Jpatti

My husband is Canadian, I am American. Currently, we live in
Pennsylvania and he is a conditional permanent resident of the US, we
are in the process of applying to remove conditions.

While we both prefer Canada to the US, my daughter was 17 when we
married and we felt we needed to remain here for several years to
assist her in transitioning to adulthood. She is 20 now and we hope
to move to Ontario sometime within the next 2-4 years.

We plan to buy land in Ontario in a year or two, then travel
back-and-forth a lot for another year or two (probably twice a month
while building), then move to Canada. I need some sort of idea about
what it will take for me to immigrate time-wise so I can understand
when I should begin the process.

We married rather spur-of-the-momnent while he was visiting here and
thus applied for his permanent residence from the US. While
researching the process after we married, we discovered that had we
done things "right" and applied for a fiance visa, odds are good he'd
have not been allowed into the states as a tourist since he'd have
expressed the desire to immigrate. We'd likely have been separated
for some time before the fiance visa was approved, some of the stories
we read had folks interrupting their courtship for up to a year
waiting for the INS! So it turns out to be a good thing we married
without looking into the immigration end of things first.

I have concerns about the same issue occuring in reverse, that if I
have an immigration application pending, entering Canada every other
weekend to do work on our property would become difficult. Further,
we spend almost every holiday with his family and I would not like to
be denied entry to Canada, even temporarily while an immigration
application were pending. I have considered not applying for
immigration status until after we move, but am unsure if the process
would be completed within the six months I can stay as a tourist.

I have read Canada's immigration web site, but would like advice based
on personal experiences as well. While Candian immigration seems much
more straightforward than US immigration, understanding from applicant
position is more useful still.

Thanks for any assistance you can offer.

Ingo

would you mind sharing, why Ontario would be better than PA?. Just curious
what the different factors may be, that I am not aware of. I am in a similar
boat...
thanks


--


"jpatti" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
    > My husband is Canadian, I am American. Currently, we live in
    > Pennsylvania and he is a conditional permanent resident of the US, we
    > are in the process of applying to remove conditions.
    > While we both prefer Canada to the US, my daughter was 17 when we
    > married and we felt we needed to remain here for several years to
    > assist her in transitioning to adulthood. She is 20 now and we hope
    > to move to Ontario sometime within the next 2-4 years.
    > We plan to buy land in Ontario in a year or two, then travel
    > back-and-forth a lot for another year or two (probably twice a month
    > while building), then move to Canada. I need some sort of idea about
    > what it will take for me to immigrate time-wise so I can understand
    > when I should begin the process.
    > We married rather spur-of-the-momnent while he was visiting here and
    > thus applied for his permanent residence from the US. While
    > researching the process after we married, we discovered that had we
    > done things "right" and applied for a fiance visa, odds are good he'd
    > have not been allowed into the states as a tourist since he'd have
    > expressed the desire to immigrate. We'd likely have been separated
    > for some time before the fiance visa was approved, some of the stories
    > we read had folks interrupting their courtship for up to a year
    > waiting for the INS! So it turns out to be a good thing we married
    > without looking into the immigration end of things first.
    > I have concerns about the same issue occuring in reverse, that if I
    > have an immigration application pending, entering Canada every other
    > weekend to do work on our property would become difficult. Further,
    > we spend almost every holiday with his family and I would not like to
    > be denied entry to Canada, even temporarily while an immigration
    > application were pending. I have considered not applying for
    > immigration status until after we move, but am unsure if the process
    > would be completed within the six months I can stay as a tourist.
    > I have read Canada's immigration web site, but would like advice based
    > on personal experiences as well. While Candian immigration seems much
    > more straightforward than US immigration, understanding from applicant
    > position is more useful still.
    > Thanks for any assistance you can offer.

fertree

My wife and I bought land in Canada before we actually started the
immigration process. We went up lots of times both before and during
the immigration process without problem. When asked the purpose of the
visit we simply said we were building a house and wanted to see how
things were going. We were never asked, nor did we volunteer, that we
had started the immigration process.
As for the length of processing time, ours took about 7 months,
which is probably about average for a US citizen.

Jpatti

"Ingo" <[email protected]> wrote in message news:<8CO%[email protected]>...
    > would you mind sharing, why Ontario would be better than PA?. Just curious
    > what the different factors may be, that I am not aware of. I am in a similar
    > boat...
    > thanks

There are several reasons we prefer Canada to the US.

First, we are much more attached to my inlaws than to my family (other
than my daughter, of course) - we spend all our holidays with them.
We would like being able to spend even more time with them as we enjoy
them a great deal.

Second, we wish to be citizens of the same country as we will feel
more secure about not being separated by the whims of immigration or
custom officials or changing political situations. Canada will allow
me to become a citizen without renouncing my US citizenship whereas
the US oath would require my husband to renounce his citizenship -
though I understand Canada does not consider this official, still it
is offensive.

Third, we plan to buy land, build a house from scratch, raise animals
and garden and be largely self-sufficient - we are currently on track
to this sort of life by living in the country, raising chickens and
gardening while working at home (we're both programmers). But
eventually, we wish to work entirely on our own homestead - we don't
expect to have electricity for a number of year, so programming won't
work. Given our lifestyle goals, warning the money to do this in the
US makes sense since the US dollar goes further in Canada, but buying
land in Canada makes more sense due to much lower land costs. Also,
since we do not expect to work corporate jobs, the Canadian health
system makes a lot more sense for us than the US.

Fourth, we just plain like Canada better. People are friendlier,
nicer, towns still have neighborhoods and kids play in the streets.
Canada feels much more like a place where the focus is on human
happiness rather than corporate profits. Simply look at the
difference in the websites run by immigration - the US INS site is
full of rules and regulations and lawyer-speak, whereas the Canadian
site is full of advice about how to find jobs, housing, and support.
The "feel" of Canada is ever-so-much nicer than the "feel" of the US.

Fifth, we both have severe reservations regarding the current
political situation in the US and do not have a lot of hope for the
situation significantly improving over the course of our lifetimes; in
fact, in my pessimistic view, it will continue deteriorating. The
increasing level of paranoia amongst my fellow citizens makes
remaining here uncomfortable for me as a fairly liberal person, and
even moreso since I am married to a foreigner. Recent legal decisions
making clear that immigrants do not have the same rights as citizens -
that an immigrant can be arrested and held incognito without access to
lawyers or even the ability to notify anyone where they are. While
the odds of such a thing occuring are very low, the inability to fight
back if wrongly accused is scary. The erosion of rights here, for
both citizens and non-citizens, due to fear-mongering, is much more
terrifying than anything the terrorists can throw at us.

Finally, the political situation here is such that I feel very
strongly that I do not wish to continue to support the activities of
my government. I greatly resent my tax dollars going to unethical and
illegal activities. The recent marketing scandal with regards to
Canada's new PM is *nothing* compared to the evils committed regularly
by the US government on an ongoing basis - and it makes little
difference if the government is Democratic or Republican (though I
admit I am much more disgusted these past 3 years than I was the
previous 8). Not that we consider Canada a utopia or agree with
everything that is done, but we both find it much more suitable to our
overall beliefs and values than the US.

The only real benefit PA has over Ontario is the much shorter and
milder winter. We will build a greenhouse and use cold frames. And
hubby has promised to keep me warm.

Jpatti

[email protected] wrote in message news:<[email protected]>. ..
    > My wife and I bought land in Canada before we actually started the
    > immigration process. We went up lots of times both before and during
    > the immigration process without problem. When asked the purpose of the
    > visit we simply said we were building a house and wanted to see how
    > things were going. We were never asked, nor did we volunteer, that we
    > had started the immigration process.
    > As for the length of processing time, ours took about 7 months,
    > which is probably about average for a US citizen.

Thank you for sharing your experience.

Renee

That was a very well written post, jpatti. Thanks for taking the time to
share it.

Renee

--
Inland Spouse Timeline so far (U.S. Citizen):
19 Feb 2003: Moved to Calgary from U.S. on 6 month TRV
12 May 2003: Did medicals in Calgary
20 June 2003: Applied for TRV extension
5 July 2003: Wedding Date
18 July 2003: CIC received inland spouse PR application
15 Aug 2003: Received 6 month TRV extension
20 Aug 2003: CIC request for work history dates (which were sent with
application)
21 Aug 2003: CIC received work history reply by overnight post
4 Sept 2003: CIC e-Client finally shows "in process"
21 Nov 2003: Applied for second TRV extension
16 Jan 2004: Received second 6 month TRV extension
17 Feb 2004: e-Client says DECISION MADE! 215 days wait - in line with
processing estimates
23 Feb 2004: Received AIP and application completed letters by mail.


"jpatti" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
    > "Ingo" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:<8CO%[email protected]>...
    > > would you mind sharing, why Ontario would be better than PA?. Just
curious
    > > what the different factors may be, that I am not aware of. I am in a
similar
    > > boat...
    > > thanks
    > There are several reasons we prefer Canada to the US.
    > First, we are much more attached to my inlaws than to my family (other
    > than my daughter, of course) - we spend all our holidays with them.
    > We would like being able to spend even more time with them as we enjoy
    > them a great deal.
    > Second, we wish to be citizens of the same country as we will feel
    > more secure about not being separated by the whims of immigration or
    > custom officials or changing political situations. Canada will allow
    > me to become a citizen without renouncing my US citizenship whereas
    > the US oath would require my husband to renounce his citizenship -
    > though I understand Canada does not consider this official, still it
    > is offensive.
    > Third, we plan to buy land, build a house from scratch, raise animals
    > and garden and be largely self-sufficient - we are currently on track
    > to this sort of life by living in the country, raising chickens and
    > gardening while working at home (we're both programmers). But
    > eventually, we wish to work entirely on our own homestead - we don't
    > expect to have electricity for a number of year, so programming won't
    > work. Given our lifestyle goals, warning the money to do this in the
    > US makes sense since the US dollar goes further in Canada, but buying
    > land in Canada makes more sense due to much lower land costs. Also,
    > since we do not expect to work corporate jobs, the Canadian health
    > system makes a lot more sense for us than the US.
    > Fourth, we just plain like Canada better. People are friendlier,
    > nicer, towns still have neighborhoods and kids play in the streets.
    > Canada feels much more like a place where the focus is on human
    > happiness rather than corporate profits. Simply look at the
    > difference in the websites run by immigration - the US INS site is
    > full of rules and regulations and lawyer-speak, whereas the Canadian
    > site is full of advice about how to find jobs, housing, and support.
    > The "feel" of Canada is ever-so-much nicer than the "feel" of the US.
    > Fifth, we both have severe reservations regarding the current
    > political situation in the US and do not have a lot of hope for the
    > situation significantly improving over the course of our lifetimes; in
    > fact, in my pessimistic view, it will continue deteriorating. The
    > increasing level of paranoia amongst my fellow citizens makes
    > remaining here uncomfortable for me as a fairly liberal person, and
    > even moreso since I am married to a foreigner. Recent legal decisions
    > making clear that immigrants do not have the same rights as citizens -
    > that an immigrant can be arrested and held incognito without access to
    > lawyers or even the ability to notify anyone where they are. While
    > the odds of such a thing occuring are very low, the inability to fight
    > back if wrongly accused is scary. The erosion of rights here, for
    > both citizens and non-citizens, due to fear-mongering, is much more
    > terrifying than anything the terrorists can throw at us.
    > Finally, the political situation here is such that I feel very
    > strongly that I do not wish to continue to support the activities of
    > my government. I greatly resent my tax dollars going to unethical and
    > illegal activities. The recent marketing scandal with regards to
    > Canada's new PM is *nothing* compared to the evils committed regularly
    > by the US government on an ongoing basis - and it makes little
    > difference if the government is Democratic or Republican (though I
    > admit I am much more disgusted these past 3 years than I was the
    > previous 8). Not that we consider Canada a utopia or agree with
    > everything that is done, but we both find it much more suitable to our
    > overall beliefs and values than the US.
    > The only real benefit PA has over Ontario is the much shorter and
    > milder winter. We will build a greenhouse and use cold frames. And
    > hubby has promised to keep me warm.