mtlmama

We just experienced a similar dilemna, but in Canada. I'm a US citizen, and have been here for nearly 15 years. I was sure my email trail of job searches and a letter from mom/dad stating we can stay with them while getting established would cut it. Consulate says: NO.

Even worse - no US bank account maintained (now plan to start one from here), haven't registered to vote in eons, nothing. The agent was actually very nice, suggesting I might not even need to move first, but do need some solid proof of intent to reside in US.

He made one comment that sticks in my head: you could have a flexible agent that issues you the visa and your husband could still be refused by the border agent for the very same reason. ?? It concerns me because part of my new strategy includes getting health insurance and registering/waitlisting my son in daycare.

If I send these in to the consulate (soon!) they would be dated December/January, and we are planning to move in early spring. Is the border agent going to have these records when we cross and take issue with it? Example: is he going to say I see your insurance was purchased for December 2009, but you are just entering US in April 2010. Is this a valid concern?

We have a young son (17 months), and the idea of leaving my hubbie here while we go ahead to qualify for domicile is too depressing.

K

ian-mstm

Scare tactics. If your husband has a valid visa in his passport, the officer at the POE is *NOT* going to question domicile. Why? Because the moment you enter the US with him, the question of domicile no longer exists.


He will have the records, because your husband will give them to him when you enter. He will not, however, take issue with it.


No.

Ian

mtlmama

Thanks, Ian. How do you think they would take it if I got info for Spring? Example:

-Son is waitlisted in daycare for May 2010
-health insurance quote from rep I dealt with specifying I intend to start the insurance in May 2010

Is this frowned upon because if's not "immediate" action? I feel dishonest getting stuff for December when I do not plan to move until my husband moves. We have lots of things to do yet - liquidate assets, decide what to do with our vehicle, give proper notice at work...

I'm also considering asking my work for a letter stating I intend to resign within the next six months. It's a "burning bridges" type of thing (in case the process takes longer than hoped), but they are actually very nice and would understand my dilemma.

K

meauxna

heh.. the CO in our case psyched me out much the same way WRT the I-864.

It is true that the border agents have the final say in whether or not the alien is admitted. However, if you genuinely establish your home in the US prior to entering.. well, isn't that the way it is supposed to work?

meauxna

If you do this, you are essentially stating to the CO that YOU do not intend to move to the US before May. The CO can not give a visa to your husband that is effective before that; the CO needs to know that you (USC) will be in the US before or at the same time as your immigrant. If you are not going until May, your husband can't either.

mtlmama

I am a USC (spouse is from Colombia and recently naturalized Canadian citizen). We just had our visa interview and were refused for insufficient proof of domicile. I have been in Canada for nearly 15 years, so proving domicile is tough. I've always filed US taxes, but didn't keep a bank account, property or vote.

Spoke with a lawyer tonight and she had a lot of information and different options which mostly left me with more questions. During the interview, the CO gave us examples of what could prove domicile (bank account, driver's license, child registered in daycare, job offer) and said I did not necessarily have to move to US ahead of my spouse to be approved.

We were given up to one year to provide the info, and are supposed to mail it in with my husband's passport. If approved, they will process and mail his passport back with the visa, in two-four weeks. He stressed that we were not being rejected, that the rest of the application was complete except for domicile.

One thing that wasn't clear is this: what if we send docs and the CO still finds it insufficient? Will he request MORE proof, or would he reject our application altogether and we start the process all over again?? The lawyer said they can reject the app and we would be forced to apply again.

If there is a chance my further proof is deemed insufficient and they would reject us, I am instead contemplating holding off until Spring, moving with our son (seventeen-month-old ) and sending domicile info that (HOPEFULLY) won't be refused: driver's license, pay slips from my new job. Then, my spouse should be able to follow us within four-six weeks. But, I'm so worried they will keep rejecting us!

This has been so disappointing - the CO didn't even look at our scores of photos (wedding, baby, baptism) and spent half the interview questioning ME when I understood my spouse was being interviewed. Here I am with my sleeping son on my shoulder, and he starts telling me my emails with recruiters and requests for daycare registration info, the letter from my parents stating we will reside with them initially, and my letter explaining my history in Canada and steps I've taken to establish domicile are not sufficient.

I could have cried. I really don't get this process. It's a completely vicious circle - they want information like a job offer, lease or child's registration, but you can't provide them because you have no idea when you will have your spouse's visa and can depart for the States.

Is it possible that they could split us up longterm? That we could spend a year (or years) rectifying all this and my son will be separated from his father?

Sign me confused and disheartened,
K

jeffreyhy

Moving back to the US and setting up a home here would do the trick, and then your husband would be issued the visa and could join you.

Doing less - trying to demonstrate intent rather than accomplishment - does run the risk of not having done enough.

Why wait until spring?

Regards, JEff

janadeen

If the CO gave you precise examples of what could prove domicile - and you then provide all of said examples / evidence, why do you still think you'd be rejected?

janadeen

Jeff - it could be that she needs time to gather / build the evidence?

That's a good bit of adjusting, sorting and moving she may have to do.

jeffreyhy

j,

I would agree with the latter but not with the former - one does not need to gather or build evidence in order to move. Quite the opposite - the act of moving provides the required evidence.

In any event I am curious what her reasons are, not what they might be.

Regards, JEff

janadeen

I hear you Jeff - I'm just thinking of all that it takes to plan and execute a move - with a baby - without your husband - across a border - settle in with family - find work, in this economy, thru Thanksgiving, thru Christmas, New Year season - etc, etc, etc.

That could be a heavy load.

I can see how that could drag one into the spring.

On a side note - two things

1 - in terms of evidence, I'd make dang sure I had alllll the evidence they demand - plain and simple. Thru out all our steps with USCIS, one thing I always did was overkill. I'd rather have too much and not need it rather than the reverse. If they asked for 2 yrs tax rtn, I always supplied 4 - if they asked for 6months bank statements, I supplied 12. You get my drift.

2 - I'd advise the OP not to get bound up with all the what ifs and what thens. Just jump thru the hoop they're asking you to jump thru if you want them to approve the desired visa. There's no other option. They want evidence ... give it to them.

crg

What route did your spouse take to Canada? It's not uncommon for Colombians to travel through the US and claim asylum in Canada. Does that apply in this case? If so, we need to see if there are any implications to that as well as the domicile issue.

Also, I'm not surprised they didn't look at your wedding photos etc. That wasn't the point of contention. You already had some significant proof of a bona fide marriage sleeping on your shoulder.

Rete

There is a similar situation which you might want to read from Ginblossom. They are in the UK. He is a Brit and his wife a USC. They had similar proofs and the CO requested more concrete evidence of domicile. She has, in fact, returned to the US and setup the domicile in order to supply the proof and get her husband's IR visa. They are not being unfair and are not trying to keep you apart from each other nor are they trying to deny your son access to his father. At the moment you are emotional, which is fully understandable, but now is the time you have to leave the emotions behind a closed door and take positive steps to meet the new demands. Some questions for you:

When you return to the US, where did you plan to live? Were you going to rent an apartment, buy a house, live with relatives for a short period until settled? Have you chosen a state/area that you were moving to in the US or were you hoping to find employment first and then move? How far from the Can/Am border are you planning on moving? Do you have a house in Quebec that you will be selling or do you rent? Sorry to be so personal but are you living hand to mouth or do you have substantial savings to live on for a while until you have found employment?

1. Either online or if you are moving close to the border, take a trip and open a bank account. Deposit a sum of money to be used for deposits on rent, utilities, etc.

2. Get a contract with a moving company you've chosen to handle the transport of your household goods to the US when you are able to move. It can be an open end contract meaning the dates of packing and shipping can be left open.

3. If you are moving into a relative's home for a while until you find a place, have them do up a lease for you. Rental leases can be purchased at any Staples store for pennies.

4. Set a firm date/month of moving, i.e. January 2010. Don't leave it open ended.

Also note they were questioning you because you were the one that needed to prove the domicile issue. Your evidence of marriage was more or less ignored because they believed you were in a viable marriage and didn't need additional proof of that.

Rete

NOTE: I've copied over your posts from the Ginblossom thread. You have answered most of the questions I asked above but in a different thread.

It is in your best interest to post your situation in one area only so that important information is not lost by being scattered.

mtlmama

I don't think I answered all questions in the previous posts (sorry about xposting, should have started my own thread!). We plan to live with my parents in the US and I provided a letter from them stating so. This would be temporary, until we were settled. My husband has been working with a recruiter from my home state, she's been great (and PATIENT!). We were hoping for an employer who would offer a work visa (hubbie is management-level, MBA in International Business from well-known American uni). If we have to, we'll just go and find jobs once there though. We are moving to the midwest, far from the Can/Am border. No house, we rent (I never bought property because I couldn't ever bring myself to think of this as a long-term/permanent thing). And yes, with a new little one and very average salaries, it's paycheque to paycheque here.

I can actually open one in my hometown (advantage of small towns). I have authorized my Mom to do it and she will open one Monday.

We were planning to liquidate most of our stuff and rent either a trailer or truck for the rest. I will look into getting something (open-end) from then.

My parents are going to draft a lease for my signature.

Kinda confused here, as this has been part of the "catch-22" stuff I've been experiencing. If I set a firm moving date and don't end up moving, what happens?

As a pp said, the process of moving, wrapping things up, etc. is going to take us a few months. We had held off until now because they explicitly tell you in the documentation - don't sell your home, quit your job, sell your possessions, until you have visa approval.

Thanks for the advice, keep it coming! I am now planning to visit in early December (alone) and will get my driver's license, a letter from son's future pediatrician, letter from daycare that has agreed to wait list him, voter's reg card (if possible) and join a local Intl Professionals association that has been very helpful to us so far. The lawyer we spoke with also recommended I put together a detailed letter including brief history/reasoning for my stay in Canada (moved here to use my French/Intl Relations major) and the steps I have taken to establish domicile, written as an oath of affidavit and notarized. Good advice, right?

Does this sound like enough? One of his first recommendations was (of course) a job offer. Wish I had a friend of a friend or someone who would write one, but other than that I don't see how I can accept a job in my situation. I do have a very understanding supervisor, and am considering asking her for a letter stating she is aware I am looking for employment in US and intend to move there to reside permanently with my family. Might even be able to get a letter from my landlord saying I have informed them we are not renewing our lease because we intend to move, etc.

Thanks everyone, I'm starting to feel a LITTLE less emotional.