US Citizen-- easier to deal with LMO stuff, or marriage + open work permit?

[emsiemilia]

Hi everyone, my boyfriend and I have been together for five years. He's Canadian and I'm American. We met in Vancouver while I was studying here. We're actually planning to move to the US next year so I can go to grad school. However, we won't be ready to move until about March 2015, and my post-graduation work visa expires this September. It's pretty important that I be able to continue working at my current job right until we move-- I'm really trying to save $$$ for school.

I'm trying to figure out the best way to be able to work for that extra ~six months after my permit. The whole process around the LMO kind of scares me, partly because I'm an English language teacher and I don't see how that would pass scrutiny. The bf and I were planning on getting married when we move to the US anyway, and have already started preparing to get the K1 visa. So, we could get married, in Canada, ASAP so I can work after September. This would mean, as I understand it, applying for permanent residency in order to get a work permit or implied status in the interim time, which is all I really need. I do want to move back to Canada eventually though, so PR isn't a bad idea...

(The complicating factor here is our move to the US. This would mean a different process for my boyfriend's US immigration, which I also need to look into, and would probably complicate my ability to receive the Canadian PR I had applied for.)

Any thoughts on which option is better-- marriage or a regular temporary work permit? Much appreciated.

 

[steerpike]

I think they cancelled the loop-hole that gives you implied status OWP with your PR application. Now you apply for OWP after you get to stage 2. So i dont think that is going to work for you. It's probably best to look at other optionms for getting a work permit extension.

 

[emsiemilia]

Hmm, I've been looking into this all afternoon and finding mixed information. A lot of discussions on this board indicate that I can indeed get implied status before stage 2. How recently was this "loophole" cancelled, if that is the case?

 

[Ponga]

Hi,

Two things come to mind:

1.
Until someone (ANYONE) posts something that officially states that the OWP/Implied status policy has in fact been changed by CIC...keep doing your own research. While it is true that OWP can no longer be sent with an Inland application, that may be for the simple fact that they are now processed in separate provinces...so they obviously can't be mailed in the same envelope. There are many people here that are trying to figure out what, if anything has really changed.

2. If you are planning to move after March 2015, you should get your Inland sponsorship application in ASAP. While it's possible for the process to be complete ~12 months (based on more and more people getting AIP and DM simultaneously), the typical processing time is closer to 18 months (+/-)...based on current processing times. If you suddenly had to move before you made it ALL THE WAY through the Inland process, which means that you have attended your Inland interview and have received your COPR...you could lose everything that you've waited for. The Inland application requires that you and your sponsor remain in Canada for the duration of the `ride'.

Since you are not yet married, are you planning to apply now as Common-Law, and if so...do you have the required proof of your relationship to submit with your application? Do you already have things like: Joint lease/mortgage, joint cell account, joint banking, etc.? If not, you might want to consider some of these as you'll need them to help prove your cohabitation (which is the primary requirement, obviously, for a Common-law sponsorship). Since you don't plan to get married until you move to the US, this is the only way that you can apply for PR right now.

You state that you could get married in Canada ASAP, which might be a good idea in the sense of your PR plans, anyway.

I'm not familiar with the US K1 visa. Is that related to the US Green Card? If so, you're probably aware that the residency requirements are must stricter than Canada's PR, and that he would need to live 6 months out of every year in the US, while your PR card would require you to only live in Canada 730 days out of every five. That could be tricky trying to make that math work, but...not impossible.

Whatever you decide, I wish you all the best.

 

[Leon]

It seems they are only planning to apply for inland in order to get implied status. Once they move to the US, their inland application will be cancelled due to not living in Canada any more.

 

[emsiemilia]

Leon and Ponga, thank you SO much for your replies. A few points to clarify our complicated situation:

Regarding our relationship, we have lived common-law but it would be hard to prove. We're discussing getting married in the next month or two (sooner than planned but we're okay with it ) We're planning to have that be the basis of both my PR application and his US visa application.

About the OWP/implied status policy for my case, you're right, I'm going to need to do more research. I have yet to find ANYthing that talks about my exact circumstance-- the in-between time after a PGWP and before spouse-sponsored PR.

Our plan is to live in the US for a few years and then come back to Canada. So ideally I could get my permanent residency taken care of AND be able to work up until I move-- killing two birds with one stone. But if my Canadian PR isn't ready when it's time for me to move, I guess I'll just start over with an outland application a few years from now, when we're ready to return to Canada. I don't mind having to start the application over. What I don't want is to do anything that would prevent me from obtaining PR in the future!

 

[Rob_TO]

Our plan is to live in the US for a few years and then come back to Canada. So ideally I could get my permanent residency taken care of AND be able to work up until I move-- killing two birds with one stone. But if my Canadian PR isn't ready when it's time for me to move, I guess I'll just start over with an outland application a few years from now, when we're ready to return to Canada. I don't mind having to start the application over. What I don't want is to do anything that would prevent me from obtaining PR in the future!

If you apply INLAND, then you are supposed to stay within Canada for the entire processing time of the inland app. You are not even supposed to leave for a vacation, as if you were denied re-entry back to Canada for any reason, the inland app is cancelled. Also if you spend too much time outside Canada then CIC will consider you no longer living here, and would just cancel the application.

If you ever want to travel to the US during PR processing, your only choice is to submit an outland app.

 

[steerpike]

Hmm, I've been looking into this all afternoon and finding mixed information. A lot of discussions on this board indicate that I can indeed get implied status before stage 2. How recently was this "loophole" cancelled, if that is the case?

It's a recent change.

About the OWP/implied status policy for my case, you're right, I'm going to need to do more research. I have yet to find ANYthing that talks about my exact circumstance-- the in-between time after a PGWP and before spouse-sponsored PR.

Thats because most people dont apply for PR just to get an extra 6 months on their work visa. It's an odd situation.

Can i offer my totally uninvited opinion? Getting married is a HUGE event in your life. You are (probably, hopefully) only going to do it once in your whole life. Your family and friends are going to excited and want to share in it with you. Rushing all that just to get an extra 6 month work visa seems like a poor life choice to me. Maybe i'm just old fashioned. It's seems like you are doing things the hard way. Applying for a new job in the USA seems a lot easier than getting married and tackling the PR process in Canada. Even if you take a job at less pay, it may be worth it to avoid PR fees and also a wedding (which can be cheap if you just show up to city hall in your flipflops and sweat pants, or can get very expensive if you want to celebrate a major live event that is only going to happen once in your life). And yes you do a big celebratuion later, i guess. But it's not the same.

I know a canadian girl who married an american and the reason they "got married" was to get visas and live together. They didnt tell anyone, not even their parents, and they planned to do a "real wedding" later. But they needed visas now. Anyway, 5 years later they have 2 kids. Never had a wedding ceremony, and their parents still dont know they are officially married. Maybe they are just waiting for the right moment.

 

[Ponga]

It's a recent change.

True enough, but she is "researching" by searching this board and likely finding out-dated information.

Can you elaborate more on the change that you mention? Is this the fact that OWP and Inland applications for sponsorship are now mailed to different locations?
No idea if it officially changes the implied status loophole, correct?

Oh...and your suggestion that the OP re-consider her plans seems like a very solid option. Processing simultaneous visa applications from both sides of the border sounds like < fun than I can imagine. :-\

 

[PMM]

Hi

Can you elaborate more on the change that you mention? Is this the fact that OWP and Inland applications for sponsorship are now mailed to different locations?
No idea if it officially changes the implied status loophole, correct?

Oh...and your suggestion that the OP re-consider her plans seems like a very solid option. Processing simultaneous visa applications from both sides of the border sounds like < fun than I can imagine. :-\

1. Yes, if you look at the Applications for "in-Canada" and "out of Canada" spousal, they both go to Mississauga.
2. If you sent a request for an OWP it would go to Vegreville, and since you wouldn't be eligible, then they would refuse.

 

[zardoz]

If I remember correctly, PGWP is the same as IEC, and doesn't benefit from "implied status" anyway.

 

[emsiemilia]

Thanks again for your thoughts. Let's see, working backwards here...

If I remember correctly, PGWP is the same as IEC, and doesn't benefit from "implied status" anyway.

Yes, this is what I now understand as well. Sigh.

Oh...and your suggestion that the OP re-consider her plans seems like a very solid option. Processing simultaneous visa applications from both sides of the border sounds like < fun than I can imagine. :-\

(And similar sentiments from Steerpike)
Yep, I know it seems rash and misguided. For what it's worth, the (practical side of) the marriage is more for his US visa than my Canadian. And yes, clearly, it looks like the latter won't even work anyway. But getting a CR-1 visa for him while we're both still in Canada seems like it will work out nicely, timing and other-wise, from my research.

As for the lack or romance... We both feel pretty excited and positive about our plan. I love making these plans with him and I love having him in my partner in all these trying and unusual circumstances. Marriage was never a big priority for us (I can't relate to women who say they've always dreamed about their perfect wedding) but I love that we're doing it our own unexpected, unconventional way. We've made it through a lot over five years and are at the right age to settle down. We're planning to have immediate family as our witnesses and then have a little weekend away. Sometime in the future, when the bureaucratic stuff has been dealt with and we are settled into life in California, we're going to have another celebration with all our family and friends-- why not. I'm ok with this and so is he. Hope this paints a nicer picture of our situation

If you apply INLAND, then you are supposed to stay within Canada for the entire processing time of the inland app. You are not even supposed to leave for a vacation, as if you were denied re-entry back to Canada for any reason, the inland app is cancelled. Also if you spend too much time outside Canada then CIC will consider you no longer living here, and would just cancel the application.

If you ever want to travel to the US during PR processing, your only choice is to submit an outland app.

Yeah, so basically there's no way I would actually get PR from this, due to my move. Nor would I apparently get implied status, so I guess I should scrap that option.

Anyway, I've now started looking into my other options-- an LMO or NAFTA. I may post about these in the future but I'd take thoughts about them now too, particularly NAFTA. I didn't realize I might qualify for that, but "college teacher" is on the list, and I teach ESL at a... post-secondary institution that is affiliated with a college. So obviously it's not a slam dunk but I'm going to look into it.

Cheers!!!