Visiting my american spouse

[JFH 12,189]

53 minutes ago, Cpanio said:

I do have a job but it isn't the greatest, and I had plans to leave it. 

So you are planning to live in the US in 6-monthly installments? That won’t fly...

[debbiedoo 2,339]

4 minutes ago, JFH said:

So you are planning to live in the US in 6-monthly installments? That won’t fly...

nope. even the longest paul ever stayed at one time was 2 weeks, if i remember right

[Cp192019 20]

4 minutes ago, JFH said:

So you are planning to live in the US in 6-monthly installments? That won’t fly...

Well no, I just wanted to know if I could visit my fiancee after we got married instead of having to spend our first year of marriage completely apart. And I just wasn't sure what the rules were.

[JFH 12,189]

4 minutes ago, Cpanio said:

Well no, I just wanted to know if I could visit my fiancee after we got married instead of having to spend our first year of marriage completely apart. And I just wasn't sure what the rules were.

The same rules that we all went through. You are somewhat fortunate that you are closer to your girlfriend than others and can visit more often than most (likely). But until you have an approved visa you won’t be able to live here, just like the rest of us. 

[Daphne . 1,659]

7 minutes ago, Cpanio said:

Well no, I just wanted to know if I could visit my fiancee after we got married instead of having to spend our first year of marriage completely apart. And I just wasn't sure what the rules were.

Visiting will be fine, but if your ‘visiting pattern’ gets too much, it might become an issue. Staying for months at a time will show very weak ties to your home country. I am not sure if lowering your working hours would be a wise thing to do in regards to being able to prove ties to your home country and being a risk.

 

We had our 1,5 year marriage ‘anniversary’ yesterday and we have spent about 8 weeks of those together.. That’s part of the package 👍🏻😉

Edited July 7, 2019 by Daphne K

[Boiler 43,425]

Take it in turn visiting.

[geowrian 22,335]

There is no set time limit, just however long CBP grants at the border. Usually this is 6 months, but not always. There's no way to know how long it will be until you enter.

It is possible to do your plan of visiting for 6 months, returning to Canada for a months, then visiting the US for another x months. It is not likely, and is not sustainable. The general rule of thumb is to spend at least as long outside the US as in it, with twice as long preferred. CBP can and has denied entry if it looks like you are living in the US instead of just visiting.

My suggestion would be to visit for multiple shorter trips, returning home for at least an equal amount of time each time. Your partner can do the same - potentially swapping back and forth, as schedules can allow.

 

There are IRS considerations if you spend too long in the US.

There are potential health coverage issues if you spend too long outside Canada, and travel insurance might question residency if you spend too long in the US (normally travel insurance does not cover residents). Research the specifics beforehand.

[Nitas_man 3,100]

1 hour ago, Cpanio said:

Sorry everyone, I'm not exactly sure how to change the topic title from spouse to fiancee! 

It's the kinda thing that when they dig through your social media history they flag and create a delay for you to explain.

 

Hopefully one of the mods can fix this for you

 

Otherwise I am assuming that you were asking the question for the time period between wedding and approval

Edited July 7, 2019 by Nitas_man

[Cp192019 20]

15 minutes ago, Nitas_man said:

It's the kinda thing that when they dig through your social media history they flag and create a delay for you to explain.

 

Hopefully one of the mods can fix this for you

 

Otherwise I am assuming that you were asking the question for the time period between wedding and approval

That is very true! I was asking about visiting during the period after the wedding and before green card approval. I was curious to know what the options are for couples. But it seems like they're far and few between. I guess the verdict is to just continue seeing each other as we always have. We had a misunderstanding that we could be together once we were married, so it's a little heart breaking.

[Daphne . 1,659]

2 minutes ago, Cpanio said:

That is very true! I was asking about visiting during the period after the wedding and before green card approval. I was curious to know what the options are for couples. But it seems like they're far and few between. I guess the verdict is to just continue seeing each other as we always have. We had a misunderstanding that we could be together once we were married, so it's a little heart breaking.

Yes, there will be no change after the wedding I'm afraid.. As soon as you are married, the CR-1 petition can be filed. We know how tough it is, we all have been through this so you came to the right place for help and support!

 

But at least you will have the possibility to visit, make sure that the visit pattern remains visiting (you don't want to have to deal with being denied at the border), so hang on to that positive thing. 

[Crazy Cat 39,212]

12 minutes ago, Cpanio said:

. We had a misunderstanding that we could be together once we were married, so it's a little heart breaking.

The immigration process requires a great deal of knowledge, planning, time, patience, and money......unfortunately, separation is also a requirement for many of us.  My wife and I were apart for a year during our journey.....It isn't easy.

Edited July 7, 2019 by missileman

[Nitas_man 3,100]

9 minutes ago, Cpanio said:

That is very true! I was asking about visiting during the period after the wedding and before green card approval. I was curious to know what the options are for couples. But it seems like they're far and few between. I guess the verdict is to just continue seeing each other as we always have. We had a misunderstanding that we could be together once we were married, so it's a little heart breaking.

Nah but if you are tactical about it you should be able to visit during processing.  

 

I’d caution about long term visits.  You’ll get one, but they probably won’t let you repeat it.  Good luck to both of you

[SalishSea 16,769]

3 hours ago, Cpanio said:

That is very true! I was asking about visiting during the period after the wedding and before green card approval. I was curious to know what the options are for couples. But it seems like they're far and few between. I guess the verdict is to just continue seeing each other as we always have. We had a misunderstanding that we could be together once we were married, so it's a little heart breaking.

Marriage to a USC itself confers no benefit.  That is why there are spouse visas.

[JFH 12,189]

I definitely vote for little visits often rather than trying to have a full 6 months all at once. Gives you something to look forward to all the time and is more likely to be successful with the CBP agents. 

[*Snowdrop* 603]

UK and US couple . We married in the UK in July 2007. Sent the visa application in Oct 2007 - approval came in December 2008. 

 

So we spent the whole first year living apart. But we continued to visit each other as we had been doing for the previous 2 years. Taking turns - taking time off work so we saw each other every 6-8 weeks - sometimes for a long weekend, sometimes for a week, sometimes for two weeks. We each traveled 5-6 times to the other's country over that year.

 

It was terribly expensive but worth it. 

 

My last visit in August 2008 I did a 2.5 month trip as I was pretty sure it was going to be the last one and I was using up all my leave at the end of my job. 

 

You just need to make a good plan and it will involve both of you travelling and a pattern of travelling which is clearly visiting and not 'living' there.