Canada Landing from USA - Automatic Visa Revalidation for return to US

[nag1d]

Thank You!

Wish me luck in my job hunt

-nag1d

 

[canada_dream100]

Thanks to all of you for having this grate thread (topic).

I have not got my PR yet, but gathering all needed information.

I am in similar situation, and my H1-B is be valid for next 2 years; I have valid I-94.

Once I get my PR, I would prefer to complete the landing process via road using AVR.

After coming back with in a week, I am planning to continue to work at current place and start looking jobs in Canada,
I want to keep my option open to attend in-person interview in Canada.

Can someone please share if it is okay to come to Canada by Air, and return back same day using AVR?

Will Port of Entry officer in USA object if I use AVR like once/twice a month?

Please keep posting AVR experience here.

Thanks a lot.

 

[canada_dream100]

Can someone please share views on following...

Thanks to all of you for having this grate thread (topic).

I have not got my PR yet, but gathering all needed information.

I am in similar situation, and my H1-B is be valid for next 2 years; I have valid I-94.

Once I get my PR, I would prefer to complete the landing process via road using AVR.

After coming back with in a week, I am planning to continue to work at current place and start looking jobs in Canada,
I want to keep my option open to attend in-person interview in Canada.

Can someone please share if it is okay to come to Canada by Air, and return back same day using AVR?

Will Port of Entry officer in USA object if I use AVR like once/twice a month?

Please keep posting AVR experience here.

Thanks a lot.

thanks.

 

[BZ Mom]

Coming in to the US using AVR by air is fine. But you cannot go back to Canada by air withour PR card. You need to obtain travel documents.

 

[US_H1B]

Hello All,

I came to Canada for my First H1b Stamping and was given a 221G refusal asking additional documents to submit. I submitted all the needed documents to the US Embassy and I am waiting for their approval or email. I dont know how long would they take to process my application. They have my I-797 and all my I-20's, employer letters and client letter. I work as Employer-Vendor-Client relation. I dont have VPN connection to work from CANADA. I m worried about my job.
So,
1. If I request my I-797 original from the consulate, can I come back to US using AVR??? My I-94 on I-797 is valid till 09-30-2013.

Appreciate responses.

 

[karsatjaya]

Hello All,

I came to Canada for my First H1b Stamping and was given a 221G refusal asking additional documents to submit. I submitted all the needed documents to the US Embassy and I am waiting for their approval or email. I dont know how long would they take to process my application. They have my I-797 and all my I-20's, employer letters and client letter. I work as Employer-Vendor-Client relation. I dont have VPN connection to work from CANADA. I m worried about my job.
So,
1. If I request my I-797 original from the consulate, can I come back to US using AVR??? My I-94 on I-797 is valid till 09-30-2013.

Appreciate responses.

US_H1B,

Sorry to hear the news. It is not at all possible to use AVR when you go for stamping. Please wait for the reply from US Consulate . Don't worry keep faith on god and you will get it.

Please see below link on AVR

http://travel.state.gov/visa/laws/telegrams/telegrams_1441.html


Thanks

 

[US_H1B]

Thank you for your quick reply sir..

I am really frustated staying here alone with no work. I cant work from home.. I called embassy multiple times they said Officer is looking at your case.. I emailed them they replied me same.

We received your documents, and the officer is looking at your case. We will contact you if/when we are able to issue your visa.

Consular Section
Embassy of the United States of America
Ottawa, Canada

I would rather fly back to India than staying, but I took Canada visa for single entry thinking, it would not be a problem as I have all the documents(That was my huge mistake).
Can I get multiple visits visitor visa to Canada?, so that if it is going to take too long i can fly back to India.. ? I m in canda right now..

 

[US_H1B]

Thank you for your quick reply sir..

I am really frustated staying here alone with no work. I cant work from home.. I called embassy multiple times they said Officer is looking at your case.. I emailed them they replied me same.

We received your documents, and the officer is looking at your case. We will contact you if/when we are able to issue your visa.

Consular Section
Embassy of the United States of America
Ottawa, Canada

I would rather fly back to India than staying, but I took Canada visa for single entry thinking, it would not be a problem as I have all the documents(That was my huge mistake).
Can I get multiple visits visitor visa to Canada?, so that if it is going to take too long i can fly back to India.. ? I m in canda right now..

Some one please share your views and options......

 

[nmat]

Thank you for your quick reply sir..

I am really frustated staying here alone with no work. I cant work from home.. I called embassy multiple times they said Officer is looking at your case.. I emailed them they replied me same.

We received your documents, and the officer is looking at your case. We will contact you if/when we are able to issue your visa.

Consular Section
Embassy of the United States of America
Ottawa, Canada

I would rather fly back to India than staying, but I took Canada visa for single entry thinking, it would not be a problem as I have all the documents(That was my huge mistake).
Can I get multiple visits visitor visa to Canada?, so that if it is going to take too long i can fly back to India.. ? I m in canda right now..

Sorry to hear about your situation. I am also going to get my H1 stamped in Toronto in early Spring 2011. Can you mention what was the additional documents asked for? I am also working in US in a Vendor - Layer - Employer type set up.

About the visa, with a single entry visa you can enter US - Canada multiple times provided you don't try to enter from any other country other than US. If you go to India, you will have to get a new visa to enter Canada.

 

[US_H1B]

Additional documents asked:

> 2009 Company Tax Returns.
> Company's Roster with Salary, immigration status, start and end dates of all employees.
> Company's 2010 quaterly unemployment wage reports.
> Itinerary of services of applicant (i.e me) from start to end dates.
> Corresponding contracts of Client and Vendor (If applicable). Note: i gave the client and vendor at the window when she wrote this point.

Thank you.

 

[US_H1B]

Thank you for your quick reply sir..

I am really frustated staying here alone with no work. I cant work from home.. I called embassy multiple times they said Officer is looking at your case.. I emailed them they replied me same.

We received your documents, and the officer is looking at your case. We will contact you if/when we are able to issue your visa.

Consular Section
Embassy of the United States of America
Ottawa, Canada

I would rather fly back to India than staying, but I took Canada visa for single entry thinking, it would not be a problem as I have all the documents(That was my huge mistake).
Can I get multiple visits visitor visa to Canada?, so that if it is going to take too long i can fly back to India.. ? I m in canda right now..

Hi All,

My H1 B case in Canada is still pending. Last Tuesday I was called by Visa Officer to the consulate saying to discuss more on my application. I went in there she said my case is still in pending status and I need to wait long time may be a month or more and she said there is no scope or time line. So the officer said to go back to my country and they will let me know when /if my visa is approved. She returned all my documents including my I-797 (valid till Oct-2013), Passport and I-20's. She said we scanned and uploaded all the documents. She also mentioned that we need additional time to verify my Petitioner not me.

So here is my concern:
The same day I took the I-797 and travelled back to USA by road to use AVR at the POE. They stopped me, asked for the documents and I gave my PP and I-797. They took me inside and said so you want to use AVR. I replied yes. They asked me the reason for visit to Canada. I replied to see my friends and Winter Festival in Ottawa. I didn't say anything about my visit to US Embassy. They asked me so what status you were in US before I said F-1. They took 30-40 mins to review some thing on their computer and finally issued new I-94 stamped as H1b till Oct-2013. I thought to take risk as my family is here and I don't want to go back to my Home country this time. But I was permitted to USA with no trouble at POE. I am not sure will this affect my future re-entry to USA or when I apply for my GC.

Can some one please tell me what can happen ? Is that a valid entry????...

Appreciate responses.

 

[smathur_1510]

Hi All,

My H1 B case in Canada is still pending. Last Tuesday I was called by Visa Officer to the consulate saying to discuss more on my application. I went in there she said my case is still in pending status and I need to wait long time may be a month or more and she said there is no scope or time line. So the officer said to go back to my country and they will let me know when /if my visa is approved. She returned all my documents including my I-797 (valid till Oct-2013), Passport and I-20's. She said we scanned and uploaded all the documents. She also mentioned that we need additional time to verify my Petitioner not me.

So here is my concern:
The same day I took the I-797 and travelled back to USA by road to use AVR at the POE. They stopped me, asked for the documents and I gave my PP and I-797. They took me inside and said so you want to use AVR. I replied yes. They asked me the reason for visit to Canada. I replied to see my friends and Winter Festival in Ottawa. I didn't say anything about my visit to US Embassy. They asked me so what status you were in US before I said F-1. They took 30-40 mins to review some thing on their computer and finally issued new I-94 stamped as H1b till Oct-2013. I thought to take risk as my family is here and I don't want to go back to my Home country this time. But I was permitted to USA with no trouble at POE. I am not sure will this affect my future re-entry to USA or when I apply for my GC.

Can some one please tell me what can happen ? Is that a valid entry????...

Appreciate responses.

Thank you for posting your case. Did you had any trouble after your entry to US? Does the officer at the Port of Entry validates that you are taking a return trip to Canada?
My Case--> My H1B stamping is pending under section221g in Frankfurt Consulate. I have a valid I-94 stamp on the passport from my travel in January of this year. The H1B visa has expired. Can I use AVR for reentry into the united stated through Canada?
Thanks for your help

 

[nakulgupta]

Hello All,

I completed my landing in Canada and returned to the US using the AVR rule. I wanted to share my experience. We decided to drive from Buffalo and flew to Buffalo from Houston on Thanksgiving day - 25th November with my wife and son. I rented a car at the airport and we stayed in Buffalo that night. The next morning, we drove towards the peace bridge and crossed the border.

Step 1: Check Point
The officer at the check point asked us why we were there and when I said it was to complete our landing, he asked for the CoPR documents, reviewed it and asked us to pull over ahead in one of the parking spots and go into the office for immigration.

Step 2: Immigration Officer
We were directed to the immigration officer who was very friendly. She got our documents, asked for our address in Canada and completed the landing process for the three of us. This took about about 20 minutes. Once done, she stapled a copy of the CoPR to our passports and told us that this document is very important and told us that once we receive our PR cards, we can remove the document from our passports, however need to keep that carefully until our citizenship. She asked if we had travel plans anytime soon and I said that I will need to travel back to the US to arrange for shipping my goods. To this she said that we will not be able to travel by air/train without the PR card but if we travel via road like we did during landing, we could use the CoPR copy to get in again. She then asked us to go to the customs officer.

Step 3: Customs Officer
The officer at the customs counter was also very friendly and once he looked at the documents Goods Accompanying and Goods to Follow, complemented me on being well organized. A big thanks to Qorax for it was due to his directions on this forum that helped me organize my documents well. He entered some details on the computer and then gave me back a copy of the Goods to Follow list with each page marked with their seal. He told me that I will need to carry a copy of this with me when I bring the goods during relocation. He verified if I was not bringing my car and when I confirmed that I was not, he made note of it on the form. He also told me that he does not need the Goods Accompanying list and offered to shred that for me. This process took about 10-15 minutes. Once done, he asked me to wait in line to go to the cashier and said that I did not have to pay anything and just had to show them the Goods to Follow list that had the seal.

Step 4: Cashier
The process at the cashier was very simple. We just showed the Goods to Follow list and she made some entries on the computer and gave it back to us. She said that if we bring anything that is not on the list, we could be charged customs on it.

That was the process for landing. Just to make sure I had not missed anything else, I stopped by at the immigration officer counter (the officer who processed my documents was not at the counter and so I spoke with a different officer) and asked if the process was all done and if the PR card would be sent to the address I had provided. She confirmed that I was good to go and that the card would be mailed to the address in about 6 weeks.

We got out of the building, took some pictures and took a deep breath to let the feeling sink in that we were finally permanent residents. We then started driving towards Toronto to my relatives place.

Service Canada Office

My relative took us to the local Service Canada office where we applied for the SIN cards (I had the forms filled in advance and that made the process easier). We got the SIN numbers immediately on a print out and were told that the SIN cards would come by mail in a couple of weeks. The officer there cautioned us about not misplacing the SIN card and not giving out the SIN number to everyone. She even told me that I should not share this on any forms when I apply for jobs. I need to only share it with the employer once the job offer is complete.

Service Ontario Office

The following Monday, we went to the Service Ontario office to apply for the health card. The lady at the counter told me that I was a bit early and had to bring in supporting documents for proof of residence with the application. This has to be either a bank statement mailed by the bank or a lease agreement or a utility bill. We realized that we could not apply for the Health card yet and got back

Canada Revenue Agency

My relative told me that we could apply for Child Tax Benefit for my son at the CRA office. I got the address of the nearest CRA office from the lady at the Service Ontario office and headed there. Here, I was given an application packet and told that I could either mail it or submit it there. I got the application packet home, filled it and went back the next day with copies of passport/CoPR and submitted it. I was told that it would take about 3 months to process it and would get notified by mail at the mailing address provided.

Return to the US

After spending about 6 days in Canada, we started driving back towards the Peace Bridge to get back to the US. Needless to say, I was a bit nervous when we got close to the US border. At the check point, I handed over our passports to the officer along with the extended I-94 documents for my wife and myself. No problem for my son as he had a US passport. The officer asked me the following questions -

• what citizenship do we all have?
• why had we gone to Canada?
• who do we have there and where in Canada?
• where do I work and what do I do?
• where are we headed now?

He scanned our passports as he asked us these questions. After that, he told us to have a good trip back and handed our passports and I-94 documents back. This process took no more than 2-3 minutes.

To summarize, it was a pretty straight forward process, obviously with good preparation and lots of inputs from this forum, Qorax in particular. All the best to others who are in the process of completing their landing.

Hi thank you for the detailed process information. We are planning to move to Canada in this month, can you pls tell us if your son was added to the Canadian PR or was US citizen? As you said there was no problem when you made this short trip.

Thanks