how to bring my US gal to Canada

[hoser317]

Hello I'm new in this forum and seeking a starting point. I have an American girlfriend (5 yrs now) and we've decided we need to be together, but do I go to the US or her here? Logical question I guess.
I've lived in the US before and have been on TN and H1B visas. I could try to find work there but its not that easy these days

Would it be easier for her to sponsor me into the US on a fiance visa?

I'd like to bring her here to Canada but from what I've seen the process seems almost hopeless.
What kind of time frame would be looking at for her approval inbound compared to outbound?

Do we have to be married first and then she try to come as my spouse sponsor? Seems that if we do that it will take a couple of eyars atleast and she cant work etc... complete hassle! I imagine many marriages couldn't survive that

So, any tips or advice would be greatly appreciated

Thanks!

Oh, any good resources or help sites to share on the topic?

 

[TracyCa64]

Hello I'm new in this forum and seeking a starting point. I have an American girlfriend (5 yrs now) and we've decided we need to be together, but do I go to the US or her here? Logical question I guess.
I've lived in the US before and have been on TN and H1B visas. I could try to find work there but its not that easy these days

Would it be easier for her to sponsor me into the US on a fiance visa?

I'd like to bring her here to Canada but from what I've seen the process seems almost hopeless.
What kind of time frame would be looking at for her approval inbound compared to outbound?

Do we have to be married first and then she try to come as my spouse sponsor? Seems that if we do that it will take a couple of eyars atleast and she cant work etc... complete hassle! I imagine many marriages couldn't survive that

So, any tips or advice would be greatly appreciated

Thanks!

Oh, any good resources or help sites to share on the topic?

Welcome to the forum hoser317!!

It's not hopeless to sponsor her and bring her to Canada. You can read some of the threads on the forum and see that there are a ton of people doing it. Yes, it takes time and lots of patience, but it works out.

It takes a lot longer to apply Inland, I would suggest since she is from the US that you apply Outland. It doesn't take as long and she can be in Canada while the application is being processed. If you live together for a year you can sponsor her as your Common Law partner. You wouldn't need to be married first to sponsor her. If you want to get married first and then sponsor her that is up to you two.

She can come here for a 6 month visit and after the 6 months are up she would need to apply for a Visitor Extension so she can stay in Canada while her PR application is being processed.

Yes, with the Inland application she could apply for a work permit, but she would need to stay in Canada while her PR is being processed and it's a much longer process. With Outland, she can't work and would be able to leave Canada and come back, but for a US Citizen I have been told the wait time is much faster, it can be up to 8 months for approval.

Check out the forum and threads to gather information. Ask questions when you can't find the answer. We are here to help.

Smiles!!

http://www.cic.gc.ca/english/immigrate/sponsor/spouse.asp

 

[Aquakitty]

Hmm, not sure where you are getting your information but it's not quite accurate.

The good news is you've found the best information source on Canada Immigration on the internet. The bad news is I have no clue about US immigration, someone else will have to answer or you might have to find another forum for that.

The better news is your times are way off, and your situation is far from hopeless!

The best thing for Americans to do is apply outland. Everyone's case is different, but with an outland app you aren't looking at years at all (unless she has criminality issues). For a straightforward complete app, you can expect no more than 9 months. Some get their PR start to finish in under 4 months.

If you haven't ever lived together for a consecutive year for common-law status, then yes, get married. In my opinion, marriage just makes things go smoother and you will have less to prove in your application. To me, if you aren't ready to get married, it might not be the best idea to be sponsoring someone anyways, as sponsorship is a very big commitment. But everyone has their opinions on marriage, and it's certainly not a requirement as you can apply common-law.

With outland, she can live with you as a visitor in Canada while her app is processed, or to gain common-law status. The key word here is "visitor". She can't bring all her stuff to Canada yet, but she can stay for 6 months, then if necessary renew her visitor status while still in Canada for another 6 months. And so on.

Applying inland for an American is not worth it 99% of the time. THAT process does take years to complete. The reason some people are so tempted to apply inland is for the work permit, but that's still a pilot program that may not even be around next month. Also, it's a bad idea to leave Canada during an inland app, as if you are ever denied entry into Canada for some reason (could be something as simple as a CBSA officer having a power trip) your entire application is cancelled. So with inland you must remain in Canada for years, which can be difficult for Americans who cross the border often.

Hope this helps! Asking questions is the best thing you can do.

 

[TracyCa64]

Hmm, not sure where you are getting your information but it's not quite accurate.

The good news is you've found the best information source on Canada Immigration on the internet. The bad news is I have no clue about US immigration, might have to find another forum for that.

The better news is your times are way off, and your situation is far from hopeless!

The best thing for Americans to do is apply outland. Everyone's case is different, but with an outland app you aren't looking at years at all (unless she has criminality issues). For a straightforward complete app, you can expect no more than 9 months. Some get their PR start to finish in under 4 months.

If you haven't ever lived together for a consecutive year, then yes, get married. In my opinion, marriage just makes things go smoother. To me, if you aren't ready to get married, it might not be the best idea to be sponsoring someone anyways, as sponsorship is a very big commitment.

With outland, she can live with you as a visitor in Canada while her app is processed. The key word here is "visitor". She can't bring all her stuff to Canada yet, but she can stay for 6 months, then if necessary renew her visitor status while still in Canada for another 6 months.

Applying inland for an American is not worth it 99% of the time. THAT process does take years to complete. The reason some people are so tempted to apply inland is for the work permit, but that's still a pilot program that may not even be around next month. Also, it's a bad idea to leave Canada during an inland app, as if you are ever denied entry into Canada for some reason (could be something as simple as a CBSA officer having a power trip) your entire is cancelled. So with inland you are trapped for years, which can be difficult for Americans who cross the border often.

Hope this helps! Asking questions is the best thing you can do.

Thanks Aquakitty!! I was hoping an experience member would post as I am still new to this process. I was happy to see that I did give correct info. LOL
I just love this place!!

 

[Aquakitty]

Thanks Aquakitty!! I was hoping an experience member would post as I am still new to this process. I was happy to see that I did give correct info. LOL
I just love this place!!

I know right? This place is literally a life saver. I am hardly experienced compared to some people here though, haha. I saw that "someone has already replied" message but no way was I gonna erase it after typing all that ;D

 

[TracyCa64]

I know right? This place is literally a life saver. I am hardly experienced compared to some people here though, haha. I saw that "someone has already replied" message but no way was I gonna erase it after typing all that ;D

Oh for sure!! I don't blame you, besides I love that we all give info based on our experience or knowledge. I am in a common law partnership, so I didn't have advice on getting married and sponsoring.

I would be soo lost without this forum, seriously!!

 

[Snowisland]

The website with info for a USA immigration issues is uscis.gov

A fiancé visa allows you to spend a limited amount of time in the States in order to plan your wedding and get married. After that you would start over applying for a green card which is a name for the visa.

It may be best to decide where you want to live rather than which immigration path is fastest or easiest.

Considerations are jobs, salary, cost of living, proximatey to relatives, weather to name a few.

I wish you the best and hope this information is helpful.

 

[Ponga]

Canada's residency requirements (to maintain PR status) are much more liberal than the U.S. Green Card requirements. For Canadian PR, she would need to live in Canada for 730 days (2 years) for each rolling 5 year period...compared to you having to live 183 days each year in the U.S., to keep your GC.

Also, if you were to be outside of Canada (together, living together anywhere in the world) her days towards the 730 would still be credited to her, as long as you are a Canadian citizen.