Canadian Woman Marrying American Man and Living in Canada

[Cassiopeia78]

Hi there! Thanks in advance for the help. My fiance and I have been together 3 years and want to get married. He lives in USA and I live in Canada and we want to get married and live in Canada. He is currently out of work and is on disability but is ready to start looking for work. We want to make sure we do things the right way and so I have a few questions:

How long do we need to be married before we apply?

How long is the application process and what are the steps to take?

When we apply, are we able to use Ottawa (Canadian Visa Office) as his application office even though he is American?

Inland vs Outland and why? I can't really seem to get a lot of information on these two options. I would really like to know specific differences and pro/con list if at all possible.

If we get married in Canada and he stays here, can he/we go back to USA to visit family or travel?

Since he is currently on disability, should he start working in USA before we get married? Wait until he can work here? The sooner we can be together the better.

How much is the application? I believe I estimated costs around 1100$, is this correct?

How long after we apply will he be able to have health care?

Once sponsorship application is finally 100% completed and processed, is he now a PR? or do we have to apply for that next?

What is your suggestion for him moving here to marry me and bringing his stuff over the border? I have read people talk about getting a storage locker and storing his stuff near border and slowly bringing it over?? Is that really necessary?

When he does come over border to marry... does he tell border he is getting married?

I hope I asked all of the right questions, we really want to be together as soon as we can but want to do this the best way possible. Thank you again for your assistance

 

[Zarilenth]

Welcome. I am pretty much in the same position as you, I am Canadian and my husband is American. We got married in Canada in October 2013 no problem, and yes when he came over he told the guards he was getting married. Although, he had a return ticket for a week later, so I don't think they really minded the reason.

1. You can apply the next day after you are married in theory.. But I wouldn't advise it, as you need to order your marriage certificate to put into your application, and that takes about a month. Once you have that and everything else in order you can apply.

2. Application process for outland USA is typically 8ish months. I'm at 4 months and hopefully my husband will have his PR by the end of August 2014.

3. Yes, all outland PR applications for USA go through Ottawa. They only get sent to LA/NY if there are red flags and require an interview

4. Inland is good for some people (ie. Singapore) because of long outland waiting times. Not good for USA because outland times are faster and your husband can stay in Canada for the whole time if he wants, while applying outland. Also if the application is denied you can appeal with outland. Cannot with inland. He can also come as go as he pleases with Outland. With Inland you are required to stay in Canada because if you leave and are denied re entry (although slim for Americans) your application is automatically cancelled.

5. Answered above - yes if applying outland.

6. I am not sure. You can wait until he is a PR and can work here. He can be 'visiting' Canada the whole time the app is in process - he cannot work. BUT him being on disability and not working may raise a red flag on how you will support yourself once given PR. I don't know if that will affect it, sorry. Someone else will be able to explain better I'm sure.

7. Application is $1040 all included if you have no dependants.
Getting your permanent resident status $490 (RPRF)
Sponsorship application (per application) $75
Principal applicant $475
Total: $1040.

8. I don't know - I think depending on the province you get it as soon as he gets PR or even if he's visiting as your spouse (Alberta). Again someone might be able to help more with this one!

9. Yep! He'll get the card in the mail after a month or two.

10. I would not bring everything over at once if he is not a PR. If he comes over and says he's 'moving' here or it looks like he's moving he'll get sent back, most likely. He is only a visitor until his PR goes through, but he can visit for 6 months at a time and keep extending it.

11. Answered above. If he has a (refundable) return ticket and not a ton of stuff, he can say he's getting married. My hubby did with no problem.

Good luck!

 

[Cassiopeia78]

Thank you so much for your speedy reply! Very helpful!! I think we have everything we need to make our decision but for the disability part. If he goes off of it right now and gets a job, which he is ready to do now, he will have a hard time staying for long periods of time to be with me. Unless he gets a job now, works until we get married and then quits when we apply? How would that even work? lol.

By the way, congratulations! I hope everything is smooth running for you. 4 months to go! How exciting!

 

[Zarilenth]

You've very welcome It is a very stressful process, lol. Like I said, I don't know if him being on disability would affect the application. There are a lot of people on here living in Canada waiting for their PR not working at all, so I wouldn't worry too much but I am sure someone else on here will give you advice too!
My husband is working in the States while we wait, which is very difficult for us but we're managing! Your husband will have to do a medical for the application with a panel physician (which is cheaper in Canada) as well as getting an FBI police check. This check needs to be less than 3 months old when you application gets to Mississauga, so that is something to keep in mind!

 

[Amalthea]

Thank you so much for your speedy reply! Very helpful!! I think we have everything we need to make our decision but for the disability part. If he goes off of it right now and gets a job, which he is ready to do now, he will have a hard time staying for long periods of time to be with me. Unless he gets a job now, works until we get married and then quits when we apply? How would that even work? lol.

By the way, congratulations! I hope everything is smooth running for you. 4 months to go! How exciting!

It is more important for you, as the sponsor, to be working, than it is the sponsored. As you are the one signing a contract that if he goes on welfare etc after moving there, YOU have to pay it back. You are responsible for him. There is no income requirement for spousal sponsorship, however, if you have no income as the sponsor they may wonder how you plan to support your husband.

You should read the sticky at the top of the page entitled "Spousal Sponsorship"

Your husband will have to do a medical exam for the Permanent Residence sponsorship application, however, I BELIEVE that Spouses are exempt from being denial because of medical
Other family class sponsorships can be denied on the grounds that their disability or illness would "be a burden" to the Canadian health care system, but as I said, I believe that Spousal sponsorships are exempt from that clause.

 

[Ponga]

Active Tuberculosis would be something that could be deemed a medical inadmissibility for a spouse.

Basically, any condition/disease that could be harmful to the public.

 

[katester]

My husband is the Canadian citizen and I am American. When we applied I had just gotten back from a 4 month visit with him and his family, so I was unemployed. It seems to have been a bad choice applying while I was unemployed. I have since gotten a stable job that I actually enjoy. However the CIC has sent us emails stating they question if my husband can support us. My husband is a member of the Canadian Armed Forces... he works for the government and they are questioning if he can support us! So, they requested paystubs from his work and then after reviewing them, sent me a letter stating they did not have enough proof that I wouldn't just go on welfare the moment I get to Canada... so I had to send them our bank statements showing we have some money set aside for living expenses until I find work. I also had my employer write a letter stating I am in good standing -- in hopes it would show that I am ready and able to work. It has been 2 months since they received our new information and still havent heard anything!

They claim that there is no income requirement for the Canadian spouse to be a sponsor. They claim there is no income requirements for the applicant to be approved. However they can just label it whatever they want and deny you. I have never received social assistance and neither has my husband, but they seem to think that we will place a burden on the system......

 

[QuebecOkie]

My husband is the Canadian citizen and I am American. When we applied I had just gotten back from a 4 month visit with him and his family, so I was unemployed. It seems to have been a bad choice applying while I was unemployed. I have since gotten a stable job that I actually enjoy. However the CIC has sent us emails stating they question if my husband can support us. My husband is a member of the Canadian Armed Forces... he works for the government and they are questioning if he can support us! So, they requested paystubs from his work and then after reviewing them, sent me a letter stating they did not have enough proof that I wouldn't just go on welfare the moment I get to Canada... so I had to send them our bank statements showing we have some money set aside for living expenses until I find work. I also had my employer write a letter stating I am in good standing -- in hopes it would show that I am ready and able to work. It has been 2 months since they received our new information and still havent heard anything!

They claim that there is no income requirement for the Canadian spouse to be a sponsor. They claim there is no income requirements for the applicant to be approved. However they can just label it whatever they want and deny you. I have never received social assistance and neither has my husband, but they seem to think that we will place a burden on the system......

Oh WOW! I, too, am an American married to a Canadian military member. I can't believe they're doing this to you two! Sorry they're making you jump through all of those extra hoops, and fingers crossed that your further proofs will finally get them to move foward with your app.

 

[katester]

Oh WOW! I, too, am an American married to a Canadian military member. I can't believe they're doing this to you two! Sorry they're making you jump through all of those extra hoops, and fingers crossed that your further proofs will finally get them to move foward with your app.

Thank you! I hope so too! We even sent them a letter 2 weeks before he was set to go away with the military for several months.... We explained that he was going away and due to his schedule, we would have very little contact with each other until at least September. We politely requested an update on where we stand so he would have an idea before he left, they responded quickly with a snippy remark that we would be contacted once a decision was made. So glad they care about putting their soldiers a ease while they are off defending their country!

 

[QuebecOkie]

THAT part doesn't surprise me. There's no special treatment for military or any other applicants/sponsors (i.e. everyone is left in the dark and forced to wait it out with no good answers or information). But while there are a lot of American soldiers who can't make ends meet, Canada pays a living wage to their military members, and I'm just shocked that they'd bother you soooooo much about being able to support yourselves when it's the GOVERNMENT who pays him.

 

[katester]

We knew we wouldn't be given any special treatment, just hoping for an update like others on here have received when they requested it. It was worth a shot. But you are right, I have many friends in the American military. Some are single and some have families, but none of them are living too comfortably. Although we aren't racking up the dough either, it's ironic that the government is questioning -- if the government is paying enough to support a husband and his wife.

 

[QuebecOkie]

We're not rich, but I'm VERY grateful for his quite adequate salary that allows him to support both of us. It's the difference between being able to stay with him, the love of my life and my very best friend, and having my heart broken beyond repair at our separation. Even immigration issues aside, we're posted to a very French area, where it would be pretty much impossible for me to work without speaking French (I am bilingual now, but only after almost two years of effort while living in a French area). If we couldn't have survived on one income, we had no real options. I wouldn't have been able to learn nearly as French in such a short period of time in the US. As it stands now, I'm looking for work and very encouraged that I will soon find something, after my first couple of interviews. But without his ability to support us, our only option would have been long-term long distance relationship.

 

[katester]

I completely understand that. We have been doing the long distance thing since the new year, and it sucks! The only reason I didn't move with him the moment Sponsorship was approved, is because I needed health insurance. So until I can apply for health care in Canada, I am stuck living back with my parents, and working just to have health care. Luckily I have good hours and when my husband isn't gone for months at a time, I get to visit on weekends. He is my world and the few minutes we've gotten to skype each week he is gone is more than a blessing. I can not wait for this process to be over with. Even if he is gone for weeks or months, we would at least have a life for him to come back too. Instead he goes back to an apartment with a roommate who thinks he is so much better than everyone because he has a PhD...yet cant remember to wash his dishes before they grow mold!

I've been considering trying to learn some french. We wont be in Quebec, but since I have months until I get to be with my hubby and more than likely months before my PR is approved, why not? It would probably help with getting a job once I am allowed to work. Did you do anything special to help you? I've heard good things about the software Rosetta Stone, but have yet to try it. Do you have any suggestions? If I were enrolled in a university it might be easier but that will have to wait until PR too.

 

[QuebecOkie]

I completely understand that. We have been doing the long distance thing since the new year, and it sucks! The only reason I didn't move with him the moment Sponsorship was approved, is because I needed health insurance. So until I can apply for health care in Canada, I am stuck living back with my parents, and working just to have health care. Luckily I have good hours and when my husband isn't gone for months at a time, I get to visit on weekends. He is my world and the few minutes we've gotten to skype each week he is gone is more than a blessing. I can not wait for this process to be over with. Even if he is gone for weeks or months, we would at least have a life for him to come back too. Instead he goes back to an apartment with a roommate who thinks he is so much better than everyone because he has a PhD...yet cant remember to wash his dishes before they grow mold!

I've been considering trying to learn some french. We wont be in Quebec, but since I have months until I get to be with my hubby and more than likely months before my PR is approved, why not? It would probably help with getting a job once I am allowed to work. Did you do anything special to help you? I've heard good things about the software Rosetta Stone, but have yet to try it. Do you have any suggestions? If I were enrolled in a university it might be easier but that will have to wait until PR too.

Yeah, even when we were separated early in this process, him knowing he had his HOME to come back to after his course was really good for his mind and heart while he was in Ontario. At least your situation IS temporary, even if it feels like it will last forever.

As for learning French, I tried Rosetta Stone, and I still use it a little from time to time, but it does not compliment my learning style at ALL, so it's only good for me as a supplement to other learning activities. I use the site duolingo.com some (I'm Meg_in_Quebec on there) and enjoy it, but again, it's best for me as a supplement to other things. I need more explanations as to WHY something works the way it does, and Rosetta Stone just throws correct examples at you and expects you to memorize them and eventually put the pieces together yourself. It's okay for vocab, but absolutely unhelpful for grammar. Duolingo is a bit the same way, except for the discussion function that allows you to post questions and others to answer, which helps a bit with grammer rules.

 

[katester]

I will have to look into that! Thanks!