Canadian married in Costa Rica to American

[Forlorn 0]

I am a Canadian citizen who recently married a US citizen; though we opted to get married in Costa Rica. Now we are curious whether we can return directly to the United States (together) and if CBP-DHS-etc will allow me entry - or will consider me an intended immigrant without paperwork, and thus ban/bar me entry.

So wanting to do things properly...the process seems utterly confusing. I get the vague feeling an I-130 (or possible an IR/CR-1 instead?) motion needs to be filed by my wife, but we are in Costa Rica for six months of vacation...can she file from Costa Rica? Or can I? Does paperwork just go through the US consulate...or does it have to go through the Canadian consulate since I (the intended resident) am a Canadian? Or the US consulate in Canada? (This would be unfortunate since again, I do not intend to return to Canada in the near future)

So is it just a matter of ¨Go to US Consulate in Costa Rica, have your American wife file an I-130, and in six months you should be able to enter the US as a resident¨? That would be nice...but I get the feeling of dread it is unlikely?

Also, once the I-130 is filed (from wherever we need to file it, as an American wife married to a Canadian husband, with the marriage taking place in Costa Rica and both parties in Costa Rica for the forseeable future)...can I enter the US and just declare ¨we are married and we filed the paperwork and are waiting¨ without problem? Must we wait for the paperwork to be approved?

If I try to enter the United States (we are already married) would I get smacked on the wrist for something silly like ¨trying to enter as an intended immigrant without having proper paperwork¨ and face a potential ban?

Sorry for the all the questions, I am just overwhelmed reading the DHS/StateDept/Other websites and none of the handy FAQs seem to address if a non-resident is married in a THIRD country and not returning to their country of residence before wishing to visit the United States to shake hands with all the new inlaws.

PS; I assume I am correct that DCF is not the proper option for us since we are not RESIDING in Costa Rica, she resides in the United States and I in Canada

Edited August 11, 2011 by Forlorn

[Ryan H 3,926]

So wanting to do things properly...the process seems utterly confusing. I get the vague feeling an I-130 (or possible an IR/CR-1 instead?) motion needs to be filed by my wife, but we are in Costa Rica for six months of vacation...can she file from Costa Rica? Or can I? Does paperwork just go through the US consulate...or does it have to go through the Canadian consulate since I (the intended resident) am a Canadian? Or the US consulate in Canada? (This would be unfortunate since again, I do not intend to return to Canada in the near future)

So is it just a matter of ¨Go to US Consulate in Costa Rica, have your American wife file an I-130, and in six months you should be able to enter the US as a resident¨? That would be nice...but I get the feeling of dread it is unlikely?

The form I-130 is a petition filed by the USC for the foreign spouse. Once the petition is approved, the foreign spouse will then be allowed to apply for a visa, in your specific circumstance, that would be a CR-1. The petition can be sent to the lockbox in Chicago from Costa Rica. Going to the Embassy in San Jose to file the I-130 is a non-starter.

Also, once the I-130 is filed (from wherever we need to file it, as an American wife married to a Canadian husband, with the marriage taking place in Costa Rica and both parties in Costa Rica for the forseeable future)...can I enter the US and just declare ¨we are married and we filed the paperwork and are waiting¨ without problem? Must we wait for the paperwork to be approved?

If I try to enter the United States (we are already married) would I get smacked on the wrist for something silly like ¨trying to enter as an intended immigrant without having proper paperwork¨ and face a potential ban?

If CBP allows you entry, they would indicate how long you are authorized to stay, you would have to leave the US when that authorized stay expires.

PS; I assume I am correct that DCF is not the proper option for us since we are not RESIDING in Costa Rica, she resides in the United States and I in Canada

Correct. Furthermore, since there is no USCIS field office in Costa Rica, DCF will not be available there, effective next Monday.

Edited August 11, 2011 by Ryan H