Stagnant Sloth

Include trips since you became the LPR, Resident Since date in your GC.

I went and applied for my SSN the day after arriving in the US on a K1 (before getting married). They only wanted to see my passport and the I-94. They put all the information into the computer, scanned my documents, and I received my SSN less than two weeks later in the mail.

I entered the US multiple times after filing for the K1 visa. Entered each time with virtually no legitimate ties to Canada. I might have got lucky, but I was able to get in every time. It was hit and miss on whether I was questioned quite a bit or just sent on through without hassle.
 
The visa only came up once. I had voluntarily brought it up as they were asking multiple questions about if I was planning to get married while there. So, I told them I don't currently have any wedding plans as we're currently awaiting the K1 visa and that we're doing it all legally.

You also mentioned that you would be considering the K1 visa. If your visitors visa to the US is denied and you want to go the K1 route, your boyfriend will have to travel to see you as you must have met in person to be eligible for the K1 visa.
 
USCIS website states:
 
You met each other, in person, at least once within 2 years of filing your petition. There are two exceptions that require a waiver:
1. If the requirement to meet would violate strict and long-established customs of your or your fiancé(e)’s foreign culture or social practice.
2. If you prove that the requirement to meet would result in extreme hardship to you.
 
I don't know anything about the embassy in your country, but some embassies are tougher and multiple in person visits prior to filing would be beneficial to establish a genuine relationship.

I had my interview for the K1 recently.
 
My appointment was at 8:30 I believe it was. I arrived there about thirty minutes early. It seemed like they had little regard for actual appointment times and was mostly first come first serve. Regardless of what time your appointment was, they just gave a piece of paper with a number on it and you were called based on your number. I think I only eventually got called after 10:30, so it was over a two hour wait.
 
The process was:
 
1) You arrive outside the door of the US embassy and there is a sign on the sidewalk outside telling you to line up. You line up here and wait your turn to be waved in by security in the door.
2) You go in the door and security tells you to have your passport and appointment letter out to show another person who is working next to security.
3) You show your appointment letter and passport to the person with a tablet and they look up your information to verify you have an appointment and they then give you a piece of paper with your number on it and a list of everything to get ready.
4) Security then tells you to wait outside some doors up a few stairs. You have to wait to be let in these doors. There's more security on the other side of these doors who will open the door to let you in when they're ready for you. It's then like going through airport security where they tell you to remove your jacket, take everything out of your pockets, remove belt, etc, and put it all in the bins which then go through the X-ray machine. You then go through a metal detector and they were also waving everyone down with a handheld wand whether the metal detector went off or not.
5) You're then instructed to go through a door, down some stairs and to an elevator. You can only access a single floor through this elevator, which brings you to the waiting room for the interview.
6) You then wait in the lobby to be called. The first time you're called, at least for me, was for them to go over all your paperwork with you. I was then told to sit back down and wait again, with another number now. When called the second time, it was the actual interview for the visa, which was maybe five questions and took a few minutes.
 
When you first get called and you go through your paperwork, they open up the sealed medical envelope and give you a CD that's inside it, which is a copy of your chest x-ray for your own personal records and also give you a copy of a paper from the doctor verifying that you have all your vaccinations. From what I've read, this is very important to keep as it's needed again when in the US and you're ready to file for adjustment of status.
 
As I had mentioned, they give you a piece of paper when you first go in which details which documents to get ready and to have them ready in the order specified. They want you to have everything ready so it's easily accessible in the order specified so they aren't waiting for you to fumble through pages looking for things.
 
I can't remember the order of the documents. But, the documents that I remember being specified to have were:
 
1) Photocopy of biographic page of passport.
2) Original copy of long form birth certificate and a copy of it.
3) A copy of your payment for the visa interview. (I just printed out the email I had got after paying and booking my interview - it should show the interview date and that you paid)
4) The original copy of your criminal record check. I forget if they wanted a copy of it too, but couldn't hurt to bring it.
5) The financial support form.
6) A copy of the US citizens tax returns were also listed on the paper. I've read that they only want this if the USC has been self employed, but I brought three years worth anyways. (My fiance was self employed, but I would have brought them even if not).
7) The sealed envelope from the doctor for your medical check.
8) Your passport.
9) Two pictures of yourself. (If you forgot these, like I did at my hotel, they have a picture machine there. It costs ten dollars and only takes loonies, toonies, five, or ten dollar bills. I think you get 6 or 8 pictures from it.)
 
There might have been other things. But, that's the stuff I remember being on the paper they gave.
 
You also aren't allowed to bring a phone or any electronic device with you. On the US Embassy website for Montreal it states that there's no storage available if you bring a phone. But, when I went, there were many people who had phones on them and security would take them at the door, give them a paper as a receipt and put their phone in a bin to be picked up when they left.
 
As another user mentioned, if you're planning to get a hotel there, it might be best to find one within walking distance of the embassy.

I had asked before about visiting the US with virtually no ties to my home country (Canada).
 
I was trying to think up different things to use as ties. Not make up things, but I think I was reaching pretty deep to come up with things that constitute ties. Someone had told me in my thread that all I could pretty much do is go with what I had (almost nothing) and take a chance.
 
I ended up successfully gaining entry to the US multiple times with what I would assume would be considered extremely little ties to Canada. Several of my stays were for several months.
 
I was never brought into secondary questioning, but was questioned quite a bit several times. One time I was asked about 25+ questions and told that they felt I had very little ties and wanted me to state any reasons that I could use to convince them that I wouldn't stay. I didn't really any compelling reasons (doctors appointments, which they shot down, saying they can easily be cancelled, for example).
 
But, I just took a chance each time with going and knew that in my own head that I had good intentions and hoped that this would reflect in my answers along with my honesty.
 
The only thing I think I did have going for me was a fairly large amount of savings as a means to prove that I could financially support myself.
 
Things that I did carry with me were:
 
1) Copy of travel medical insurance showing the date it expires. (Have never been asked for it, but I always carried it).
2) Return flight information. (I was asked for this on every entry. I think this was the most important thing for me.)
3) Doctor appointment notes. (Never was asked for them).
4) Bank/credit card statements. (Was never asked for them, but asked more than one time how much money I had access to).
5) Copy of prescription for medication with the specified amount being the amount of time that I was going to be in the US. (Was never asked for it, but voluntarily supplied it multiple times and thanked for my honesty for letting them know I had prescription medication on me, even though they said it wasn't required because it wasn't a narcotic.)
 
And the key is honesty. The questioning for me was always triggered after informing them that I was trying to go visit my fiance. But, lying about that and trying to deceive them would surely carry much worse consequences than simply worrying about if he can visit or not.
 
I'm not advocating that going with very little ties will work for everyone. Perhaps I was lucky to be able to enter several times and for months at a time several times. But, I just wanted to pass on the advice that you can't manufacture ties and can only go with what you have. Fortunately, everything worked out for me and I am currently in possession of my K1 visa, and will be embarking to the US soon and hopefully won't have to go through the hassling at the border anymore with having to convince them I'll leave.
 
One additional thing to consider, and I may be completely wrong (someone please correct me if I am): But, to also consider that being denied entry into the US could result in removal of being able to use the Visa Waiver Program in the future. I am fairly certain that I've read that in some other threads.