HELP ME!

goodbyerobots
New Member


steezy

Joined: 05 Oct 2008
Posts: 2
Location: Edmonton

Posted: Sun Oct 05, 2008 1:25 pm

 

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OK, so i decided about a month ago i would move to Los Angeles, California. BUT i need to start working immediately as i get there. I have a place to live already, greyhound tickets PLUS return ticket.

The leave date is November 15th

I am curious as what kind of questions need to be answered when i arrive and if i am eligible to even get into the country

All i am doing is to be looking to become a permanent resident, work and live. and of course write and sing etc. etc.

i have no idea what forms i need to fill out, i don't know anybody in America and i have a Canadian passport plus identification.

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g-op
CanuckAbroad Regular



Joined: 25 Sep 2008
Posts: 32
Location: montreal

Posted: Sun Oct 05, 2008 4:44 pm

 

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As a citizen of Canada you by law cannot intend to enter the US to live or work. If you lie to the border officials you could face being officially remove from the US and barred from entry for 5 years, also you could face Prison if you lie as Misrepresentation and trying to enter by fraud statements is a federal crime. My recommendation is to live a long and happy life here in CANADA!
Even if you get through a few times eventually they will catch you and then use your prior lies against you. Unless you can get a legal work permit to the US then don't try to live and work there. Also many employers are starting to fear fines from Immigration and Customs Enforcement if they employ illegal foreign workers, meaning work will be harder to find and you will need to return home broke and hungry or worse become a street hooker to make ends meet(also illegal, even though some think it is legal here in Montreal).

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goodbyerobots
New Member


steezy

Joined: 05 Oct 2008
Posts: 2
Location: Edmonton

Posted: Sun Oct 05, 2008 7:13 pm

 

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well of course thats a load because theres no fucking way that anybody would have to stay in their own country and by the way thats totally wrong because

you can apply for an EAD which is an Employment Authorization Document that says you are allowed to work there, and if that was true theyre letting people from fucking GUATAMALA enter the state, im pretty sure theyd let their brother citizens of canada get on a greyhound and ditch it to live there! its called a temporary work visa!

and obviously if a canadian citizen has to apply for documents in the US then they have to live there somehow,

whats your intentions here?
to work and live

how long do you plan on staying
as long as you let me i plan on apply for american citizenship when the time allows me to

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Steven
CanuckAbroad VIP



Joined: 28 Sep 2007
Posts: 1589
Location: Calgary

Posted: Sun Oct 05, 2008 7:50 pm

 

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Wow are you going to be in for a surprise.

You cannot casually enter and work in the US. You need an employer to sponsor you, and you need to fit into a relevant category in order for them to be able to do that. It's not a casual process.

If you come out with what you've said above at the POE you will be refused entry.

People from places like Guatemala usually get in on H-2A, which is a one-year work visa for agricultural work, they have to be sponsored by the farm they're working for.

If you've got no paperwork, you can't get a social security number, and without that you can't work.
_________________
Steve.

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Reba
Moderator


Canuck in NC

Joined: 16 Jul 2004
Posts: 1451
Location: North Carolina

Posted: Mon Oct 06, 2008 3:21 am

 

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goodbyerobots, you asked some questions, and you got some answers, obviously not the answers you wanted, but they're the truth. You CANNOT just decide to pick up and move to the US and apply for an EAD once you get here. YOu have to have some sort of eligibility to do so, and just because you want it isn't qualification enough.

You will need an employer to sponsor you for some sort of visa that allows you to work in the US, if you want to work and stay LEGALLY. If you do not have an employer to sponsor you before you reach the border on November 15th, then I hate to say it, but you are SOL. You can't apply from within the country, you have to do it at the border.

If you have no qualifications for any sort of visa, you are even further SOL. I suggest you do a bit more research before you get yourself banned from the US.
_________________
I miss Shreddies!

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CalGreenCard
CanuckAbroad Regular



Joined: 16 Feb 2008
Posts: 65

Posted: Mon Oct 06, 2008 10:02 am

 

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There are a variety of different categories of EAD but I don't think there is any way to get an EAD by applying as a Canadian tourist.

An EAD is normally granted in the later stages of the green card process. It allows you to work for any US employer, but the catch (a big one) is that you need a US employer sponsor to get you to that point in the first place. Even if you qualify and can find a sponsor it can take years.

If you are already an established musician you may well find you can qualify for a visa. Waiting tables illegally in LA in the hopes of being 'found' is not a smart way to become established, however.

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g-op
CanuckAbroad Regular



Joined: 25 Sep 2008
Posts: 32
Location: montreal

Posted: Mon Oct 06, 2008 4:11 pm

 

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Like stated above you have to be eligible for an EAD card. the US does not just hand them out. As far as "Brother Citizens" A Canadian is not an American Citizen, and as such is not eligible to the same rights as a US citizen. Canadians are favored through the NAFTA agreement to conduct certain work related to tranactions that are international in nature and do nor receive payment from a US source or to replace a US worker. If they are to work in the US under agreed upon professions they can work under TN status which is granted at the Border if you are deemed qualified and going to perform that profession in the US for a US employer.

If you have found some new LOOP Hole that everyone else has missed about getting an EAD card to waiter tables please educate the rest of us, because as your responce said I was flat wrong, I guess, See IIRIRA or Illegal Immigration Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act of 1996.

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