Dual Citizen married/with child-moving within the month

[LeprechaunSean]

Ok here's the scoop. I'm a dual us.canadian citizen and I just took a job in phoenix az. My wife and son are canadian, and I'm supposed to start the job in less than a month. What is the best way to get across the border with a moving van? should my wife fly seperately with son? I'm planning on getting my US passport asap. Any help is appreciated.

[Steven]

If you have proof you're a US citizen such as a birth certificate then getting a NEXUS card will probably be faster.

Your family can't immigate into the US with you, they have no status. You'd have to sponsor them by filing an I-130 with the local US consulate and they would get IR-1 visas, takes about seven to eight months at present.

These are the instructions: http://www.consular.canada.usembassy.go ... lative.asp

Read carefully!

As far as the moving van goes, you can only use U-haul if you're doing it yourself. You need a comprehensive packing list to show CBP.

[Reba]

The child wouldn't need a visa unless the US citizen parent had never lived in the US. If the US citizen parent meets requirements, the child is also a US citizen. Check with the consulate about registering birth abroad, and to get the child a US passport.

As for the spouse however, she will need a visa, which will take a few months to process unfortunately. Start the petition work asap before you leave for your job.

[LeprechaunSean]

I'll look into the nexus card today, as regards my wife, isn't there a six month period that she can visit? some kind of visa waiver program. I've got an appointment on june 3 for my US passport, Maybe I'll try and get my son's as well.

-- Sat May 23, 2009 7:55 am --

I just looked up the nexus info, seems like six to eight weeks minimum to get it. Sooooo.....back to the 'expedited' us passport process. anyone actually gone through that? website says 15 days....

[Steven]

You have to have an appointment (usually at the local airport) to get a NEXUS card, how long it takes to get one depends on how many applications they're dealing with, if your local airport isn't that busy it can be quite quick to get one. Plus they take the photo for you.

As it explains on that website I quoted at the bottom, your wife probably can't visit because she has immigrant intent. To be a visitor she has to have an abode abroad and have non-immigrant intent - it is up to the CBP guy you talk to but they're generally not keen on people visiting their US citizen spouse who lives in the US without pretty much iron clad evidence of intention to leave.

One thing I've frequently noticed with people in this situation is that they aren't up-to-date with their US tax returns. As a US citizen you must file a 1040 return every year (regardless of where you live), and the immigration sponsorship paperwork requires three years of returns to prove you have sufficient income to support your spouse.

If you haven't already got a social security number you need to get one before you do anything else (your employer will need it anyway) either through the consulate or at the local SSA office in the US. Once you have that the IRS usually requires seven years worth of returns if you've never filed. As a resident of Canada you need to file 1040s for the last seven years and Form 2555-EZ (or Form 2555).

There is no tax to pay if your income is below the foreign exclusion limit ($87,600 for 2008, plus deductions). This sounds intimidating but actually it's pretty easy, you just put your name and address and SSN on seven tax returns, declare what you earned in Canada for the last seven years on the 2555-EZ for each year, your income will work out to zero and that's pretty much it. Read the instructions for 2555-EZ carefully though.

[Reba]

Canadians are not part of the visa waiver program, that's mostly for Europeans. We Canadians have an entirely different status within the US. Yes, we're allowed to visit for up to 6 months, but as Steve said, because she will obviously have immigrant intent, it is unlikely that they'll let her enter.

For marriage based immigration info and information about Direct Consular Filing see http://www.visajourney.com DCF forum specifically.

As Steven mentioned, you'll need to prove adequate income in order to sponsor your wife, and will need to have your US tax return files for the last 3 years. Once your petition is approved, your wife will then get the visa application and will have an interview at the US consulate in Montreal.

Here is info on how to obtain citizenship for your baby
http://ndjamena.usembassy.gov/reporting ... rth_abroad

[LeprechaunSean]

so file an I-130 before I leave, file for my taxes as soon as I get there, and make sure I have a packing list for the Uhaul. My wife will have a permanent address here with her dad, so it shouldn't be a problem for her to come vacation in the US. I've already got an SSN, so that shouldn't be a problem.

One thing though, most information about the nexus card says 6-8 months, so where do I get info about applying at an airport? I'll make some calls tommorrow, can't do much on a sunday...

[Steven]

I'm not clear where you are in Canada, but with NEXUS you can get it reasonably quickly if you live near an enrollment centre that isn't that busy, the CBP guy at Calgary airport told me a month. If you're in Vancouver or Toronto then it will probably take longer. It just depends on how many appointments they have that day, if you nag them on the phone you might be able to get it really quickly.

I think the problem is that we're only a week off the WHTI June 1st implementation date, so whether you go for NEXUS or a passport, I think it's going to take awhile because there's a rush on.

But like I said before, read the instructions from that link I posted carefully, all the answers are there it's just obscured in legalese.

-- Sun May 24, 2009 5:28 pm --

file for my taxes as soon as I get there

You can file the tax returns now and put a Canadian address on them. You need to call the IRS and ask them how many years they want you to go back, but it's usually seven. Like I said above it's simpler than it sounds, they have no way of actually checking your income, just give them a good idea on the 2555-EZ and as long as you're under the foreign exclusion limit the amount on the 1040 comes to zero. But you need to do it to get yourself square with the IRS and to be able to sponsor your wife.