Bringing half sister from Alberta, Canada to United States

[NigeriaorBust 4,087]

 Once the dust settles from a divorce it could be that she is best off with her parent(s) but being at ground zero can be hard and a student visa may give her that space she may need. 

[JFH 12,189]

OP, it’s admirable that you want to help your sister and are prepared to put your own life on hold to care for a minor child like this - it’s a lot of hard work! Divorce is very ugly sometimes. My parents had a very acrimonious divorce and it was a horrible time for me as a child. Whilst it is confusing for a child and the home environment can be mentally unhealthy, her life is not at risk (from what you say here) and she doesn’t appear to be suffering any neglect or abuse. She is still your parents’ child and they love her more than they hate each other. What they have done does not mean that they should lose their parental rights. 

 

Half of all marriages end in divorce and that’s not a reason to remove a child from the parents’  custody - let alone the country. Unless there is a risk to the child such as the parents are violent or bringing criminal activity into the home why does the child need to be removed? And even with the most dysfunctional parents there are many steps to take to have a child removed from them and even then it’s not always successful. I used to be a foster parent and even drug addicts kept their children with them even though they were almost completely incapable of caring for themselves, let alone the children. 

[Mollie09 1,543]

She doesn't need a visa to study in the US, only a school-issued I-20, so I would definitely look into it. It does require proof of ties to Canada and evidence of ability to pay for schooling, but it's your best bet.

[junkmart 320]

26 minutes ago, Mollie09 said:

She doesn't need a visa to study in the US, only a school-issued I-20, so I would definitely look into it. It does require proof of ties to Canada and evidence of ability to pay for schooling, but it's your best bet.

Doesn't one need a F-1 or M-1 visa to be issued an I-20?

Edited March 6, 2019 by junkmart

[geowrian 22,336]

15 minutes ago, junkmart said:

Doesn't one need a F-1 or M-1 visa to be issued an I-20?

OP's sister is Canadian. They don't need an explicit visa for student status.

Edited March 6, 2019 by geowrian

[Mollie09 1,543]

38 minutes ago, junkmart said:

Doesn't one need a F-1 or M-1 visa to be issued an I-20?

Other way, they'd need an I-20 to be issued a student visa. But Canadians only need the I-20.

[junkmart 320]

1 hour ago, geowrian said:

OP's sister is Canadian. They don't need an explicit visa for student status.

 

1 hour ago, Mollie09 said:

Other way, they'd need an I-20 to be issued a student visa. But Canadians only need the I-20.

Thank you both.