 8 weeks to arrive. Can we apply for sponsorship while we wait for the marriage certificate? Being that she is sponsoring me and she lives in Canada should we be applying through the Buffalo office or from within Canada?

Thanks,

Martin

 

[ak470125]

Hi, thank you for your post. I am in the same (well almost) situation. I am a Canadian Citizen living in Ottawa, Ontario. My fiance lives in Charlotte, North Carolina. We are presently looking at getting married (in Vegas in March) and then he will be applying via outland (after reading blog and post and blog that it seems to be the best way to go). It sucks that we can't live together like a normal husband and wife do but I guess I am not the only one out there facing the same hardships.

Good luck with your future ... I hope it goes smooth and easy!

 

[nyssa]

Oh great thread! I have a few questions. Courtney, did your boyfriend have any proof on him like a job letter or anything? I'm thinking he was interrogated like that because he said he was going to visit a friend for a month, and seriously, who does that? Even the most loyal friend only stays for so long... or maybe I'm just thinking that, lol. See, I've been up to Canada from the US twice this year already, April and July. Now in 12 days, I'll be staying up there for 33 days. And I'm scared out of my mind to talk to that border agent.

Last time I said I was just visiting friends, but I really don't think I can say that this time because of my lengthy stay. And if I tell him I'm visiting my boyfriend, and he asks where we met, "Well we used to live together in the US". And oh boy will the questions fly because my fiancee was illegal in the US since he was 10. I'm afraid I don't know what to say. Does anyone have any advice??

 

[Kellee88]

Hi,

Okay so I'm an American citizen and have been living in Canada for 2 and a half years and do have my permanent residency in Canada as of June of this year. We have been engaged for 2 years and said that once my fiance was finished with his University degree we would plan on getting married. Well he's finishing this spring and we are hoping to get married this summer. We are not ones for big affairs or making a big deal out of our wedding and are hoping to just go to Vegas for a weekend and get married then later have a reception type party at home(in Canada) for our families. I've read through some of the posts and it seems like the majority of people did not already have both people living in the same country legally (he's a canadian resident, i'm a canadian permanent resident) My question is can we go to the States to get married? I know technically we 'can' but should we say at the border that that is the reason we are going to the States? If we get married in the States will we need to stay there for any reason or will we be able to come back to Canada once our weekend is over? Any answer would be fantastic so that we can start getting things done or papers filled out if necessary.

Thanks!

 

[courtneyls]

Hello, sorry, this is going to be long...

Well, here is an update... Things didn't go well at all and we're very unhappy so far with how things have proceeded with immigration. My husband and I (yes, husband! married on Oct. 5th. It was a wonderful, beautiful ceremony with my family. As I noted in my previous post, my husband was given a tourist/visitor's visa which said he must leave the country by the 13th of October. That was no problem, but they had stapled the visa into his passport and did not tell him what to do with it. We are VERY responsible people and wanted to ensure we were doing everything right. We noticed that on the visa it said, "Must furnish compliance at Fort Erie" - while he entered at Fort Erie he was planning on leaving via Sarnia or Detroit, as he wanted to stop in Chicago on the way home to visit family (his hometown). After much run around with phone numbers, we finally got a # to call the Peace Bridge Authority and ask what to do with the visa, and if it was okay to leave via the Sarnia exit... The officer on the phone was extremely rude, but finally told him that all he would need to do would be to leave the country "via any point" and the officer at the border would fax the visa back to Fort Erie - as long as he was "out of the country" on the 13th everything would be fine.

Well, the 9th (a day before my birthday) we were out to dinner, and received a call that his grandfather in Chicago had passed away. As he has very little remaining family left, we made the decision for me to accompany him to Chicago for the funeral, and to meet his family and fly home on the 17th. We left Canada via the Sarnia exit with NO problem at all, but noticed that the officer hadn't removed the visa. We figured that they knew what they were doing and it would be taken care of.

When we arrived at the hotel in Chicago my husband called the Peace Bridge Authority and told them what had happened to make sure everything was okay... The man on the phone was absolutely horrible, and told him that he was "*censored word* out of luck" (his words), that he was supposed to hand in the visa at an IMMIGRATION OFFICE before he left Canada, and that "he was told this." He asked if there was anything he could do to fix it, and the officer told him that he couldn't verify his identify over the phone to give an interview, and that he would have to go to a consulate to get it taken care of. By this point my husband was in tears. We woke up the next morning and went into downtown Chicago to the consulate. Thankfully a somewhat nice man was working. He told us that the officer had, that night on the phone, even though he couldn't "verify" my husband's identity to say he'd served his visa, had reprimanded him and wrote on his account that he had been told everything about returning the visa and had purposely not been in compliance. The man at the consulate told us he wasn't even supposed to help us, and lectured us about how irresponsible we were for not doing as we were told (no one told us to do this, we even researched online and called!!). He said that he had "taken care of it" and was faxing the paper to Detroit and fixing it so it would appear that he had furnished compliance, but said that he will always have trouble at the border. I asked him specifically if he had been "blacklisted" - he said that he HAD been, but that it had been fixed. I then asked him if he should call anyone before he returns to Canada to visit me, or if he could enter Canada normally. He verified that he would not need to call, but the next time he came through he had to ensure he had a multitude of papers vouching that he would leave Canada.

I miss him day and night, and I'm absolutely horrified by the way he's been treated... I don't understand why this has been such an issue as he should be able to stay here for at least 6 months. While he was here we definitely made the best of it and took a number of trips - Niagara Falls, camping in Killarney PP for a week and more. I am financially able to support him while he is here. The first time he entered Canada they even called me and kept him at the border for half an hour, quizzing me on the phone about who he was and why he was coming. We are planning for him to come back for 2-3 weeks in November. I really want to start the PR process, but am trying to figure out if we can't until we receive our Marriage Certificate (December), or, if the paper we received when we married is acceptable... I'm thoroughly disenchanted by the entire process and his opinion of Canada being welcoming is out the window, lol. I am thinking of hiring a lawyer to help because I don't want to be caught in another situation where we were "supposed to know" crucial information. I just want everything to go smoothly.

I want him to be truthful a the border and say he is coming to visit his wife, but considering how he's been treated already, adding that to the stack of reasons why they don't think he's going to leave, I'm scared they'll just turn him away without a thought. At this point I'm just wondering if I should drop everything and move to a tropical island somewhere. I just want to be with the love of my life and it seems like nothing is going right.


@ Nyssa - No he did not have any papers on him, and as I was supporting his trip and his stay, he didn't have a lot of cash on him. On top of that, apparently he's in the worst age bracket for people who don't leave (according to the worker at the consulate), he's currently unemployed as he was laid off from his cnc machinist job (the job market in his area is almost non-existent with the current economy, so he's on unemployment), and he lives in his father's home back in Oklahoma, so most utility bills etc. are not filed under his name.

 

[ange]

Courtneyls, sounds like you have encountered the most miserable civil servants Canada has to offer! And now of course you have to wait for the marriage certificate to get back too. On the other hand, I'm not sure hiring a lawyer is going to help you. The immigration procedings are fairly straightforward, and the two of you seem to have a pretty solid case.

Good luck to you.

 

[courtneyls]

He has a non-accompanying dependent in the US who is 4 years old. I have been told we may need to provide an explanation as to why he is not coming, and he must undergo the medical/I have to show financial responsibility for both him and his son - this might require communication with courts in Texas, so I'm thinking a lawyer may help avoid any nasty snarls with this.

 

[liz64]

Hey Courtney, Im so sorry what the immigration officers put you all through. I met my husband online also and he is also from the U.S. We just recieved PR yesterday after about 11 months. We've been through a similar experience with immigration officials at the border. They are utter jerks, but it's their job. After we were married, my husband went to the U.S for a month and tried to come back as we wanted to do an in-canada application and he was heavily interrogated and I was called to verify just what he was doing here because we hadn't yet submitted our application. He was also issued to leave within a month but we applied for a visa extension and submitted our application and everything was fine. If you have any specific questions, I'll be glad to try and help, the process can be very stressful, I know!

 

[courtneyls]

Hey Courtney, Im so sorry what the immigration officers put you all through. I met my husband online also and he is also from the U.S. We just recieved PR yesterday after about 11 months. We've been through a similar experience with immigration officials at the border. They are utter jerks, but it's their job. After we were married, my husband went to the U.S for a month and tried to come back as we wanted to do an in-canada application and he was heavily interrogated and I was called to verify just what he was doing here because we hadn't yet submitted our application. He was also issued to leave within a month but we applied for a visa extension and submitted our application and everything was fine. If you have any specific questions, I'll be glad to try and help, the process can be very stressful, I know!

Hi Liz,

Oh my goodness, what a relief to know someone is in a similar situation. My husband is going to be flying in this time, and he is going to be bringing paperwork which proves ties to the US, so hopefully it shouldn't be so bad... They might give him a hard time since he was stopped once already, but at least he'll be prepared. My question is, when your husband returned did he drive in? Did he tell them at the border that he was going to see his wife? Did you let them know he was coming in to apply for PR or no? How did you explain that? My husband will be leaving and applying outland (that's the plan so far) so do you think he should just tell them this? Sorry for all of the questions... Finally, how hard was it to extend his visitor's visa? How long do the extensions last?