mam521

We have a little i3 that's for Kid1 to drive when they finally obtain their license. It's a fun little go cart for booting around, grabbing groceries, etc and will prevent said child from going too far from home . It is NOT good for anything beyond that. One evening when it got close to freezing, the range dropped in half. It's a little car with a small range to begin with... Retrofitting a Stage 2 charger at home would require a whole panel upgrade and potentially bringing 200amp service to the house. Not happening. We still have the truck which is used on a regular basis to haul whatever we need to haul and can be fueled at any local gas station within 5 minutes time. Don't have to worry about tethering, don't have to worry about TX power grid reliability or rising electricity costs. Vroom vroom! The whole EV thing is robbing from Paul to pay Peter, only less efficient when you have to take time to whittle your stick into a point to stab Paul.

Is the business center worth it? In Canada, they were, but not sure around H-town since it's quite the haul from where we are. The only saving grace - I wouldn't have to hit 610!

If your partner chooses to travel later in pregnancy and looks like she's partaking in birth tourism, she may be denied entry at the border. Just something to be aware of. Also, if you haven't completed the immigration process and she reaches the end of her visa stay, are you prepared to stay with the baby while she goes back to Canada to prevent overstay and jeopardize your petition? The baby won't be able to just head to Canada with Mom, but will require the appropriate paperwork to do so.

^^^This

Accurate summary with exception to the Venezuelan Columbian - that girl is a bit loco...and the American lady...she looked like Punky Brewster on her way to the airport. Not all the sandwiches made it into the picnic basket.

No more I-94 after you become a PR. As @Crazy Cat said, your validated temporary I-551 serves as proof until your plastic card arrives.

When I inquired, CBP said because the visa issued said CR-1, that's what they stamp. Makes sense because they go with what they know. It's up to the other jurisdiction issuing the permanent resident card to make the IR determination. The only reason I mention it is because we've seen people panic when it's stamped CR instead of IR and them not realizing CBP and USCIS don't interfere in each other's daily business.

CBP doesn't give a hoot about what greencard should be issued. We entered the day after our 2 year anniversary and they essentially said not my monkeys, not my circus. That's up to USCIS and whatever their systems say. 2 out of the 3 cards came as IR's and Kid2's required an I-90 filed to fix it.

Since covid, the medicals, irrespective of whether you have them done in BC, QC or ON, are all sent digitally to the Consulate. The medical is VERY basic. You'll have more information from your family doctor than the immi medical collects.

What's the proposed rate hike for the ROC, too? It's gonna get pricey really fast...

No problem. We've now managed to navigate the N-400 for my husband, a not straightforward I-130 process for my kids and I and now we've got my N-400 in progress. I totally get the trepidation that comes with these filings and not wanting to screw it up!

You just have to slow down and read carefully. It is easy to overthink but it should be fine.

What's stopping you from getting your driving history from Austria? Insurance and driving history aren't the same thing. I had to get both myself when I moved to the US. Get an insurance broker to shop rates for you. Our broker has saved us thousands. She does the shopping, picks the best policies, presents them to us with the differences and we choose. Saves the headache of navigating different companies and then getting spammed for forever and ever, despite not purchasing their policy!

I'd also guess the argument here is highly skilled workers are in the best interest of the country when it comes to funding the federal government and the IRS. This is also a dual intent visa, so you get your skilled worker, you get the initial visa fees and you get the PR application fees. More lucrative for multiple reasons.

LOL - I feel this not because I had to travel out of state, but I did have to drive half way around Houston to get to my appointment. Anyone who's been to Houston knows you drive for an hour in Houston to get to Houston! 45 minutes one way and like $5 in tolls to do 5 minutes of work and repeat 45 minutes of driving and $5 in tolls. Apparently our interview center and where they typically do the oath ceremonies is closer to where I live, so I guess that's the silver lining for me.

Why would there be? You still have 4 days to cross. Just verify your dates are correct (medical expiration is 6mo from issuance). Save a headache and go on the 11th.

Most North American branded vehicles build in NAm or MX are compliant (there's a sticker in the door or under the hood, typically). Just pull up the import instructions and look at what is needed. Usually TPMS is the kicker. Remember, if your vehicle is financed, you'll either need permission from the lienholder to import it or you'll have to pay it off and have a clear title in hand. If you planned to exchange a vehicle, wouldn't it make more sense just to sell it and buy something compliant in the US? It saves the import headaches, duty/taxes and whatever your state requirements are (VIN inspections, emissions inspections, etc). If your current vehicle has equity in it, that can serve as a down payment on a US vehicle and you can negotiate a rate to get a good deal and build credit.

I haven't heard of Montreal accepting hard copies since covid. It's all been fully digital.

Ignore it. We had to file an I-90 for Kid2 because their greencard was issued as a CR-2 instead of and IR-2. Same thing happened - got a reminder to file ROC after we'd already received the corrected greencard. Nothing has happened. We're still keeping calm and carrying on. Haven't had any issues and we've traveled out of country and back again.

Yay! Yay! Yay! YAY!!!! Finally! I'm so delighted for you that you FINALLY get to join your wife and move forward with life! No more pause button purgatory! Most heartfelt congratulations to you!

It's ok in theory, but when push comes to shove, an independent person will often find it harder than they think. Always better to have options! I'm speaking from experience - both as the independent person (I packed up and moved 14 hours from home to a different province way up north with no supports for work independent) who thought a year off for maternity leave would be a piece of cake (LOVE my kids, but losing my identity to become Kid1 and Kid2's mom rather than myself was tough) and the person who thought immigrating to the States would be easy because com'mon...I've spent TONS of time there (still different from Canada, despite the amount of time I'd lived in the States for work, often months at a time). When I initially came, I was on a work visa, so I had a lot of freedom (driver's license, credit history) and my job. I can't imagine how challenging it would have been had I been on a TD and my ex was the only one working. I can only do so much PTA stuff for school and crave intellectual stimulation. Work allowed me to be surrounded by like minded people, many of whom are either on work visas or have pulled the trigger and become PR's or naturalized. You guys will be OK doing the CR-1. You basically continue on as you are, but add some paperwork on top of it all. You'll have tons of evidence for your application having been together so long. It's a short term struggle for long term gain.

I see updated activity on this thread and come here hoping you've managed to get your passport back with your visa issued. Still sending positive vibes and hoping you see something SOON!

If you go and search the Montreal consulate, you'll find many reviews on what to expect. Make sure all of their paperwork is in order before their respective interviews. Only the person being interviewed is allowed in unless they have an exception for assistance. Don't arrive any earlier than 10 minutes before the appointment. Avoid bringing any electronics if possible because they will have to be locked up anyway before being allowed up into the building. A book or magazine to pass the time is fine. The Consulate is a little bit unsuspecting and not super obvious as many US immigration type buildings are. They will enter and go through security that is essentially the same as airport security. Once upstairs, they will sit in a waiting room. There are washrooms and a water fountain. Good luck! Hopefully they have no hiccups!

It sounds like you and your partner are pretty independent people. Consider how that independence would change if you did a fiance visa (that you're no longer eligible for anyway) or adjusting status (fraud at this point). She goes from being independent with her own identity, in a city she loves and knows, surrounded by friends and family to suddenly, she's literally stuck in the US, unable to travel outside of the US, no longer has her job, her friend group and her family. She's essentially on your turf and goes from being independent to dependent - pretty hard pill to swallow for some people. This is a terrible and challenging way to start any relationship and puts undue stress on what should be a time of happiness and discovery as you build the foundation of your marriage. Do the CR-1. Continue to court each other as you have for the past number of years. Have her enter, able to work, drive, have a bank account - all the things she has and is entitled to. Join in a partnership, build that union in equality. Immigration, is stressful enough without the added stresses of clipping one partner's wings of independence. 20 years from now, you'll look back and say "well, that sucked, but it really was but a blip in our time together".

That's as I understand it and am banking on to get Kid1 and Kid2 their citizenship.