Piefre

I've been living as a legal permanent resident for almost three years now in the US. In 2015 over the summer, I received some money as a gift from my parents into my still open Canadian bank account. It's a 'gift', but was actually deposited to put the balance in the account over the minimum required amount (approx $1500). Without that additional money, the bank was withdrawing a monthly fee and slowly depleting the remaining funds in there. I keep the bank account because I still have an active credit card with the same Canadian bank and it's a convenient way for me to pay for things while I'm visiting. By the way, it is a checking account, is not used for investments nor does it earn interest.

Just now I've received a W-9 from my Canadian bank insisting that I fill out a W-9 for the account because the Canadian account received funds. I'm not really sure if filling this out is going to mean I pay taxes on the $1000 my parents deposited or if I have to pay taxes for the entirety of the account balance or if I need to do something else to ensure that I account for every penny for the IRS or the CRA. I am assuming the reason I got documentation to fill out is because someone is looking to tax something from me. I'm just not sure what they'd want this for and would really appreciate anyone whose been in a similar situation chiming in to clear this up.

Getting credit for me was a waiting game. My husband has excellent credit. He had me as a joint cardholder on a couple of his cards since I moved down, but I still needed to establish my own credit. I think being a joint cardholder does carry some weight here in the US because when I moved down I had zero credit and no score. After a year of being on two cards with my husband, I checked my score and it was reported as good and actually only a few points below his (this was before I even got my own card). I think the key is be a joint cardholder and not just an authorized user.

Anyway, when I got a job and after 10 months of working, I got a credit card offer in the mail. It came just in time too because I was just about to apply for a secured card through my bank. A few months after that, I got approved for a car loan on my own and now I get credit card offers every other week and my credit score has stayed in the good range.

I teach for a college here in the US. They validated my degree with an agency and they paid it for it themselves. I hold a Canadian degree and it was validated and given equivalency to a degree in the US. What they needed from me were official transcripts to be sent from my college to their evaluators. It was a two week wait. After that, I got a letter in the mail letting me know the results. The letter stated that they had looked all my courses, my credit hours and my degree and granted me equivalency for all of it.

I haven't tried to find work for a non-post-secondary institution but so long as your credit hours and degree are the equivalent required credit hours in the US, you should not have any issues. It's still nerve-wracking though, so best of luck.

Thank you for the responses! I think I can call up the accountant we've been using to ask about this. I have been declaring the funds according to FBAR. Got tired of having to declare it every year and not even really use that money so I was going to move it. I was hoping it would be easier.

I bank with JP Chase and they are usually fine with taking a Canadian check. I think one time a teller mentioned that it only goes to collections if the amount is over 4k or 5k (can't remember). Does anyone happen to know the form I would need to declare my transfer?

I've got over 15k sitting my CND bank account that I need to move into my US bank account. I've transferred smaller amounts before by just writing a check to myself and dealing with the exchange rate on it, but I was wondering if there's any magical IRS form or taxes I need to worry about if I write a check for over 15k from my CND account to my US account.

I faced this same issue during my K1, and in the end, I chose my visa over the wishes of my family. No ceremony. Period. They were pretty upset about it, they said I was being unreasonable and paranoid. I didn't care what they said or thought--I STILL don't care. And you know what? Over a year later, my family got over it and saw the logic behind why I put my visa first.

It ultimately comes down to you and your fiance obeying immigration laws or bending to the will of her family. Her family doesn't have to live with the consequences if she gets denied her visa thanks to a ceremony. Her family won't feel the heartbreak if you and her are removed from each other. So if her family really cares about her, they can wait.

Thanks, SunnySanDiego . It's crazy because I never had any problems finding work in Alberta and had a good, steady job. I guess I took the economic climate there for granted because things here are noticeably different.

I hope all of you waiting for USCIS to respond about your cases get good news soon!

Seems us Albertans might have bad luck or something. I've been in the US for over a year now. Had lots of trouble finding work health insurance was crazy too. Finally, I now have part time work and I'm doing some self employment on the side. My husband lost his job recently and now we are worried about losing our home.

I was in this same situation of thinking that I was going to get the full 36 weeks of pay. It is indeed true that they start counting your weeks when you apply for EI, but they don't pay you until your EAD is approved. I ended up only getting a couple months worth of payments because it took so long for my EAD to be approved.

My advice to everyone that has been approved for EI is to log in to their Service Canada account and check the info provided there. As soon as I faxed them my EAD and was approved, they updated the info including how much I was to be paid, and the date that my EI ran out was clearly stated there.

Note: When I called them to ask how many weeks I had left, they quoted me the amount BEGINNING when my EAD was approved. This was NOT TRUE. I asked again and mentioned that online it said it runs out much sooner. They double checked and told me I was actually correct! (unfortunately!)

Wish I knew this when I applied so that I could estimate the real amount of weeks I would get paid. But at least I planned ahead and had a job lined up for when my EI really ran out!

Thanks for sharing your story, Holly&Frank. I wasn't able to get online for the duration of my claim. The system kept telling me I had no case file in there so I had to just rely on what they were telling me over the phone. Thankfully, I finally found work a couple of months after EI ran out. Does anyone know when I can expect them to send our tax sheets for 2012?

I would really feel better if the SSA had the most up to date information. I'm big on peace of mind I guess lol, especially if there was a name change or to remove any doubt that you are elligible to work without DHS approval.

OK, thank you!

II've had problems getting the social security office here to grant me a number when I first arrived, so I wanted to make sure I had everything squared off before going there like in addition to the stamp and the SS-5 form, do I need to bring anything else? Like birth certificate?

I got my 2 year GC about a month ago and need to remove the DHS Approval line from my social security card before it gets much later. I had to send my GC back to USCIS because they messed something up on it and it won't be back in my hands for 6-8 months.

In the mean time, I want to remove the DHS approval line from my SS card using the I-551 stamp in my passport. I know my mileage is going to vary depending on who I get at the social security office and whether they will recognize an I-551 stamp or not. I just want to know what everyone else brought as evidence when they wanted to the DHS approval removed from their SS.

So I'm confused, my EI apparently ran out today but it's 8 weeks short of the 36 weeks they told me it would last for. I'm short 8 weeks. I read somewhere in this thread some people were losing benefits weeks because they started counting your benefits weeks when your case gets approved and if you don't have your EAD yet while your EI case is approved then you just don't get paid for those weeks. My EAD took a while for approval (4 months total, approx 3 months after I applied for EI), is this why I'm losing some weeks of benefits? This kind of throws me for a loop because I was initially told 36 weeks when I started getting paid. When I asked how much longer I had, I was told beginning of January (4 weeks short). Now I'm pretty much out all of a sudden. What's going on?

I was extremely upfront with TD when I moved too and they let me keep and use my card. In fact, they just sent me a new one. I've spoken to them several times over the phone, told them I was moving and needed to change my address or ask questions and they have been fine with allowing me to keep and use my credit card.

I'm also in the same credit situation as you. No credit in the US and no job yet. It's a tough job market out there, hopefully you can get this sorted out.

Thank you, that's what I'll put down then. This whole thing was frustrating because I was ready to go using AP. Then my GC arrives with wrong info, and the earliest InfoPass I could get was after my travel date. What a mess. But thank you for the help.

3 is city where you live, not where it went

4 is the city where you had your interview for your GC, somtimes it can be different from where you live

So 3 would be "Oviedo" and 4 would be "California Service Center" (I didn't have an interview)?

So USCIS entered wrong information on my green card so I have to send it back and fill out Form I-90 for a replacement card. I already had to postpone my trip because of this so I have an InfoPass appointment and needed to fill out an I-90 form. I got to Part 3, Questions 3 and 4 and just want to make sure I'm interpreting them correctly.

Question 3 asks: "City of residence where you applied for an immigrant visa or adjustment of status"

The instructions for this question says: "List the location of the US embassy or Consulate or USCIS Office where you filed your application for an immigrant visa or adjustment of status."

I'm adjusting from a K1 Visa. I lived in Calgary, Interviewed for my visa in Vancouver. I moved and I applied for my AOS while living in a city called Oviedo. The nearest USCIS Office would be in Orlando. But when I sent my AOS package off, it was to the Chicago Lockbox. So what do I put down for Question 3?

Question 4 asks: "Consulate where immigrant visa or USCIS office where adjustment of status was granted"

The instructions for this question says: "List the location of the US embassy or Consulate or USCIS Office where you became a permanent resident."

So like I said, I sent my AOS package off to the Chicago Lockbox. It landed at the National Service Center where it was eventually forwarded to the California Service Center where I was approved. I'm assuming I put California Service Center here?

Finally, USCIS put down the wrong birth country on my green card. What evidence do I need to include to verify my birth country? I'm assuming birth certificate (and translation if non-English), would they need any further evidence?

Thanks.

Just quick update. Got my GC. It was approved and sent out and I didn't get any notification of it until it arrived in my mailbox one day. It was like a nice surprise present. Then I opened it and saw they had the wrong birth country listed for me. Now I have to get it fixed. WAAAGH!

Here's their fax number: 613-545-8934

I did this a while ago so I don't remember the exact details of what I did, but I remember faxing a letter along with a copy of my EAD explaining who I was, what the EAD was for, and any other information that could help them connect me to my EI case. I'm not sure if the letter was really necessary, but I didn't have any problems. I also called them up a few days later to make sure my EAD was received and attached to my case. If you have any anxieties about this, I suggest calling them: 1-877-486-1650

My notifications for my EAD and AP were staggered by a few days. I got notification of my EAD first, then my AP. When the card arrived, I got one card that served as both my EAD and my AP. The notifications aren't very reliable, sometimes they're late, sometimes they don't show up at all. My greencard just showed up in my mailbox one day without any notification whatsoever so don't worry if you don't get one for your AP, there's a good chance it was approved alongside your EAD.

Your AP is now void because your AOS has been approved. You are a Legal Permanent Resident. Your GC is wrong, and it is their mistake. Make an INFOPASS appointment and get a I-551 stamps in your passport (serves as a GC). Send back the GC with no fee for replacement based on USCIS error. Travel freely on your I-551 stamp until the new corrected GC arrives.

Thank you. I had no idea my AP is now void and unusable. I'll be making an INFOPASS appointment asap then.

Yeah, I'm hoping someone else who may have had this problem can tell me how they dealt with it. Otherwise I'll call tomorrow and send the card back and deal with secondary screening on my trip. It's just an inconvenience, but a really needless one. I also doubt that since they didn't change anything when I got my EAD fixed for this exact same problem that they'll fix it for my future paperwork either.

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