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I have done a search on the forum but I couldn't find specific information so I thought I would start a new thread.
I have until Aug to move to the US from Canada (currently reside in Toronto) and I want to know if I can go in the US and come back out to engage that process or do I have to stay in the US until I get my visa.
I am starting a new job here and I have not yet secured a job in the US and I would like to do so before moving so as to make my transition smoother.
Can anyone offer any suggestions how I can get around this so that I could maybe pop into the US and pop back out until I secure a firm job offer and then make the smooth transition into the US?
I have done a search on the forum but I couldn't find specific information so I thought I would start a new thread.
I have until Aug to move to the US from Canada (currently reside in Toronto) and I want to know if I can go in the US and come back out to engage that process or do I have to stay in the US until I get my visa.
I am starting a new job here and I have not yet secured a job in the US and I would like to do so before moving so as to make my transition smoother.
Can anyone offer any suggestions how I can get around this so that I could maybe pop into the US and pop back out until I secure a firm job offer and then make the smooth transition into the US?
Thank you,
No way around the 6 month deal. What work visa are you pursuing? You can't just move south and find a job.
I have the visa already. It's a permanent visa that requires me to enter the United States by August. I would like to land a job in the US (I already have one here in Canada) before moving there so my transition can be smoother.
The visa requires me to enter the US before Aug and then according to the USCIS, I have to stay there until they change it into a permanent residency visa. I was wondering if I could go into the US (I am very close to the Buffalo border) and then get it stamped and come back in so that I don't miss work until I get a nice job in the US then I can give notice.
Again, need to know what kind of visa. There are literally thousands of them. Please be specific.
For example- are you married to a US citizen and got a spousal visa (CR-1 or IR-1)? If so, you get a stamp in your passport on the visa page as soon as you enter the USA the first time which allows you to travel- a temp greencard so to speak, until the physical one arrives a few months later. You can travel back and forth to Canada, but must spend more time inside the USA than outside, and never more than 6 months at a time outside the USA to be save. So you could go back and fortha while, but not for years.
Ah yes, an immediate relative visa.
You already have your visa, you will not get a "permanent visa"; similar to the spousal visa I described above, you can travel immediately after activating your visa, no need to stay in the USA till you get your physical greencard (which can take 2 months or more).
You do need to establish residence by buying a home or signing a lease, getting bills in your name, a drivers license etc. Once you have that, you are fairly save staying out side the USA for 6 months at a time, up to a year with some risk. Never more than a year though! And the longer you do this, the more chances that they will question you and maybe revoke your greencard.
If you absolutely must, you can apply for a re-entry permit; this allows you up to two years abroad, with a good reason. You must wait in the USA until you have the re-entry permit in hand, which will take several weeks, and they may deny you if you apply right away after immigrating- the permit is usually for people finishing their studies or getting a job abroad after several months/ years of being a greencard holder.
So Penguin, in order to activate this visa, can I just go across to Buffalo (2 hours from me) and get it done and pop back in until I land a nice fat job in the US (currently conducting phone interviews now with various parts of the US)?
So Penguin, in order to activate this visa, can I just go across to Buffalo (2 hours from me) and get it done and pop back in until I land a nice fat job in the US (currently conducting phone interviews now with various parts of the US)?
go to uscis.gov and read up on green card
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