Help-Married a US citizen while visiting

[Darnell 8,478]

Once the EAD/AP is processed, I could go back and forth from US to Canada?

unsure. is a risk, based on your legal presence in USA.

[Ian H. 207]

She still has about 5 months of authorized stay and she is planning to file for AOS right away so she would be fine traveling with AP.

[NikLR 13,220]

When you talk in here and in email and in PM it's confusing for everyone else and for other people who would read the thread.

I'm glad the OP has found a method for their madness. I do think the AOS is the best. BUT you do not need to continue working or even go back to work after it is over. Try not to spend more than 6 months outside of the USA and if you know you'll be out for a year or more apply for a reentry permit. Also once you get your green card you are no longer eligible for any Canadian benefits except EI. You are not a resident of Canada so cannot get Canadian health care etc...

[sma1488 155]

Something else that I don't think anyone has mentioned is that depending on the frequency and length of your trips back to Canada, and what you do to establish yourself in the US, your status as a permanent resident might be affected. You've mentioned that you'll travel back and forth frequently to be with your parents and continue your job there for some length of time. PR doesn't work the same way as citizenship, which can NEVER be taken away from you.

See here: http://www.uscis.gov/green-card/after-green-card-granted

EDIT: NLR touched on it in the post right above this one.

Edited September 26, 2014 by sma1488

[imajin99 1]

Something else that I don't think anyone has mentioned is that depending on the frequency and length of your trips back to Canada, and what you do to establish yourself in the US, your status as a permanent resident might be affected. You've mentioned that you'll travel back and forth frequently to be with your parents and continue your job there for some length of time. PR doesn't work the same way as citizenship, which can NEVER be taken away from you.

See here: http://www.uscis.gov/green-card/after-green-card-granted

EDIT: NLR touched on it in the post right above this one.

Thank-you, I have been reading up on this stuff since you have mentioned it. I think I should be okay as I only plan on being away for a short duration 3-4 months and then will be back to the US permanently.

[Melibelle 10]

You can look at my timeline below for a more recent AOS timeline in NYC if that helps. The USCIS processing times mentioned above are ridiculously conservative and posted based on data from 2 months prior. Earlier this year, New Yorkers were getting their approvals in less than 90 days. The office slowed down considerably since and we're crossing our fingers to be done in 5 months.

One thing to keep in mind - the processing speed depends a lot on the completeness and accuracy of your application. If anything is missing, that halts your application until you mail whatever required documents are needed and USCIS has time to review, which can take weeks, so it's important to get it in quickly, but equally important to make sure it's accurate if you've got a time crunch. The guides are excellent but be sure to read the instructions for each form carefully.

[imajin99 1]

You can look at my timeline below for a more recent AOS timeline in NYC if that helps. The USCIS processing times mentioned above are ridiculously conservative and posted based on data from 2 months prior. Earlier this year, New Yorkers were getting their approvals in less than 90 days. The office slowed down considerably since and we're crossing our fingers to be done in 5 months.

One thing to keep in mind - the processing speed depends a lot on the completeness and accuracy of your application. If anything is missing, that halts your application until you mail whatever required documents are needed and USCIS has time to review, which can take weeks, so it's important to get it in quickly, but equally important to make sure it's accurate if you've got a time crunch. The guides are excellent but be sure to read the instructions for each form carefully.

This is great, thank-you. What is NOA? Notice of Approval? I have seen it mentioned on the site a few times. We are still going back and forth about what we want to do as I am working for the government and need to be back by April or May to work for a few months. At that time I will apply for an extended leave for two years. My fear is if I apply for the AOS, when I leave for the few months will that reflect negatively on my residency status when my two years for the conditional green card are up?

Can my spouse apply for the CR1 Visa, while I remain with him until my 6 months are up and return home (so I will be still in the US but as a visitor as I will return home before the 6 months). If he applies now, then that would be about 6 months and I can work in Canada for 6 months and take my extended leave at that time. This would allow there to be enough time for the CR1 to be processed.

[Melibelle 10]

Yes, NOA is notice of approval - just the formal notifications you get saying they received your application and that they've scheduled your interview. My husband was also considering working abroad for a few months after getting his conditional green card, and as NLR said, my understanding from poking around on the forums was that as long as you are gone for less than 6 months, it's not a problem. The link that sma1488 sent says a year, but the question is really whether or not they believe you intend to make the US your permanent residence. If you are only taking a 2-year break from your job, does that mean you intend to move back to Canada eventually? That would probably be the bigger complication.

I'm not an expert on CR-1 but I think what you are proposing sounds doable (and less expensive), except that my impression is that it's taking more than a year to get the CR-1s processed. You should take a look at the CR-1 progress threads to get an idea. If it isn't done in the timeline that you're looking for, then you would be stuck in Canada until it's completed.

[Ian H. 207]

You can do that. He can file the petition (I-130) for you now and you can stay up until the end of your authorized stay. You have to make sure to leave before that since you don't want an overstay on your record. Since you still have about 5 months left, the petition would be in process during this time. Then you can go back to work and wait for the CR1 visa in Canada.

The I-130 could take about 6 months to be approved, depending on how fast the processing times are for the VSC which is where your case would be sent to. Ours was sent there and it tooks 6 months on the dot. Then, the NVC process can take a few more months, depending on how busy they are, how fast you send the docs, and whether all the forms and docs are ok. Then there is the wait for the embassy to schedule your interview. It's about a year process on average, from start to finish.

Can my spouse apply for the CR1 Visa, while I remain with him until my 6 months are up and return home (so I will be still in the US but as a visitor as I will return home before the 6 months). If he applies now, then that would be about 6 months and I can work in Canada for 6 months and take my extended leave at that time. This would allow there to be enough time for the CR1 to be processed.

[NikLR 13,220]

This is great, thank-you. What is NOA? Notice of Approval? I have seen it mentioned on the site a few times. We are still going back and forth about what we want to do as I am working for the government and need to be back by April or May to work for a few months. At that time I will apply for an extended leave for two years. My fear is if I apply for the AOS, when I leave for the few months will that reflect negatively on my residency status when my two years for the conditional green card are up?

Can my spouse apply for the CR1 Visa, while I remain with him until my 6 months are up and return home (so I will be still in the US but as a visitor as I will return home before the 6 months). If he applies now, then that would be about 6 months and I can work in Canada for 6 months and take my extended leave at that time. This would allow there to be enough time for the CR1 to be processed.

NOA stands for Notice of Action. It's a notice sent from the USCIS that action has taken place on the case. NOA1 is when they first accept the case and NOA2 is approval or denial. Generally if they need more info they will send an RFE OR request for evidence and state specifically what they want.

You can easily be in Canada for up to 180 days without it affecting your conditional green card or the ROC process. So a few months will not be an issue once you have the green card, however if you AOS you may have an interview you can't miss come up quickly so only you know how much notice your work requires for leave.

You can certainly do the CR1 process but keep in mind, like I mentioned before, long stays will not go over well with the CBP and you risk being denied entry. The denied entry doesn't negatively affect the CR1 process however it may mean you won't be able to visit the USA. Sometimes people just get a cranky CBP and have no issues the next day but sometimes they do. If you're flying you're also out the flight costs. Just something to think about.

Ypur spouse never applies for a visa. He sends the petition that starts the process.

Edited September 29, 2014 by NLR

[imajin99 1]

Great! thank-you everyone.

[kooliz 0]

Great! thank-you everyone.

I was in the exact same boat as you (including the government job, NEXUS, and unsureness of what I wanted to do) but follow my timeline and let me know if you have any questions!

K

[imajin99 1]

I was in the exact same boat as you (including the government job, NEXUS, and unsureness of what I wanted to do) but follow my timeline and let me know if you have any questions!

K

Thank-you K! Will have to go to you as my resource!