Options to live in Canada

[jay7777]

I am a United States citizen and am trying to figure out how I can be with my girlfriend in Canada. She is a Chinese Citizen I met her online 2+ years ago. She obtained her Canadian permanent resident card in 2011, but only lived in Canada for a few weeks back in 2011 and then went back to China due to family issues. She came back to Canada to live and has lived here for almost a year. I have visited her multiple times over the last 2 years.

For the last 2.5 months I have been visiting her in Canada and now we serious about getting married. She wants to stay in Canada and get her Citizenship and does not want to consider moving to the United States. I understand that she will need to live here for another 2+ years before she can apply for her citizenship. So naturally, I would want to stay here and become a permanent resident as well and also try to get a work permit. The sooner the better.

Currently, she is working part time and taking English classes so she does not make a lot of money. I had a business in the United States that I sold before I came here. I also have a little money from a rental income property which covers my living expenses for the time being. I have some money in savings but not enough to qualify for the investor visa which I think is currently closed anyways.

I was thinking maybe an extended visa application?
Also any recommendations of the timing and location USA vs. Canada of getting married?

One last thing. It was a long drive across Canada and my original route have me going in and out of Canada and back into Canada, but my gps recalculated my drive and I stayed in Canada without leaving. The border officer may have been under the impression I would only be staying in Canada for a day or so as I was making my way towards the west coast. He didn't stamp my passport so is this going to be a big deal or should I cross back over and then come back to Canada and explain my situation.

Does anyone have any recommendations??

 

[Leon]

US passports are often not stamped when you enter. They should still have a record of it. If you want to make your border crossings easier, you can apply for a Nexus card.

If you want your gf to sponsor you, you need to either get married or live together as a couple for a year. Living together for a year might be difficult as she does not want to move to the US and you would not be allowed to work in Canada.

She is technically not allowed to come to the US to get married without a fiancé visa which is a hassle to get so if you decide to marry in the US, she should not mention it when she enters and not have anything with her that indicates marriage. I know of one man having been turned away from the US as the immigration officer found some wedding invitation cards in his luggage.

In Canada, there is no fiancé visa but if you come to Canada to get married, you should probably not mention it at the border either or they may think you want to overstay.

After getting married, she can apply to sponsor you for PR. There is no specific income requirement to sponsor a spouse and it is not common to get denied because of income. Immigration must be assured that you will not end up on welfare, that is pretty much it.

In the meantime, if you want to stay with her longer on a visit visa even though you can't work, you can apply to extend a bit before your 6 months are up.