My American Wife to be!

[CECanada27]

Good day!

I am looking for some general information from people who have successfully applied and were granted permanent residency of their American wife/husband after getting married in the USA.

My fiancé and I have been together for almost nine years now and have decided to make Canada our home. I am a Canadian (born and raised). We plan on getting married in the new year and she plans on coming to Canada full time 5 months after we are married. I am looking to see which process would be quicker for her to become a permanent resident. Would inland or outland be faster? Our lease is up 5 months after our wedding date and would like to know if that would be enough time to get things done? She has no criminal charges, has two degrees and is an American Citizen(born and raised)

Any help would be greatly apprecicated.

 

[chakrab]

for an american, outland is definitely the way to go. your process should be done in 6-8 months compared to inland time of close to 2 years. since you are not in canada at this time, you will be required to show intent of return to canada along with how you plan to settle in canada. this can include looking for housing, job application, letters from family members if you plan to stay with them, etc. if you search around, you will find plenty information on that front.

 

[DuberBlue]

Outland will absolutely be faster for an American. Your situation mirrors mine -- got married in the USA, then went through the PR process for my (American) wife. This was 2013 and she was processed in about 7 months, during which she was living with me the whole time.

Is your wife going to change her last name? If so, I'd suggest getting all that done (starting with her SSN) and her passport updated with the new name before applying. If not, don't worry about it

 

[CECanada27]

Thank you two for the swift reply! I am living in Canada right now and am working fulltime. I am not concerned about not being able to support my wife to be, I am just wondering if we should do the outbound once we are married and wait. I just want her to have access to healthcare and get the process over in a timely manner.

 

[CECanada27]

Duberblue... you mentioned she was living with you the whole time, were you in the usa then or in Canada?

 

[Ponga]

You have two options, if you choose the Outland application process:

1. Get married (anywhere in the world) and then submit the applications. Your wife comes to Canada as a visitor and stays with you (as a visitor) while her PR application is processed. This is known as Dual Intent, which you can reasearch on CIC's website. It's a very common practice and as long as you both understand how it works, you should be fine.

2. Your fiance comes to Canada, as a visitor, and you get married in Canada. You then submit the Outland application from within Canada and she waits for her approval. If her visitor status nears the expiry date, she simply applies for an extension (online)...and continues to wait.

The Outland application doesn't give her the option of an Open Work Permit (like an Inland applicant), but as others have said...it's a substantially faster process, overall.

Good luck!

 

[DuberBlue]

Duberblue... you mentioned she was living with you the whole time, were you in the usa then or in Canada?

In Canada. She had been staying with me as a Visitor on a Visitor Record which we routinely extended via the CIC Website. It was never an issue...even though we did it like 5-6 times.

 

[CECanada27]

Will be getting the process started, but having a hard time finding the right application package, if anyone has any links, could you send them to me? Also, how long does it take before my bride can access healthcare?

 

[canuck_in_uk]

Will be getting the process started, but having a hard time finding the right application package, if anyone has any links, could you send them to me? Also, how long does it take before my bride can access healthcare?

http://www.cic.gc.ca/english/information/applications/fc.asp

Healthcare depends on the province.

 

[CECanada27]

Much appreciated! Would you suggest we tell the border crossing agent that we've already applied for the outbound sponsorship already when coming thru, or just say she is here for a visit?

 

[CDNPR2014]

Much appreciated! Would you suggest we tell the border crossing agent that we've already applied for the outbound sponsorship already when coming thru, or just say she is here for a visit?

when you cross, she is a visitor no matter if you have an application submitted or not, so until she is approved for pr, she should always always present herself as a visitor. never use the words "moving" or "living" as it applies to her being in canada. yes, a pr application submitted will show them she knows the rules, but she has to understand she is ONLY a visitor until she lands as a pr. It's not necessary to tell CBSA about the application unless they ask about it. it's best practice for applicants to carry proof of their application along with proof of ties to their home country (paystatements, lease/mortgage) and not be trying to bring in everything they own.

 

[CECanada27]

I appreciate all the info. What our plan is to have her quit her job, move all of her stuff into storage and come here for 6 months, before the six months is up, I plan on filing an extension for a full year. Is this smart, or would you advise we not do this?

 

[CECanada27]

I have read on here that others have kept applying for additional extensions and have been granted them all. Their significant other has stayed with them the whole time.

 

[Decoy24601]

She may or may not have issues entering the country from CBSA. If you have already submitted an outland PR application you might not have any issues, but normally it's best to keep proof of ties to the US (proof of employment, etc).

I had no issues doing this, but I also technically still had a job when I crossed the border. I just applied for a visitor extension a few weeks ago, but I applied by paper so I'll be on implied status until I get a response in a few months.