Stressing over "dual intent" (help!)

[Cvstos]

http://www.cic.gc.ca/english/resources/manuals/bulletins/2009/ob131.asp

So, I'm about to fly out of Canada for a couple weeks and return on Jan 15. The biggest point of stress here is the return trip through customs. By then I'll definitely be in the system as having applied to stay in Canada as a permanent resident via spousal sponsorship. Which means I have to satisfy the officer under the rules of "Dual Intent".

My permanent address is with my parents, so I don't pay rent. My only "property" I'm paying on is my car. I have some bills, but they're generally all credit cards. I'm also unemployed at the moment (but trained as a software engineer). So, financially, my ties to the US are weak. I have some family ties, though, in that I have elderly grandparents I visit. I can't necessarily "prove" that, though. I also need to see my doc once every six months or so for a refill on my thyroid medicine. Would showing that pill bottle and explaining help?

So far I've been able to go back and forth a few times, but twice I got an extra-hot grilling from the Immigration office. And now I'm "in the system."

Thus far, my strategy for getting through the border is to bury them in paperwork. I have or can get:

-Letter of Invitation
-Marriage Certificate
-Copy of FBI Letter showing no arrests
-Copy of email from Immigration saying they're started to process my application
-Car payment booklet
-Immigration Lawyer Card
-Wife employment letter
-Printout showing return ticket
-Statement showing enough credit for an emergency return trip
-Passport with lots of stamps showing I've stayed before for long periods before and returned to the US as promised

What else can I do to maximize my chances of getting across the border to be with my wife? I really don't want to get turned away, as that would seriously hamper my ability to move up. (This is long distance, so I'm mainly just staying with her, practicing my coding on my laptop and writing a book. We choose to be together on one income and live frugally than to be apart and both employed.)

Thanks,
Cvstos

[EDIT!] Last time I crossed, after getting grilled to a crisp the officer was nice and said that next time, when I am in the system, he'd help get me a "Visitor Record" to stay up to a year. What are these? How do they work? (Sadly, there's no guarantee I'll get the same officer or if he'll remember me if I do.)

 

[canuck_in_uk]

You are stressing way more than you need to. Burying them in paper is apt to cause you more problems and draw more suspicion. As a visa-exempt American with a spousal PR app processing, entering as a visitor to be with your wife is a fairly straightforward process. I would suggest you have the sponsor approval letter, proof of funds and a fully refundable return ticket that you can cancel after entering Canada. Don't use the word "moving", just visiting, and don't show up with a whole bunch of belongings, just your standard one or two bags. Quite a few, if not most, visa-exempt applicants that apply from outside Canada enter the country as a visitor to wait out the process with their spouse. The approval rate for visa-exempt spousal PR apps is so high, there is pretty much no point in refusing entry as a visitor.

You can ask at the border about a visitor record. Basically, it is an official document that allows you to stay in Canada longer than the usual 6 months you get with just a passport stamp.

 

[Cvstos]

What's been worrying me especially is the fact that I have no mortgage or rental agreement or anything like that. Plus, no job. PLUS, stories like I found here: http://www.canadavisa.com/canada-immigration-discussion-board/visitor-record-in-canada-t41806.0.html

Multiple instances of similar circumstances getting turned away, and I hear having that happen makes it much harder to immigrate. That's not the only instance I've read of such issues. Amber of DMFA (a webcomic, http://www.missmab.com/ ) has had quite a bit of drama moving to Canada as well. That's why I'm seeking advice and freaking out. (Also, I'm a Level 8 Worrywart.)

What is in my favor is my past actions of keeping my promises to leave when I said I would, and the fact that all I plan on bringing with me are clothes, medicine, phone, and my laptop. Stuff any regular tourist would have. Plus, I'm flying a long distance for these trips rather than driving. I'm only going to drive up once it's time to land. (Although if possible, for this trip I'd like to pull the HDD out of my desktop and take it with me so I can set it up as a backup drive for my laptop. But if that's too risky I'll leave it be.)

-Cvstos

 

[canuck_in_uk]

What's been worrying me especially is the fact that I have no mortgage or rental agreement or anything like that. Plus, no job. PLUS, stories like I found here: http://www.canadavisa.com/canada-immigration-discussion-board/visitor-record-in-canada-t41806.0.html

Multiple instances of similar circumstances getting turned away, and I hear having that happen makes it much harder to immigrate. That's not the only instance I've read of such issues. Amber of DMFA (a webcomic, http://www.missmab.com/ ) has had quite a bit of drama moving to Canada as well. That's why I'm seeking advice and freaking out. (Also, I'm a Level 8 Worrywart.)

The person in the thread you quoted wasn't turned away, they were allowed to enter. Even if the border officer only gives 3 months, you can apply for an extension once inside Canada. As well, they hadn't yet submitted their application or even paid the fees, which wasn't very smart. And if you look at some of the more recent posts from that person, they still haven't submitted the PR app but have had no issues crossing the border recently. I've advised several others in the same situation to at least pay the fees before they enter Canada to show they are serious about submitting the PR app as soon as possible.

Whatever refusal stories you've read, they are rare. Have a look at some of the visa-exempt threads like London and CPP-Ottawa. They are full of people who've come to wait out the process in Canada.

My British partner and I came back to Canada halfway through the PR process. My partner had no ties left to the UK, no job, no property, minimal family. The border officer knew that he wasn't intending to return to the UK but to just stay here. The officer confirmed our PR app in the computer, asked us how much money we had, told my partner not to work and sent us on our way. He didn't even ask to see proof of funds or the return ticket.

And you should have no issues bringing your HD.

 

[tabarnouche]

Just tell them that you're in the process of obtaining your permanent residence and would like to stay with your wife while it's being processed. They'll most definitely send you to see an immigration officer who will give you a visitor record.

I was in the same boat as you were -- crossing back and forth from Canada to the U.S. after long stays in Canada with no real residence in the U.S. besides my mom's address. All they cared about was looking up my application on their computer. 15 minutes later they told me they found my wife's sponsorship approval letter, issued me a 6 month visitor record and sent me on my way. Since receiving my visitor record I've had no problem coming and going. I just tell them I'm staying as long as my record permits and hopefully I'll be a permanent resident before it expires.

 

[BeShoo]

I'm the one you mentioned whose partner got a 3-month Visitor Record. Since then, we've extended the visit several times and we've been to the U.S. four times. Before the VR, there were secondary inspections on every visit, usually lengthy, with lots of questions.

In the four trips since getting the VR, there have been no secondary inspections, and very few questions each time. The reason they don't necessarily have to ask so many questions is that they know we already answered a bunch of questions to get the VR extension and presumably the answers were all satisfactory, so there is little need to ask all those questions again.

On the last trip, we went through customs just after midnight at a not-too-busy border crossing (Thousand Islands, Ontario). There were no other cars visible either behind or in front of us and the lone primary inspection agent presumably had nothing better to do than ask us a zillion questions, but he only asked how long we'd been gone, to where, and the reason for the trip, where we live, citizenship, and what we were bringing back, and were we bringing any firearms. Primarily we were bringing back some medicine (which is over the counter in the US but needs a prescription in Canada) and some leftover food from the party (which might not have been allowed depending what is was, but he didn't ask for details). The topic of the PR never came up. We had the VR paper-clipped to a page of the passport and he unfolded a refolded it twice, but decided not to ask anything about why we had it.

When going through the border, there are very few times that you should say anything over than answering questions that you are asked. Of course, if you have anything to declare, like fruits and vegetables, liquor, firearms, for example, you might need to say something even if they don't ask, but if you make conversation that's not in answer to questions, it makes it look like you're hiding something.

 

[Cvstos]

Thanks for taking the time to reassure me, guys. I appreciate it, though I'm still rather panicky over the flight tomorrow. It's on the same day of the week and the same time as the last one, so I'm praying I get the same officer and he remembers me.

I wasn't able to get all the docs I originally wanted. I have a letter of invitation, marriage certificate, printed copy of email from CIC about the immigration application being started, return ticket, and a printout of the main account page of our bank account. I left the car payment book in Canada, and I can't find that extra FBI letter (but may still pull off finding it if I'm real lucky).

I'm bringing: Clothes, laptop, iPad, cell phone, HDD pulled from my old computer, two books, passport, wallet, keys, and my medicine. Prilosec OTC generic and Levothyroxine (prescription with my name on it, extremely common stuff).

I sure as hell hope I make it through. Getting turned away would be a disaster for the application from what I hear. Is there anything I can get last minute like this that'll help, or am I screwed is this all good enough / okay? Can/Will the prilosec be an issue? I hear that's script-only in Canada for some reason (somehow it's OTC in the US first, no idea how that works).

-Cvstos

 

[canuck_in_uk]

I wasn't able to get all the docs I originally wanted. I have a letter of invitation, marriage certificate, printed copy of email from CIC about the immigration application being started, return ticket, and a printout of the main account page of our bank account. I left the car payment book in Canada, and I can't find that extra FBI letter (but may still pull off finding it if I'm real lucky).

I sure as hell hope I make it through. Getting turned away would be a disaster for the application from what I hear. Is there anything I can get last minute like this that'll help, or am I screwed is this all good enough / okay? Can/Will the prilosec be an issue? I hear that's script-only in Canada for some reason (somehow it's OTC in the US first, no idea how that works).

The most important thing you need to do is relax. If you are panicked and jumpity, you are going to look suspicious. Also, being turned away at the border will have zero affect on the PR app, so that's one less thing to panic about.

You are going to visit your partner, who is currently sponsoring you for PR. This is a perfectly acceptable situation and one that the border officers see every single day. The return ticket, CIC letter and bank page is adequate. The marriage certificate won't hurt. A letter of invitation is unnecessary for a visa-exempt person. No need to have the FBI letter or car payment book. Answer the officer's questions but don't volunteer anything extra. Provided it's clear that the medications are personal use only, there will probably be no issue; again, don't volunteer extra info, like the fact that it's prescription only in Canada, unless directly asked.

In the meantime, scroll through this website, guaranteed to make you relax http://veryhilarious.com/i-have-gained-their-trust/

 

[BeShoo]

I sure as hell hope I make it through. Getting turned away would be a disaster for the application from what I hear. Is there anything I can get last minute like this that'll help, or am I screwed is this all good enough / okay? Can/Will the prilosec be an issue? I hear that's script-only in Canada for some reason (somehow it's OTC in the US first, no idea how that works).

You will NOT get turned away, so just relax and act like everything is fine and normal, because it is. Even if you did get turned away (which, I repeat, will not happen in your circumstance) it would have no effect on your application. You are applying "outland" aren't you? Even if you are applying inland, the operations manual urges officers to let you stay in Canada while the application is processed.

If you can show that the application is in process, you have the ticket to return to the US, and you have a means to support yourself or be supported during your visit without working illegally in Canada, you're completely clear to go through.

My partner takes Omeprazole (another name for Prilosec) and they never asked to see it when we crossed the border with it twice. Technically, your are only allowed one or two complete courses of treatment of it and it has to be for personal use, but they never question it. As a visitor, you are absolutely allowed to bring it into Canada, or even have it sent to you from the U.S. later, as long as it's for a visitor, but they never worry about it. We've had it sent in the mail once and they never even opened it for inspection.

The "worst" case (and it's actually not even bad) is that they will issue a Visitor Record to you. You don't have to talk to the officer you had last time -- anyone can do it. Normally, you don't ask for one. If they think they need to issue it, they will. If they do, it is not in any way a mark against you of anything. It's just an indication that you're okay for a period of time, and you can always apply for an extension. If you have a PR in progress and you've followed all the rules, extensions are normally granted. Once they give you a VR there likely will never be any more "grilling to a crisp," because you've already been checked out before you get to the officer.