Firebug4

It depends on what you are trying to do. If you want to get married and live in the United States, there are two ways to go about it. You can get a K visa which is a fiancé visa. This allows you to get married in the United States and immediately after the marriage live and work in the United States. This is not really that hard to obtain but does take a fair amount of time. The plus is that after the marriage you and your spouse can both live in the US while the adjustment of status from a K to a LPR takes place. The con is that it takes time to obtain the visa before you can get married.

The other way is for you to get married outside of the United States then have the US citizen petition for the non-US citizen to live in the United States. This also takes time for the petition to work its way through the system. During this time the NON US Citizen spouse is not living in the United States. The plus to this is that when the petition is approved the NON US Citizen spouse is granted an immigrant visa and becomes a LPR immediately upon entry. The con is that the married couple can be either living outside of the United States if the other country will allow it or the married couple can end up spending a significant amount of time apart until the petition is granted. This is why people chance hiding their intent to marry and immigrate and entry as a tourist and then attempt to adjust while in the United States. That works for many but the consequences for being caught are pretty severe.

It all depends on your individual circumstances.


http://www.uscis.gov/portal/site/usc...00082ca60aRCRD

FB

GUWonder

It indeed does all depend on the individual circumstances.

The person can also try to adjust their circumstances to qualify for a TN.

Again, your post is incorrect, from the first paragraph's first sentence until the last paragraph's last sentence.

Intent is a wishy-washy thing, yet CBP agents too often want to rely upon an exercise of mind-reading as if the mind-reading isn't useless.

Status gets legally adjusted rather routinely for persons who enter the US on a B visa or using the VWP and then use a legitimate marriage as means to facilitate the adjustment to immigration status. There's nothing necessarily illegal about that, although CBP does try to stop that at US POEs.

Firebug4

I just re-read some of the posts. I am unclear about something. You are Canadian. You wrote that your significant other is a resident. Is your significant other a Lawful Permenant Resident of the United States or a US Citizen of the United States? It would make a difference concerning what your options are.

FB

N1Hawk

Ok here goes, I'll Clear this up


I'm a Permanent Canadian Citizen and my girlfriend is a Permanent USA Citizen. She's asked that I move to the USA with her but won't marry me for at least 6 months (It's her rule) to make sure my job when I find one is permanent and that I find a place to stay. So basically I won't be able to apply for a job in the USA without first living down there, finding a place to live then I can start to apply for jobs. I've been denied 4 jobs because I did not live in the USA and did not have the status. So there is my situation.

Thanks Firebug for ur help

N1Hawk

Firebug4

Again, legal citation. Oh that's right you can't find it because it doesn't exist. I have dealt with these issues daily for going on thirteen years now. On might wonder why the US Officers are trying to stop that practice. Could it be that the practice is in violation of US Immigration Law? My comments have basis in US Immigration Law. It is a shame that you can't say the same. For those interested I would pay special attention to the first paragraph of the second page of the link below.

FB

http://www.uscis.gov/USCIS/New%20Str...uides/A2en.pdf

B747-437B

It is. However, the burden of proof lies with the alien to disprove that have immigrant intent. CBP doesn't have to determine if intent exists, but rather the alien must show to their satisfaction that it doesn't.

Loren Pechtel

You can't. You're not going to get that work permit without marrying.

GUWonder

.... anyone with a real understanding of this area ought to also understand that not everything that is legally permitted in this area is the product of a single citation and they ought to understand that much of what is legally permitted is the product of multiple statutory and administrative determinations, of areas left uncovered by statute/rule, and subject to discretion at some level or another. And that's another reason not to spoon-feed you on demand.

The CBP is indeed trying to stop persons as CBP are legally permitted to do, but the CBP on its own is more often than not toothless when it comes to persons who have already been legally entered into the US and file for an adjustment of immigration status on the basis of a legitimate marriage to a US citizen. Intent is a wishy-washy thing, which gives room to manuveur to persons entering the US at a US POE and to abusive CBP agents.

GUWonder

H-1Bs, if able to find an employer able to get one of those is a way to get an opportunity to work in the US without marrying a US citizen. For Canadians, some L visas may also help accomplish much the same.

thegeneral

To the OP, should you be making this big of a commitment then it's time to spend $150 and talk to an immigration attorney for an hour. Should you want to go there for 5-6 months and still work, being able to do that will largely depend on what you do and your education. Keep in mind, the economy isn't great right now. You'd likely have to find work in TN qualified jobs as they are much easier to get and much less hassle for the employer. Those visas run for 3 years nowadays. That should give you time to be there for 5-6 months, get married and get all of this sorted out.

That said, I'm not a lawyer and you should talk to one.

That's entirely false. I know plenty of Canadians working and living in the United States who haven't made the marriage mistake.

Firebug4

I am well aware of the reality of Immigration matters. I would bet much more so then you as a matter of fact. I have not once said to you that what you describe does not happen quite frequently. I have said that it happens a lot. However, that does not mean that it is legal. Yes, there is discretion involved. Adjustment of status is largely done by USCIS which is a different agency. USCIS does use the same law book that CBP does but they have a different mandate and a much different burden of proof. What you describe as room to maneuver, CBP and many adjudicators from USCIS are going to describe as misrepresentation and fraud. Did you even bother to read the document from USCIS? Intent is not a wishy-washy thing at all. You either have the intent to marry and immigrate or you don't it actually is pretty cut and dry if we were all mind readers. The ability to prove intent is a different animal all together. Because you have the ability to lie well does not mean that you completed the process legally. It just means you got away with it. This is all why USCIS and CBP have a different approach concerning this practice. USCIS has to prove what the intent actually was, which is a very difficult thing to do.

In CBP's case the alien has to prove what the intent actually is. It is a very important difference. You believe the CBP officer is abusive for enforcing the Immigration Laws as they exist. I believe the CBP officer is providing an important service of trying to keep the playing field level. Why should one alien who wishes to immigrate to the United States the correct and legal way have to wait while the another alien who wishes to do the same thing jumps ahead because he is willing to lie and misrepresent facts, oh wait I am sorry "maneuver" to use your term for the misrepresentation, to cheat the system. That is exactly what it is because that person knew when they came to the United States what the actual purpose of the trip was for. Do you have as little respect of the rest of the US Laws or is it only Immigration Law? For someone who constantly accuses CBP Officer’s of being abusive your posts illustrate a strange understanding of integrity and truthfulness when misrepresentation is categorized as maneuvering.

FB

lin821

For OP, you've got plenty of good advices in thread.

Make sure you (and your GF) will proceed with cautions from now on. Talk to a lawyer and get sound legal advice, if that's what it takes. I recall another (newbie) FTer in a similar boat a couple years back. The girl (maybe Canadian?) had been visiting him frequently in Texas (maybe Dallas?) and was perfectly honest when questioned: visiting boyfriend. I forgot what she did wrong but she was sent back and can't no more visit the States (the 10-year ban, I believe). Can't seem to locate that thread right now. Maybe someone in the know can dig it up so OP will know what NOT to do.

Still not clear. I don't know what "Permanent USA Citizen" means. I've only heard "Permanent Resident" and U.S. citizen.

Is she a green card holder (Permanent Resident) or U.S. citizen?

It's mission impossible.

If you want to work in the States legally, you've got to have the proper visa/status, such as F, H, L, K visa. You can't just fly in then expect to find legal/stable employment. Your 4 denied job applications are the living proof.

I think it's time for you to straighten things out with your GF, if marriage is part of your future plan. Better for you to get a (good) immigration lawyer for legal advice so you can avoid any hiccups in the process. Good luck!

GUWonder

What a joke. Perhaps I should thank you for your above posts' inclusion of misrepresentations, demonstrations at failed mind-reading and other baseless claims and finger-pointing.

Avoiding trouble with CBP requires much the same skill-set as avoiding trouble with "Tricky Dick" and recognizing that intent is wishy-washy regardless of claim or posturing. The above post evidences all of that.

tom911

GUWonder-

Have I missed a prior post where you've explained how you've gathered your expertise in the area of immigration law?

GUWonder

As this thread is not a discussion about FTers, it wouldn't matter-- no less so when petty urination contests aren't of interest to me and entertaining such tangents does just that. It certainly makes no sense (to entertain such tangents) when there's no evidence that what I posted in this thread is off in the least. Especially when what was posted by me is read properly and done so without prejudice.