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Filed: IR-1/CR-1 Visa Country: Canada
Timeline
Posted

So a bit of a back story...

my husband is Canadian. I am American and am petitioning for him to come down to the states and get his green card.

On MAY 31, 2012, we received the receipt that the Vermont Service Center had received our I-130. We are just about to hit the 6 month mark of the waiting game. I HATE the waiting game! :-/ We are young newlyweds and he is currently living in Canada when I am living in America. We are both working and trying to do it the most LEGAL way possible. So I have a few questions that I'd love to get feedback from your experience on in hopes to calm my nerves a bit!

1- do we HAVE to be apart at this time? like I said it has been almost 6 months and as newlyweds, it's really hard :-/ I am wondering if he could just live with me until he gets his green card? I am working, but I am wondering if he does come down and stay with me (without working in America, of course) if that would mess up our process. I don't want anything delayed any longer!!

2- From your experience, how long did the ENTIRE process take? Like I said we haven't even gotten the I-130 approval and I'm already going nutty! I cannot wait for the day when this is all over!

3- Is there anything we can be doing to prepare ourselves at this point? Any paperwork to complete ahead of time?

4- last but not least- when it comes to financial support- I do believe I am making enough to be his 'sponsor', but my concern is for the entire longevity of last year I had NO EMPLOYMENT. I was a student in college then got married. So I did not file my taxes because I had no income whatsoever that entire year. Will that be a concern for whoever is processing that part? Am I better off just getting a co sponsor? My parents are willing but I would rather just have it be done the quickest way

any other advice or encouragement would be very appreciated! This website is really useful! Thank you very much for taking time to read all of this!

post-147834-0-70736800-1354084810_thumb.jpg

Filed: Citizen (pnd) Country: China
Timeline
Posted

Answers:

1. No, he cannot live with you until he receives his visa. You can visit each other in the meantime.

2. See my signature for how long my experience was (filing to POE).

3. I would suggest reading this wiki, it explains how to navigate the NVC (the next stop for your file): http://www.visajourney.com/wiki/index.php/NVC_for_Montreal_Beneficiaries_%E2%80%93_Electronic_Processing_and_New_Online_Forms

4. Current income is what counts. If your current income is at or barely over the minimum threshold, you may want to obtain a joint sponsor anyway; simply meeting the minimum number on your does not guarantee a CO will accept the I-864 (they have the discretion to require a joint sponsor).

Our journey:

Spoiler

September 2007: Met online via social networking site (MySpace); began exchanging messages.
March 26, 2009: We become a couple!
September 10, 2009: Arrived for first meeting in-person!
June 17, 2010: Arrived for second in-person meeting and start of travel together to other areas of China!
June 21, 2010: Engaged!!!
September 1, 2010: Switched course from K1 to CR-1
December 8, 2010: Wedding date set; it will be on February 18, 2011!
February 9, 2011: Depart for China
February 11, 2011: Registered for marriage in Wuhan, officially married!!!
February 18, 2011: Wedding ceremony in Shiyan!!!
April 22, 2011: Mailed I-130 to Chicago
April 28, 2011: Received NOA1 via text/email, file routed to CSC (priority date April 25th)
April 29, 2011: Updated
May 3, 2011: Received NOA1 hardcopy in mail
July 26, 2011: Received NOA2 via text/email!!!
July 30, 2011: Received NOA2 hardcopy in mail
August 8, 2011: NVC received file
September 1, 2011: NVC case number assigned
September 2, 2011: AOS invoice received, OPTIN email for EP sent
September 7, 2011: Paid AOS bill (payment portal showed PAID on September 9, 2011)
September 8, 2011: OPTIN email accepted, GZO number assigned
September 10, 2011: Emailed AOS package
September 12, 2011: IV bill invoiced
September 13, 2011: Paid IV bill (payment portal showed PAID on September 14, 2011)
September 14, 2011: Emailed IV package
October 3, 2011: Emailed checklist response (checklist generated due to typo on Form DS-230)
October 6, 2011: Case complete at NVC
November 10, 2011: Interview - APPROVED!!!
December 7, 2011: POE - Sea-Tac Airport

September 17, 2013: Mailed I-751 to CSC

September 23, 2013: Received NOA1 in mail (receipt date September 19th)

October 16, 2013: Biometrics Appointment

January 28, 2014: Production of new Green Card ordered

February 3, 2014: New Green Card received; done with USCIS until fall of 2023*

December 18, 2023:  Filed I-90 to renew Green Card

December 21, 2023:  Production of new Green Card ordered - will be seeing USCIS again every 10 years for renewal

July 23, 2025:  Filed N-400 online

 

Filed: IR-1/CR-1 Visa Country: Qatar
Timeline
Posted

So a bit of a back story...

my husband is Canadian. I am American and am petitioning for him to come down to the states and get his green card.

On MAY 31, 2012, we received the receipt that the Vermont Service Center had received our I-130. We are just about to hit the 6 month mark of the waiting game. I HATE the waiting game! :-/ We are young newlyweds and he is currently living in Canada when I am living in America. We are both working and trying to do it the most LEGAL way possible. So I have a few questions that I'd love to get feedback from your experience on in hopes to calm my nerves a bit!

1- do we HAVE to be apart at this time? like I said it has been almost 6 months and as newlyweds, it's really hard :-/ I am wondering if he could just live with me until he gets his green card? I am working, but I am wondering if he does come down and stay with me (without working in America, of course) if that would mess up our process. I don't want anything delayed any longer!! He can visit you, you can visit him. It would be easier for you to go to him as he might be refused entry based on the fact that he's applying for a CR1 visa. He'll have to have proof of intent to return with him when he attempts to cross, stuff like lease on an apt, statement from work saying that he has vacation for a certain number of days. I'm not sure what else, look up the Visa Waiver Program to get more information. Also, there are lots of Canadians here, they'll be able to give you more specifics.

2- From your experience, how long did the ENTIRE process take? Like I said we haven't even gotten the I-130 approval and I'm already going nutty! I cannot wait for the day when this is all over! Yea, sucks, I know :( but don't worry, you should be done with the first stage soon, Vermont has been taking a REALLY long time with petitions, usually around 6 months to approve. Look at the timelines (link at the top of the page) to see where Vermont is at approving petitions. It'll give you a better idea of how long it'll take you to get approval. After approval you'll get sent to NVC, and how long you take at NVC is entirely up to you and how prepared you are. Then everything gets transferred to US consulate for your husband's interview.

3- Is there anything we can be doing to prepare ourselves at this point? Any paperwork to complete ahead of time? Take a look at the first two posts in this thread: http://www.visajourney.com/forums/topic/397538-nvc-filers-november-2012/ they'll tell you everything you need to know about NVC and what papers to get ready and how to speed through the process there.

4- last but not least- when it comes to financial support- I do believe I am making enough to be his 'sponsor', but my concern is for the entire longevity of last year I had NO EMPLOYMENT. I was a student in college then got married. So I did not file my taxes because I had no income whatsoever that entire year. Will that be a concern for whoever is processing that part? Am I better off just getting a co sponsor? My parents are willing but I would rather just have it be done the quickest way Having a joint/co sponsor won't make the process go any slower since you provide the paperwork at the same time. Better to be way over so that the CO at the consulate won't have an excuse to deny you rather than getting sent back to get another sponsor, therefore taking more time.

any other advice or encouragement would be very appreciated! This website is really useful! Thank you very much for taking time to read all of this!

Like I said, there are lots of Canadians here, I'm sure they'll be jumping in soon to offer their own advice :)

USC married to Palestinian lived in Doha, Qatar for seven years, in the USA since July 2013 with an eight year old and a two year old smile.png

USCIS - 37 days
12.13.12: Sent I-130 from abroad
12.16.12: Delivered to Chicago Lock Box
12.19.12: NOA1 - E-mail, MSC number
12.21.12: Case showed up online
01.25.13: NOA2
01.30.13: Email from USCIS - Post Decision Activity - Case sent to NVC
NVC - 28 Days
02.05.13: NVC Received
02.22.13: Case/IIN Received

AOS Track
02.26.13: AOS bill invoiced
02.27.13: Pay AOS bill
03.06.13: AOS bill shows PAID
03.07.13: AOS package sent

IV Track
02.23.13: DS-3032 sent
03.03.13: DS-3032 re-sent for Supervisor Review
03.04.13: DS-3032 accepted
03.06.13: First DS-3032 accepted!
03.05.13: IV bill invoiced
03.06.13: Pay IV bill
03.07.13: IV bill shows PAID
03.07.13: IV package sent

03.11.13: AOS and IV Packages delivered to NVC
03.20.13: IV Package Accepted
03.22.13: Case complete
03.29.13: Interview scheduled - Email
04.02.13: Case left NVC
Consulate
04.04.13: Case received
04.08.13 - Medical
04.28.13 - Interview - Approved

05.02.13 - Visa In Hand
07.21.13 - POE (Washington D.C.)

Gearing up to apply for Naturalization in April 2016!

Filed: IR-1/CR-1 Visa Country: Canada
Timeline
Posted (edited)

So a bit of a back story...

my husband is Canadian. I am American and am petitioning for him to come down to the states and get his green card.

On MAY 31, 2012, we received the receipt that the Vermont Service Center had received our I-130. We are just about to hit the 6 month mark of the waiting game. I HATE the waiting game! :-/ We are young newlyweds and he is currently living in Canada when I am living in America. We are both working and trying to do it the most LEGAL way possible. So I have a few questions that I'd love to get feedback from your experience on in hopes to calm my nerves a bit!

1- do we HAVE to be apart at this time? like I said it has been almost 6 months and as newlyweds, it's really hard :-/ I am wondering if he could just live with me until he gets his green card? I am working, but I am wondering if he does come down and stay with me (without working in America, of course) if that would mess up our process. I don't want anything delayed any longer!! Nope, but you can visit each other. He should have no issues visiting you as long as he can present ties to his country (lease, letter from employer about when he is returning, bank statements, copy of your NOA1, etc)

2- From your experience, how long did the ENTIRE process take? Like I said we haven't even gotten the I-130 approval and I'm already going nutty! I cannot wait for the day when this is all over! The VSC is taking a long long time. Sorry. There are people still from April waiting on approval. This is a long time, but you are not alone

3- Is there anything we can be doing to prepare ourselves at this point? Any paperwork to complete ahead of time? Yes. Lots. Read here:

http://www.visajourney.com/wiki/index.php/NVC_for_Montreal_Beneficiaries_%E2%80%93_Electronic_Processing_and_New_Online_Forms

Also, at this point, you could begin applying for his police certificate and long form BC if you haven't.

Just to have on hand.

4- last but not least- when it comes to financial support- I do believe I am making enough to be his 'sponsor', but my concern is for the entire longevity of last year I had NO EMPLOYMENT. I was a student in college then got married. So I did not file my taxes because I had no income whatsoever that entire year. Will that be a concern for whoever is processing that part? Am I better off just getting a co sponsor? My parents are willing but I would rather just have it be done the quickest way They only require your current income, however it is up to their discretion if they wish for you to have a co-sponsor given your history. Best to have one waiting as a backup just in case. The minimum for just yourself and your husband in a normal state (hawaii and alaska are more) is just under 20k. You should comfortable be above that mark if you can hope to slide through w/o a co-sponsor

any other advice or encouragement would be very appreciated! This website is really useful! Thank you very much for taking time to read all of this! for any canadian specific questions, feel free to visit the canada forum:

http://www.visajourney.com/forums/forum/93-canada/

Edited by KDubovik

oldlady.gif

Filed: Timeline
Posted (edited)

1- do we HAVE to be apart at this time? like I said it has been almost 6 months and as newlyweds, it's really hard :-/ I am wondering if he could just live with me until he gets his green card? I am working, but I am wondering if he does come down and stay with me (without working in America, of course) if that would mess up our process. I don't want anything delayed any longer!!

2- From your experience, how long did the ENTIRE process take? Like I said we haven't even gotten the I-130 approval and I'm already going nutty! I cannot wait for the day when this is all over!

3- Is there anything we can be doing to prepare ourselves at this point? Any paperwork to complete ahead of time?

4- last but not least- when it comes to financial support- I do believe I am making enough to be his 'sponsor', but my concern is for the entire longevity of last year I had NO EMPLOYMENT. I was a student in college then got married. So I did not file my taxes because I had no income whatsoever that entire year. Will that be a concern for whoever is processing that part? Am I better off just getting a co sponsor? My parents are willing but I would rather just have it be done the quickest wayany other advice or encouragement would be very appreciated! This website is really useful! Thank you very much for taking time to read all of this!

1. No. As others have stated, you cannot live together, but there is nothing in the way of visiting each other. You don't need a visa to visit Canada, and he doesn't need a visa to visit the US. Just be ready to be scrutinized a bit more than usual considering he has an immigrant visa petition pending. I've visited my wife 4 times since we got married, she visited me twice.

2. Ours took 9 months from filing to interview, still waiting on the actual visa to arrive in the mail. However, we had a month long break in the process this summer, and 3 unexpected RFEs sent from the NVC in error. If you are already at 6 months with no NOA2 from the VSC, expect at least another 2 - 3 months before he has the visa in hand. Keep typing your receipt number in here https://egov.uscis.gov/cris/Dashboard.do - One day in not too long, it will say APPROVED!

3. Yes, prepare for the NVC process. This guide LingChe NVC Shortcut is among the most helpful guides I have read here on VJ. He should get his police certificate, any military records (if applicable) and his birth certificate. You should order your 2011 IRX tax return transcripts and retrieve your most recent pay stubs, and possibly your job contract/employer letter.

4. They don't care about past employment, as long as your current income is above 125% of federal poverty guidelines. Currently, this is around $19,000 per year.

With all this in mind - Remember that the process is worth it. My wife and I were separated 5 weeks after our wedding and it has been extremely tough. I know. But it's one of those things you just can't get away from when you fall for a foreigner, and in the end, again, it'll be so worth it.

Best wishes!

Edited by Jay Jay
 
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