Canadian Studying in the USA!

I am going to school for the winter semester in the states. I plan to leave Canada in October and move in with my boyfriend. I read somewhere that if I am down there until Christmas I would have to stay in Canada for the same length of time i was in the states. Does anyone know if this is true? I also talked to a few people that had told me I would not need to apply for a B1 status? I would be able to go down just as a Canadian citizen and set up my apartment before school. anyone that could help i would greatly appreciate it!

I've never heard of anything on those lines. You are permitted to be in the US for the length of your studies. If you are going to school, you should get an F1 vs. a B1. I know you can study part time on a B1, but in order to study full time you need an F1

B1 status is visitor, if you plan to go to school, I believe you'd need a student visa. They may not even let you register unless you have a student visa.

I know you can study part time on a B1

Not anymore, the law changed in 2005.

Students must enter in a study category, which means F, J or M generally speaking. Some types of visa allow you to study as well, e.g. an L-2 or H-4 derivative for dependents.

To get F or M you need an approved I-20 from the college/university.

From the sounds of it what you need is F-1. F students who are Canadian citizens do not require a visa. However, you must have an I-20 and proof of payment of the F-1 fee to apply for F-1 status at the POE.

haha sorry i think i gave everyone the wrong idea. i talked to the border crossing and he said that i would not need a b1 visa to go down prior to my schooling to look for an apartment but i had read on one of the US gov't websites that if i were looking for an apt or doing anything like that i would need a b1 visa. with the f1 visa that i will have you cannot be in the usa 30 days prior to school, so i have to go down earlier to get an apartment and i was wondering if i really needed to get a b1 visa?

no, you shouldn't need a visa, just go as a Canadian visitor.