Consequences?

[calgarysfinest]

Hello, I am from Alberta and thinking about "moving" or visiting California for a unset period of time and don't think I qualify for any of the Visa's. I personally know a few girls that have made the move to the states and worked in clubs, etc "under the table" for more than a year at a time. I'm wondering if anybody knows if this happens alot in the states and what are the consequences should the goverment find out?

[oohmercyme]

If you are happy to take the chance of getting caught and never being able to return to the US again.

Just cuz people get away with it, doesn't make it right and makes the laws stricter and thus more difficult for those who have a legitimate claim.

[Allyssa]

Leaving Alberta -- leaving the "land of God" I guess I am an Alberta girl at heart (but yes, I have moved from wild rose country too!)

On a more serious note, I concur with ohhmercyme. The consequences for such a move might not be what you really want in the long term. And even if you don't "get caught" that doesn't make it okay.

Just encouraging you to think it all through carefully.

Allyssa

[Reba]

Consequences are deportation and being banned from re-entry for 10 years or life, whichever they decide at the time. Which may also make you inadmissable to other countries elsewhere in the world, when and if the US and Canada start sharing file information with the rest of the world (planned for the next few years from what I've read).

They could also "detain" you indefinitely for an indeterminate amount of time, until they can confirm your status or lack thereof. People have been forgotten in border houses and holding cells for months or even years at a time. That's the worst case scenario of course, but frankly, not something I'd want to take a chance on.

[Steven]

I knew loads and loads of people who did it in Florida, I reckon half the bar staff in places like Orlando are people from Europe, etc. working under the table, also at flea markets. Basically what it boils down to is this:

ICE comes around and rousts bars and flea markets every few months. If you happen to be there and don't have the right paperwork to hand, you get deported. If you get deported you can never come in again. "Under the table" is kind of a vague term, you're supposed to fill in an I-9 when you start work, the first thing ICE do is ask to look at all the I-9s. If there isn't one on file, you're in trouble. If you don't have an SSN, you can't fill in the I-9.

Personally I think it depends on where you are, if you're in San Diego or Miami or Orlando or somewhere like that where there are lots of illegals you're asking for trouble. ICE has to have "probable cause" to do a raid, but it's really easy, they just send an agent posing as an illegal and see if the agent gets asked to fill in an I-9.

There used to be a flea market I used to go to in Florida a lot, you always knew when there had been a raid because loads of stalls would have "help wanted" signs on them.

Bear in mind these businesses take advantage of illegals, there were a couple of Swedish girls I knew of when I lived in Florida who were basically forced into prostitution by the guy running the bar, because he threatened to turn them in.

[Christopher G. Rizzo, Esq]

Don't forget about having criminal liability. If you present yourself at the Airport (Preclearance Operations) or a Port of Entry as a visitor, and at that time have the intent to establish permanent residence in the U.S. (immigrant intent), then its fraud. You can have criminal liability for that. You can go to Federal prison.