cyyz2000

Hi all! I become a LPR last year in October and I moved from Canada. Prior to becoming a resident alien for tax purposes, I was earning income from my regular salaried job in Canada which I expect to receive a T4 slip from this year, as well as through YouTube (I make online videos). My question is, for the income I earned before I became a permanent resident, how should I go about reporting that income on my 2022 U.S. Federal Tax Return? Should this income even be reported? I'm not sure if I'm considered a Dual-Status alien. I have a tax appointment in the morning and I'll definitely ask these questions. I'm just a little curious because the tax accountant did explicitly say over the phone that his firm does not handle Canadian tax. I am fully aware that any income earned after I became a permanent resident, including worldwide income, is taxable. I'm just concerned about the income earned before I received my green card. Hope that makes sense. I'd love some insight into this.

Hi all! We'll be moving in 2 months and I'm excited! I was researching some phone plans, and compared to what we have here in Canada, U.S. plans are so much more affordable. There's this provider called Visible (www.visible.com) and they run on the Verizon network. They have a $45/month plan (including taxes & fees) and it has unlimited data (50GB is premium data), unlimited text, and unlimited calling. Also includes 500 minutes per month of international calling to 90 countries. Pretty solid deal considering they run on the Verizon network. It also includes 5G Ultra Wideband which is really fast data, but you need to live in a 5G Ultra Wideband area to access it and require a compatible phone. There's also another plan for $30/month, except it doesn't include 5G Ultra Wideband and your data gets throttled when the network is congested. Both of these plans are prepaid so there's no credit check required, but you will need a device that's compatible with the Verizon network in order to use it. FYI - these plans are best for those looking to buy individual plans. If you plan to combine with a family member or friend, look into T-Mobile or Verizon's plans. If anyone has any other recommendations, feel free to comment below

Amazing, great to see that MTL is on 2021 now. Best of luck to you all!

Since the instructions do mention that they have to be taken within the past 6 months, I assume the only way to check that is if they have a date stamped on the back.

We uploaded the police certificate and updated tax returns to NVC before your interview. We did that the weekend before ours took place. I don’t think it’s mandatory but might make it easier for the CO. As for the photos, it does say that they need to be taken within the last 6 months. I would assume the only way to check when they’re taken is if they have a stamp on the back. Also, they only asked for one but take two in case.

Hope you find the answer you're looking for. As for the DS-5535, that's odd that even the Consular Officer had no idea why it happened. Maybe this is a sign that the DS-5535 is auto-requested by the computer/system and the embassy must comply with the request before issuing the visa. I could be wrong though. Good luck with your case.

Looks great.

Yes, I believe so. The medical examiner I visited in Scarborough, ON took a verbal for chicken pox.

The "Ontario" one is the most updated one. Hepatitis B (ages 18-59) was added a couple months ago. COVID-19 is also required now. Influenza isn't required at the moment (flu season only). Definitely get a titers test to see which ones you are already immune to. And yes, it's recommended that you have them done before the medical appointment because some offices might not have the vaccines available, but if they do, they will charge you a LOT. In our case, my parents didn't have the Hepatitis B vaccine and instead opted to get it from their local doctors office after the medical.

You have to register at https://ais.usvisa-info.com/en-ca/iv

Yes, we actually filled out an entirely new I-864 and I-864A prior to the interview since the financial situation changed quite a bit since 2020. I uploaded the 2021 tax returns, pay stubs, and the new I-864 forms to NVC before the interview. I have no idea if they were looked at by the CO, but I can say the CO did not ask for any of them at all in paper form. He just said, “I’m looking through your financial documents, everything looks sufficient.” Always good practice to take updated forms to the interview in case they ask for them. Good luck!

They didn't ask for our original I-864 at the interview, but we took a printed copy of it just in case as we lost the original one.

Congrats to everyone on their ILs. Best of luck with the final steps of the visa journey. My passport is scheduled to arrive tomorrow (3 days after interview).

Update: I think I figured it out. I'll need my A-Number and DOS Case ID, I'll just pay for it once my visa arrives.

Hi, I've heard that you have to pay a fee to USCIS to process/print your green card and mail it to you. I'm wondering, how and where do you pay for that? My passport tracking was provided today so I'm still waiting on my visa. Category is F3, we went through consular processing @ Montreal.

Nope, I just clicked on "Accepted" under Affidavit of Support & Financial Evidence when signed in, and clicked on "Add a Document" under Additional AOS Supporting Documentation. I would recommend adding them after receiving the IL just in case your DQ does not get reset.

Got home a couple hours ago, that was a long drive but happy to say my visa was approved!!! The CO was super friendly. They focused mainly on my civil documents (original birth and marriages certificates, only asked for 1 passport photo, did not ask for photocopies of anything). Our case was also filed based on assets, but surprisingly, the CO didn't ask for any evidence for our assets at all. I did upload updated documents to NVC prior to the interview though. The whole interview was maybe around 15 minutes, super quick. Let me know if you have any questions. My dad's case is still in Administrative Processing, but my mom and I are "Issued". Good luck everyone!

Is this for premium delivery service (i.e. delivering it to your home)? If so, then you might need to pick it up at your local post office instead.

Interview is coming up soon and I had a quick question. If we're using 3 different types of assets (bank account balances, real estate properties, and certificate of deposits), but let's say 1 of the 3 assets ends up being more than enough to qualify us, what happens to the other 2 assets? In our case, we believe that the real estate properties will be more than enough to qualify us. At the interview, can the CO "remove" the other 2 assets from our I-864A, or will they still need to be considered? I'm asking because there is a lot of paperwork for all 3 assets, so using just one asset would minimize a lot of paperwork and time for the CO.

Interesting, we plan to do the same (transfer the funds while we're still Canadian residents). Will transferring them after moving to the U.S. trigger tax when it comes to the IRS?

Nice, yes I've heard about those cross-border plans...I actually have an RBC US credit card, so I'm thinking maybe I can add my parents to it as well (who will be immigrating with me). I'll look into that, thanks.

I will look into Citibank, thanks. We're planning to do the transfer after activating the green cards. I'm assuming the SSN will come in the mail after we enter the US, so we'll have to wait a bit before we can open a US bank account.

Hi everyone, I was wondering if someone had any recommendations on a bank or financial institution to use when wiring large amounts of money from a Canadian bank to a US bank? We plan on selling our house before moving and would like to wire the entire proceeds received from the sale, as well as our existing CAD balances to a US bank. Thanks.

Yes, I was referring to the interview stage. For sure, I’ll let you know if anything comes up. Good luck.

I think the key word here is “if applicable”. I also wonder the same thing but from what I’ve heard, I don’t think it’s necessary. We just submitted a black & white scanned copy of the Naturalization Certificate and a colored scanned copy Passport Card photo, and NVC accepted it.