Per Instruction Guide: Spouses not required to have a legal imm. status?

[sunnynoon]

I was reading through the instruction guide for inland applications and came across this:

"Spouses and common‑law partners of Canadian citizens and permanent residents in Canada who wish to apply for permanent resident status are no longer required to have legal immigration status provided that they have an eligible sponsor. All other eligibility requirements continue to apply."

http://www.cic.gc.ca/english/information/applications/guides/5289ETOC.asp

What does that mean exactly?

My fiance and I are working out all the details for me to come up, get married, and stay.

My concern is that usually the border doesn't stamp my passport, and if they think I might stay they will stamp it with a return date - which is no good if I plan to stay past the weekend wedding.

So is that statement saying that as long as my fiance is eligible to sponsor me - we are ok...with no date on the passport and no real immigration status other than that technically US citizen can visit Canada for up to 6 mo. with no visa?

 

[Sweden]

there are lots of US/Can couples on the forum that will most likely comment as well, but in general: if you're a US citizen, there are very few reasons for you to apply inland. You can apply outland AND be in Canada, and you keep the possibility of going in and out of Canada.

what the article means is that the applicant can apply inland even if they are no longer legal in Canada (came with a tourist visa which expired, but didn't leave the country for example).

What you can do is: when you get into Canada, ask for a visitor record at the border, or a stamp on your passport, if there is no return date then it's good for 6 months. Explain that you would like to stay 3 months and be prepared to show that you have funds to support yourself (or your sponsor has). Be prepared also to explain that you plan on applying for PR, and have the proofs of that (pay the fee in advance and have the receipt for example). In Canada, "dual intent" is allowed. Once you're in Canada, you can keep on extending your visitor visa online, and quite a few people have been in Canada that way for over 18 months. So - long enough to apply for PR.

Good luck
Sweden

 

[sunnynoon]

The border sees me every weekend- as I moved to North Dakota to be closer to him. I have been visiting every weekend for the last 5 months. I am pretty well known to the agents at the port I cross in...

Crossing the border makes me nervous every weekend as the first weekend I attempted to cross I couldn't prove ties to the US and was given the option to withdraw my request to enter Canada- came back to ND - got a job and a place to stay within a week...and have been doing weekend visits ever since.

I am way too nervous to do outland and we are prepared for the no travel so long as I don't have to leave once I get up there. My fiance makes good money - and I will submit OWP paperwork with my application. I am trying to have everything ready to submit the application immediately after the wedding.

I just want to confirm that if I go up there...we get married...submit the application...
As long as he is ELIGIBLE (not approved) I won't get deported.

The last 5 months have been nerve wracking enough with the border...I don't want to have to cross again for a long time.

 

[sunnynoon]

Another question - do I have to apply to extend my stay even with this little note about it not being a requirement to have a legal status?

I am very much expecting to not get a stamped passport - which is going to make it difficult to show on our application that I have legal status - which according to that shouldn't matter in the first place. And if I am not required to have legal status to apply - one would assume that submitting extensions of my stay wouldn't matter either.

But this is Canadian immigration - so one should never assume anything at all.

 

[keesio]

The border sees me every weekend- as I moved to North Dakota to be closer to him. I have been visiting every weekend for the last 5 months. I am pretty well known to the agents at the port I cross in...

I would think that this is actually a good thing... they are familiar with you and you have a history of coming to Canada and (more importantly) leaving.

 

[sunnynoon]

Yeah - but that won't be my intent once we are married.

In fact - last weekend - the border patrol agent specifically asked me about if we were considering marriage. He stated that we should talk to immigration before we even consider it because "things can get sticky" going back and forth even after the marriage. I think they are waiting for us to get married...they bring it up all the time -even though mums the word from us because we haven't seriously considered it until now (as I had a job offer and an employer working on Prov. Nom. for me until a few weeks ago and it fell through because they had some unexpected building damage and had to temp. close)

Trust me...I don't care to come back and forth - staying up there with him is A OK with me.

I just want to make sure that as long as we submit the application and I am up there...I won't get hunted down like a criminal and sent back never to be allowed back in (sorry...but my experiences at the border have left a pretty bad taste in my mouth)

 

[sunnynoon]

another question I have is that I am divorced - I have ordered a copy of my cert. of divorce - but I have heard of other couples having trouble getting a marriage license with american divorce ppwk

 

[Sweden]

So - if you submit inland, and with an OWP, as long as you submit your application before your visa expires, YES, you have implied status and do not need to worry about being illegal, submitting extensions, etc.

however - I would really encourage you to think about outland. think about it: if something comes up with your family, you won't be able to go there without putting your application in jeopardy. Even for family emergency... Inland makes sense for applicants that are from non-visa-exempt countries because like this, they can stay in Canada with their spouse - most people might come on a tourist visa, apply inland and get implied status, and are allowed to stay until the PR comes through.

but in your case - you can achieve pretty much the same thing with retaining the possibility of going in and out of Canada if needed. It doesn't mean that you will have to leave - it means that you CAN, if you want/need to. You can be in Canada, with an outland application, and be legally here throughout the PR process.

Inland will give you an OWP, but you will have to wait about 10 months for that - and it is likely that as a US applicant, you would be done with the PR process if you apply outland.

I understand that you are nervous about the border crossing - every one is. However, dual intent is allowed, and what CBSA is trying to control is that you're not staying and living in Canada without a plan. once you have applied for PR, it's pretty obvious that you will indeed get your status, and you don't intend to stay illegally etc.

So - you could cross again and ask for a stamp, get married, and then stay in Canada with an outland application. You can submit extensions online, so you don't have to go back to the border to get another stamp after 6 months etc. Your extension will likely get approved as you can state that you have applied for PR and you're waiting for it to come through. Like this - no more border control for a while, BUT still a faster process, and the possibility to leave the country if you need to (family emergency etc.).

Good luck,
Sweden

 

[sunnynoon]

I appreciate the advice- but I have had such trouble at the border- I don't even want to risk having to go back for an interview if I am called for one.

My only question remains- if I head up to see my boyfriend one weekend and we happen to get married and they didn't stamp my passport because I was only staying the weekend - if we apply right away is there going to be problems. (Me getting deported or our application not approve because I don't have a stamp to prove legal status)?

 

[sunnynoon]

Bump

 

[little_apple]

I appreciate the advice- but I have had such trouble at the border- I don't even want to risk having to go back for an interview if I am called for one.

My only question remains- if I head up to see my boyfriend one weekend and we happen to get married and they didn't stamp my passport because I was only staying the weekend - if we apply right away is there going to be problems. (Me getting deported or our application not approve because I don't have a stamp to prove legal status)?

If you apply within Canada you don't have to have a legal status. So when you enter Canada with getting a stamp you're good for 6 months and if you're application is submitted you can stay even longer than 6 months. BUT it is very simple for people from visa exempt countries to extend their visitor status. You can do it online, pay $75 and it takes just a few weeks to get a new visitor visa (you have to apply at least 30 days before your status expires). As far as I know you can even ask for a longer visitor visa by explaining your situation.

Because outland is usually faster than inland I would recommend outland. And if something happens in the US with your family etc it is easier to go back for a while. If you leave Canada after applying inland you could get in trouble at the border or they even might refuse your application and you have to start all over again.

 

[sunnynoon]

Yes but what if they don't stamp my passport? Is that going to be an issue?

 

[truesmile]

Have you thought of getting a "NEXUS" card? Assuming there's a Nexus lane where you cross at.

 

[sunnynoon]

It's North Dakota- I am lucky they have power at the port I cross in. Lol

 

[truesmile]

LOL - I see. They still have yet to connect all the endless miles and miles of wind-driven turbines to something useful eh?