Tunapiano

Just now, Boiler said:

What are her ties to Canada?

Once she and her son come here she wouldn't have any ties back home. 

I can support her just fine so she can wait to work if it has to be that way. I Just don't like that she'd have to go back to Canada after 6 months and stay there for however long until she can come back.

2 minutes ago, Lemonslice said:

Canadians do NOT enter under the VWP and are allowed to visit the USA up to.  

 

You can marry your wife and she can visit while waiting for the CR1 - I visited multiple times, from a couple of days to a month, during our process. Canadians are usually allowed to visit (not work or live, visit!) for up to 6 months at a time.  It currently takes 10 to 12 months for Canadians to receive their visa. 

So how long would you suggest she go back to Canada if she stayed 6 months?

2 minutes ago, geowrian said:

Not sure on the K3 denial piece (since it's obsolete), but if you overstay 180 days or longer, you will incur bar upon exit. The bar is 3 or 10 years depending on how long you overstayed. This applies to any overstay. The difference is a K-3 grants access to the US while the case is pending (after the I-130 is processed, which is normally when it gets administratively closed now as it reaches NVC), whereas a CR-1 does not grant any access to the US while pending.

 

The general rule of thumb is spend twice as long outside of the US as inside it. So a 6 month entry would suggest 12 months out of the US. Obviously that would probably (hopefully!) be past the point ast which your CR-1 will be issued, so it may not be of much use to you. That said, they're pretty lenient with Canadians, so you might be able to do another trip after only a few months. Worst case is she gets denied at POE and needs to wait out the CR-1. Any such denial would not affect her CR-1 eligibility or chances, but would make her ineligible to use VWP for a period of time.

So how long do you think it would take a CR1 to process from someone who has only ever lived in Canada with no criminal record?

I read somewhere that when you apply for the k3 and you've stayed here for 6 months or longer and you leave you will be denied re-entry for anywhere from 3 years to 10 years. So wouldn't the same apply for the CR1? 

And the time between 6 months visits... How long would she need to stay back home if we went that route?

So what if she enters the US, can we then apply for the CR1? She won't be able to work but she'll be here.

So here's the story.

My fiance live in Canada. We're about to get married. I'm looking at the CR1 visa to get her into the US or a k-3. My question is can she enter the US with her passport after we get married and live/work here while either the CR1 or K-3 visas are pending?