ShawnK

He absolutely won't be billed a dime for simply activating an immigrant visa. I see a lot of silly posts on this topic. I would advise to consult a tax expert before declaring yourself a non resident. But no, a simple activation will not result in that.

Hi In terms of adjusting while visiting ..you can't go in with that intention, if they feel you came in with that plan they will refuse the i485. Now people do, but it's only supposed to be if "circumstances changed". I'd talk to a lawyer about that. With TN, it's not a dual intent visa, it is strictly temporary. When you apply for TN you can't have immigrant intent. You will need to show you will go back to Canada. It is up to the officer, but I think a TN would be hard to get with an immigrant visa in process. When you apply for a TN they send you to the back where they can see your consular visa applications. If they see you have a immigrant visa in process, they can conclude you won't come back. Again, it's up to the officer. Now if you did get a TN, you can adjust, but I'd talk to a lawyer to be extra safe. In terms of L1, it's flexible, it is dual intent. It's ok to want to immigrate, it's ok to adjust when coming in on an L1. You can even use your approved I130 to adjust from an L1, you don't need an approved I140.

Lol so I already have my precious (I've became like Smeagol with it) shiny new Greencard in hand (adjusted in the US) I've been in AP since April 2023 with zero movement. Montreal just emailed me saying they are ready to finish processing my case and want a new passport, medical etc.. I've been living and working in the US (via L1) since the early Spring and my greencard was approved pretty quickly, in about 4 months. So...just sharing for how bizarre it all is. Lawyer advised you can email them but you don't need to do anything, if you don't respond it just expires.

Just to update, i got my GC. I was stuck in the ds5535 mess since April 2023, however, I was able to move to the US with an L1 this spring. At the border they didn't care or ask me about the ds5535. I filed for AOS in the US and received my GC in about 4 months (spousal). Ceac still shows refused. The whole thing is very odd. I would have thought USCIS would have informed them because they ask and can obviously see your consular case. In the AOS application I wrote an explanation about what happened and the whole admin processing thing. Do I need to email Montreal and tell them to close the case?

Update: IR1, April 2023 interview, no responses or updates from Montreal, ceac only updated when I emailed them. No TAL case, nor do I work in anything related to those things . No odd travel history, only went to typical Canadian favored tourist places, Cancun, Florida...places we go to to escape our horrid winters. No arrests or anything like that. No dual citizenship. Emails in the last 3 months received no responses from Montreal, no updates to ceac. Silence. To update friends here, as some other users have mentioned (a huge privilege and perk for Canadians), I too recently obtained a dual intent working visa (L class B) at the border and am now working in the United States. I consulted with 3 lawyers, all said there will be no issues with adjusting. L class provides that privilege. I literally walked in and completed my medical on Saturday and will file everything this week, I485. When applying for my L visa I was sent to secondary where the officer asked about my IR1, I simply said "it went to admin processing". He said "he needed to check a few things". He made a few calls and called me up and said it looks like "they are working on additional documents, but I have no security concerns about you". Big relief and I wanted to give the guy a hug and scream for joy, but kept my mouth shut and simply said thank you. Had to pay a fee and then ran off to my flight, which I almost missed. I kept looking back thinking they would come drag me off the plane. It was surreal to be reunited with my spouse and little kids. This process really breaks you. I've been nothing but a law abiding person my whole life. Never got into any trouble , always avoided even discussing politics or doing anything controversial. I'm going to adjust here in the US and not waste anymore time with Montreal. I'm happy to stay and work in the US, the visa is valid for 3 years. I know the mods don't want to derail this thread with AOS talk, so sorry for that, just wanted to update fellow ds5535 folks. I wish you guys all the best.