Kas&Isaac

Good to know. Thanks for clarifying.

So as some of you are planning on applying for EI after you move to the states on a K1 Visa let me just share with you my experience.

I haven't applied for EAD because I was going to do it all after I married. Sadly for me, in the state of Maine, you need an SSN to get married - so I had to wait 2 weeks, apply for SSN, wait another 2 weeks for that to come in the mail. Then I had to wait a week for the town office to be open and then wait another week for someone to officate the license. And now I am waiting 2 MORE weeks for my certificate before I can start sending in my AOS, EAD and AP...

In order to qualify for EI you need to prove you are eligible for employment and they want to see that you applied for EAD. If you did not, you will not get EI! I got a letter in the mail today stating just that. My claim has been denied because I do not possess a valid employment authorization. "Because of this you are not considered eligible to work"

But I wouldn't have gotten my SSN in time for the "4 week" deadline to apply for EI so I wouldn't've been able to get it anyway if I had applied for my EAD earlier. ...?

IDK.

Am I completely screwed or can I apply for EAD now and then reply to the EI office?

I never heard of any State that requires a SSN to get married, sure it would have been mentioned, now they want ID and SSN is commonly used.

SSN does not give your work authorisation evidence for that you need EAD and realistically that takes at lest 90 days from filing.

Presumably the benefit is a Canadian one and something you can claim even if you have emigrated.

Hi Soapies,

I came here on a K1 Visa in August and applied for EI within 4 weeks. I did not have Employment Authorization and was not going to apply until I was married and sending in my i-485 (Sent it in oct 7). I would suggest you call the Out of Canada line and ask them to call you back. I'm pretty sure my claim was denied at first as well, once i'd sent in my passport and stuff because they mailed me a paper form to fill out. Then I started getting paper claims and did my biweekly phone calls. A lady called me and went over what I had to do which was get my reports in and once I have my EAD to fax that into them. I got my EAD on January 2nd and it was good as of Dec 22. I thought I'd get backdated to august but a lady told me they go from the date on the EAD. So I finally got my first payment on feb 5th.

I think I read somewhere on here that you can just pick up your claim again when you get your ead, but i just did the phone calls because it was something to do and I wasn't working, driving, anything.

I don't get as much as someone who came over with the ability to work right away but really until visa journey I didn't know I could have even gotten anything!

Hope that helps, and I would call the Out of Canada EI line.

To get EI.. you have to be able to work--not just have applied for ur EAD..but to actually be in possession of it...

Okay, so someone correct me if I am wrong. Are you considered eligible for EI benefits if you have moved outside of Canada? That's what I don't quite understand. My aunt works in the EI office in Calgary and I asked her if she could look into whether I would qualify for EI and what the process would be to claim EI and she said that you can't if you have moved outside of Canada, have no job and you don't have the ability to work in the US (meaning you haven't yet received your Work Authorization). I sort of understand how that makes sense but then it doesn't at the same time either.

From everyone's comments above, it seems that people have been applying for EI but I haven't come across a thread yet where someone has confirmed that they have started receiving their EI benefits. Has anyone here spoke to anyone at EI to have them clarify this?

Thanks so much for responding sweetgal8!

This is good news because I'm scheduled to get the flu shot and tetanus shot with my family doctor tomorrow.

Did you already have the Hep A & B shot then from grade school? I never got this shot and I'm wondering if I should pay to have it now. It's pretty expensive and it requires 4 doses if you fast track it in a months time.

Also did you just bring your immunization cards to the medical? It doesn't have much on it for me - just dates, vaccination names and my age.

Was there anything else important I should bring to the medical? Or any other information you have on vaccinations that would be required? I would rather get them done ahead of time by my family doctor if they are covered and I won't have to pay anything.

Thanks again! Good luck at your interview very soon!

The US Civil Surgeon at my medical got a copy of my vaccination record (updated with the new shots I received) and transcribed it to verify that I had received all the necessary shots. Some of the shots (I recall Hep A & B, and rubella) were marked off as not age appropriate shots so they were not required vaccinations for me.

I assume this might be the same for you as well but it's a good thing you are getting your tetanus shot and flu shot done before your medical.

The K1 was sent by courier. I don't think they send it to a post office.

It turns out I should be okay. I called the US Border office that I usually use to cross and theh advised that I should be okay because the tear isn't very big. They said I can even tape it to prevent further tearing.

Feeling a lot more relieved now.

As stated in the title, I picked up my K1 visa today and the sealed envelope you are not supposed to open has a tear in it near the bottom corner. I recall seeing other people post in the forums that this had also happened to them but I'm not sure how I'm to go about dealing with it?

Do I call somewhere to have them note that the envelope had a tear? Do I tape it up? Do I just act like it's normal and tell the border officer it came to me in that condition?

Good Morning VJ:

Had my visa Interview yesterday morning and was approved. I wanted to thank this site for providing the guidance to me and my Fiance during this process. It is true when it is said that you can never be too prepared.

My interview was in Vancouver. I had been waiting for an interview date to become available and saw one day that an interview date opened up and was available in 8 days. I quickly booked my hotel and flights and advised work that I needed to attend the interview and booked my time off. I arrived in Vancouver late last Thursday night. My hotel reservation was at the Days Inn Vancouver downtown because it is just down the street from where the consulate is located. When you arrive at the airport, you can take a SkyTrain (Canada Line) straight to the nearest station to your hotel. The closest station to my hotel was either the Waterfront or Burrard. Canada Line goes straight to Waterfront so I headed there. It was midnight by the time I arrived at the station, with all my luggage and bags in hand and I had no idea where I was in relation to my hotel. I ended up coming out of the station right onto the same street my hotel was on so I walked the few blocks to the hotel and checked in. My medical exam with Dr. Cheema was for 9:15 a.m. the next morning, so I woke up early and headed to the Burrard station to take a train to Surrey. If you are taking transit in Vancouver, it is very easy to get around the city once you learn the routes. And where the SkyTrain can't take you, a city bus can. There are 2 other trains from the Canada Line that can take you around the area. Expo Line is the train that takes you into Surrey, while the other, Millenium Line, takes you through Vancouver and into Burnaby (goes in a loop). I got off at the Scott Station in Surrey because I knew that there would be a bus outside that station that I can take straight to the medical office (Bus #319). The medical office is located on Scott Rd (also known as 120th St). The 319 bus takes you as far as the Strawberry Hills shopping center, where the Scott Exchange is. I got off there and walked the block down to the medical office. I was quite early for my appointment so I checked in, filled out the necessary forms and then was told to come back in an hour. I went down another 2 blocks to the McDonald's and had some breakfast and returned for my medical.

Dr. Cheema is a very nice, soft spoken man. He came in to the examination room and introduced himself. He noted that I was from Saskatoon and said that his wife was from Saskatchewan and that he had trained at the University Hospital there. We spoke about Saskatoon and what I did some more and then he asked the usual medical questions and did a brief examination of my lower abdomen, my ears and mouth. It probably took no longer than 15 minutes and then I was told to go to the reception to get further instructions. I was told that I needed to go to the medical offices that would perform my x-ray and my blookwork. Those offices are located in the same building (the x-ray is the first floor and the bloodwork is located on the 2nd floor) on 84th Avenue. I took the 319 bus back towards the Scott Station and got off at 84th Ave. The x-ray and bloodwork are simple and quick. Then I caught the next 319 bus back to the Scott Station and took the Expo Line back to the Burrard Station and returned to my hotel. I ended up going to Vancouver alone, which can make a trip like this a little lonely. Fortunately I have a cousin who lives there and I ended up meeting up with her to explore the city in the downtime between my medical and Interview. I picked up my medical report on Monday and then went to the Consulate at 8 a.m. on Tuesday morning.

There was a small line of people waiting outside the Consulate. There, security asks you what your visit is for, then tells you to wait in a line and once you are called up, they do a search on your belongings. I had left my purse and phone and everything back at the hotel, so all they had to do was search through my very large and heavy binder. After their throughough search, they instruct you to go up the stairs where you wait until it is your turn to go through the second security checkpoint. After you pass this checkpoint, you are redirected to an elevator and you come out on the 20th floor and are led into a small room where the interviews are held. I had brought a 3 inch binder to my interview that contained pictures, chat logs, copies of hotel receipts and receipts from vacations we had taken together in case the interviewer wanted to see them. All I had to turn over was the Police Certificate, Medical Report, Letters of Intent, Affidavit of Support (I-134), my passport and a copy of my birth certificate.

The interviewer was a pleasant young man. When my number was called he looked at my file quickly, noticed it was a K1 file and politely asked me to take a seat while he reviewed my file. Then he called me back up and asked me simple questions such as, Where do you live? What do you do for a living? How often do you visit each other? Has he met your family? Have you met his family? How and when did he propose? All the while typing things into his computer. Once he finished he looked up at me and smiled and said "Your visa has been approved. Congratulations." I was then instructed to return to another window to receive further instructions on my visa. The woman at that window also Congratulated me on my visa approval and gave me further instructions on the visa expiration date, and the deadline to marry once I have crossed the border. She further instructed me on how the visa would be sent back to me and explained to not open the sealed envelope when I received it.

I left the consulate, picked up my luggage from the hotel and walked to the Waterfront station to take the Canada Line back to the airport to return home.

All in all the process was quite painless, the interview was smooth and I had some fun doing some sightseeing and shopping while in Vancouver.

Next steps are selling my car and getting ready to move down to be with my Fiance.

Hi Everyone,

So I seem to have come to a standstill with my visa application. I have received my Packet 4, and registered online to pay the visa fee and book the interview. Last week, it showed that there were appointments available, and I paid my fee via direct deposit through Scotiabank (do not have a credit card anymore so this was my only option). When you do the direct deposit, you print off a Deposit Slip, and the instructions on the sheet said that the deposit was to be made by January 13th. Once you do the deposit, you have to enter a serial number off of the form you downloaded onto the site to confirm your payment. So I went to my bank, took out US funds, and did the deposit January 13th. Then I went back to the website, and now it says "there are no available appointments at this time". And it has said this since January 13th until now. On top of that, I can't get back to the payment options page to enter in the serial number and confirm I have made my payment.

At first I thought, oh, well I'll just keep checking, but each day, I have been refreshing the page and it keeps on saying "no appointments available", I am starting to get a little nervous. So when is the next appointment date? Will there be any problems with booking an appointment now? I have paid my fee but haven't been able to confirm this because I can't get the fee payment page to come up, I can only go online to schedule appointments and register for a courier.

Any words of wisdom?

Really? Damn, I have been on the website hoping that another date will come up. I have already paid my fee too! But when I went back to book an appointment, it told me that none were available.

When I got my packet 4, it never mentioned anything about the next available dates for interviews, was that in their letter attachment or in the body of the email they sent to you?

I recently booked my Vancouver interview. I can't see now, but when I booked there was a lot of availability, but only on Tuesday's so be prepared that if you are travelling there and doing the medical as well, you probably will have to stay over the weekend. I have to do medical on Friday, results Monday, interview Tues.

When I booked they had dates every Tuesday from next week to end of Feb. They seem to put out a month or two at a time and updated it around the 3rd week of the month. I don't know if that is their norm, but I was watching it for a while.

They are not nearly as busy as Montreal, so you could probably just watch and wait for the month you want.

We just booked out interview in Vancouver and we are on the 20th which was the only day available in January. There was some on December 30th.

There are multiple times all in the morning available.

Thanks for the insight guys! I am waiting on the Affidavit of Support and my passport to be renewed which I should have early in the new year, and then I will be able to complete the DS160 and wait for notice to book my interview. I still have my fingers crossed I can get over to be with my Fiance by April!

Is anyone currently booking their interview dates at the Vancouver consulate and if so, could you let me know what interview dates were currently available? I am trying to see if I can get a general idea of when I would be needing to travel to the Vancouver consulate for my interview.

Thanks

Yes, April 2015 was the date. Thanks, that makes sense.

Yes, April 2015 was the date. Thanks, that makes sense.

I am a K1 beneficiary from Canada and just made a trip to the US to visit my fiance. When i went through US customs i informed the customs officer that i was visiting my fiance, mentioned that we were waiting out the K1 visa process and brought proof of my ties in case it was asked of me. After asking me follow up questions regarding the K1 and asking what stage the visa was at (NOA2) she stamped my passport with an admitted stamp but put in a valid until date for my B2 of April 26 2014. I went through my passport and none of my prior stamps show a valid until date. Is anyone familiar with this and could provide me with what it means? My best guess is the customs officer estimated a time for when my K 1 visa should be isdued and that is when i can no longer travel to the US under a B2 visa?

Thanks.

My fiance just notified me that USCIS gave their decision and we've been approved. Been a long time follower of this site and me or my fiance couldn't have done this without the site or it's knowledgeable members.

Excited to begin the next chapter in this visa journey. Good luck to everyone who are waiting for their noa2.

My US Fiance does't have a US passport and he comes up to Canada to visit me at least once a month. He is also stationed in the airforce in North Dakota. The Canadian Border Patrol has pulled him into Secondary (not always, but it happens pretty often) but he is able to produce a driver's license and his birth certificate and they let him cross after they check them. He hasn't had any issues with going back to the US with only a birth certificate and driver's license. I am not sure if it helps that he is in the military but it works for him every time.

I suppose you would fear the truth is being rude but I'm just being upfront with you if your man is out having dinner with another woman and she's cooking for him i'd be a little wary especially if I didn't know she was. I'm just saying most people view American citizens is going to the backyard and pulling cash off the trees. I'm glad to see you have some ethics and view your green card has connected to your marriage and therefore if you're not married anymore you no longer need the green card because there's very few people that view that immigrate on the marriage visa into the USA. It appears to be a free-for-all or anybody get married to USA citizen. I'm just saying if you're worried about your husband I would hop a plane and get over here on a tourist visa and see him and find out what's going on. Just saying girlfriend that's all

Just curious as to who has shared these views with you? Last time I checked, this site was to help people reunite with their loved ones, not to find a person who has a "money tree".

You didn't say anything in your original post about the other woman.

Again, I AM visiting him in the US right now. I am talking with him heart to heart and finding out what is going on.

Green card is connected to marriage for me. I have told him that if I don't have him there is no reason for me to get a green card. He understands its not just about that little card. I am from Canada and in my opinion its a much nicer place than the US. I don't need a tourist visa to visit, just a Canadian passport.

Yep.

Thank you for your support!

Good on ya, CanGirl. I hope things are going well for you!

Hi everyone,

Sorry, i know i have seen similar topics to this but none of them quite answered the question i have.

In 2012 i purchased a new GM vehicle (and i love her). I am financing through GM (and subsequently through TD). I still have several years of payments left- so long as i continue to pay monthly, can i import my vehicle? Has anyone gone through this, or know someone who has, or know where I can get this information?

(I know that i will also need the compliance letter from GM)

Thank you!

Hi Sparkles. If you are financing your car through TD Auto Finance, then you are in the same boat as me and their response to me when I asked them if I could take my car with them when I move was "no". The loan documents you would have signed should state something to this effect, in that the vehicle is to remain in Canada until the loan is paid off.

But ask and see. Maybe you'll be lucky enough to take yours.

Packet 4 is in it's way via snail mail, so I'm hoping to have it by weeks end and maybe even book our appointment too!

Congrats!

I'm not sure what province you're in, but some provinces require you to hire a property management group, should you be an "out of country" landlord. It could get very costly (taxes, maintenance, insurance etc.) that you may be losing when renting.

I spoke with my accountant and was told I have 183 (around that - I don't have his exactly email in front of me for exact days) days to sell my home post-move without having to pay capital gains and losses. I don't know if it would be worth it for you to rent for a short period, if your intentions are to ultimately sell. If you rent it out, even for a short period of time, you'll have to pay taxes on it versus if you kept it vacant (and sell before the alloted time), it would be considered your primary residence and you won't be subject to cap gains.

My house will be vacant (my family will check on it daily - my father is a realtor as well) when I move. I'm prepared to pay for the mortgage for the 6 months, though I don't think it will sit on the market for that long... praying that Vancouver real estate picks up again!

Fingers crossed for you Lights!!!

The house sold a few months ago (after almost a year on the market) at a loss so there are no sale proceeds to cover car loss...

Just bend over and take it.

The crtc ruling on no more three year contracts - they couldn't issue new contracts after December 2013 I do believe. Those of us who signed contracts prior to that are hooped.

My condo has been listed since February. The Saskatoon real estate market tends to favour single family homes over apartment style condos so I am hoping my condo can sell by the end of the year as I was setting my goal to have everything done by early next year.

with new law in effect its 2years max contrat it may cost $200, but if you have a new cellphone iphone get them to unlock also then you can either use it in USA or Sell it for good money on craigslist

my cellphone line I am transfering over to my Dads girlfriend as she doesnt havea contract and my phone is already unlocked so I dont even have to buy a phone just join Tmobile

Will definitely need to look into it. I have a Samsung Galaxy 3 and don't know of anyone I can transfer my contract to. I wonder if i could still unlock my phone and take it with me to the US and get it put on my fiance's cell plan? Fingers crossed that Sasktel will take mercy on me. haha

This move is financially killing me!!! Lost money on the house. Will lose money on the car. (Can't take it with me - still owe on it, I've only had it two years. Bright side I may be able to get a refund on my warranty - there's a nice clause about if you're leaving the country... And doesn't say you have to bring your car with you mwahahaha. Yeah warranties will transfer if you sell person to person but not if you're selling back to the dealership. Hiss.

Anyway. The real anger. So I call up bell.

They want almost $500 since I'm canceling early. Granted it was a three year contract over a year and a half ago (so the crtc three years don't apply doesn't apply to me...) but holy #######. Gonna call them back today hopefully talk to someone else and escalate to a manager if I must. They used to forgive the canceling fees if it was cause you were moving out of their service area. (And it used to be only $200!)

C'mon put me even more in the red. I dare you world. Who needs money to do a move from Alberta to Cali?

I feel your pain! I am hoping to sell my condo before I do my move, and had intended to pay off the balance of my car loan with the sale proceeds. If I can't sell it in the meantime, I might have to settle with renting it out. I really really did not want to have to resort to that. If my condo doesn't sell, I'll also be looking at selling my car to pay off the balance of the loan (I have had it for 3 years now with a 5 year loan, so hopefully I can sell it for an amount that at least covers the balance of the loan). Already tried asking TD if I could take my car with me, and was told absolutely not.

I never thought of checking with my cell phone carrier to see what it would cost to break my contract, hopefully it isn't $500.00 though!

I have come to expect that moving is going to be pretty costly, but I still maintain that it's worth it to be with the one I love.

It took about a week until my fiancé received notification that our petition was received at NVC and that I could go ahead and complete the DS 160. About 10 days after that I received a letter stating I could download packet three from their website. I'd already snooped it all out so I knew what I needed. Packet three requires you have the DS 160 done because you need the receipt number for it. I would recommend you go ahead and look at all those forms to make sure you've got all the information you need to avoid any delays. I will send in the packet three in a couple of days and then hopefully receive info on making an appointment! We are actually using an immigration lawyer who is helping us along on all this. So if I can help provide any insight into the process let me know !

Oh wow! That seems really quick. How long has it been since you first began with the Petition to now?

Hi! And welcome! Where are you in the process?

Just starting it actually. We are are finished putting together our petition and will be sending it off this month.

Same here! Seems like there is not much on Vancouver and so much on Montreal. I am waiting for NVC to transfer my case right now. Things moving faster than expected. I just wish I knew how long it will be ofr an interview, but I am not quite there yet!

Everything I have read about Vancouver seems like they are pretty good to deal with.

I noticed this too. I was actually wondering if I would have to go to the Montreal Consulate and was hoping not because it looks like flights from Saskatchewan to Vancouver are much cheaper than they are going east. I see that things are moving really fast for you which makes me so much more hopeful that my journey will be just as smooth (fingers crossed). I have already started looking into getting a background check and will need to look into getting my vaccination records and order my long form birth certificate from Alberta (I was born there). I also still have a condo that I hope to have sold before I move so it looks like I should really get a move on these things so that I am prepared!

I'm following this thread because I am also from Saskatchewan going through the K1 Visa route. Excited to read about someone's journey with the Vancouver Consulate.