ForumTitleContentMemberSexCountryDate/Time
CanadaMedical & Immunizations
Make sure your MMR is up to date. Immunity to rubella fades over time and one of the vaccines USCIS looks for is MMR. My doctor gave me a booster before I went to the medical. Since it's flu season you'll also need a flu shot.

Yeah, there are a few vaccines that are not age appropriate for most people- this is fine. When you get your medical exam (it will be in a sealed envelope- you cannot open the envelope or it'll void its contents) you'll get a copy of your immunization worksheet, or the DS-3025. Most likely a box that says "applicant is eligible for blanket waivers" will be checked off. This is also fine. I mention it because a lot of people panic when they see this box ticked off. Do not lose this sheet because you will need it for adjustment of status.

I did not get Hep A and it didn't cause any problems, though it's certainly a good vaccination to get anyways.

Edited by pocheros, 30 October 2012 - 05:49 PM.

pocherosFemaleCanada2012-10-30 17:48:00
CanadaAm I Eligible to Collect EI When I Move to the USA

Is this applicable for people entering on a K1 visa as well?


Yep! :)
pocherosFemaleCanada2012-02-27 15:31:00
CanadaAm I Eligible to Collect EI When I Move to the USA
Usually you're eligible to collect as soon as you can prove that you're able and willing to work i.e. you have your green card. Make sure to open your case with EI within 4 weeks of quitting your job, even if you don't have your green card yet and you haven't yet moved to the USA. You just have to stay in touch with EI regularly.
pocherosFemaleCanada2012-02-17 14:12:00
CanadaSuper Worried for Interview
Even if you are not allowed inside the consulate it won't affect whether or not your fiance is approved. It still sucks that you probably won't be allowed to enter (I would try to get an expedited passport; failing that you can simply ask the security guards on the day of the interview.)

As for denial- it's rare for Canadians with their ducks lined in a row to get denied. From what I've gathered the most common cause of denial among Canadians is failing to provide adequate evidence of domicile, which is only needed when the USC lives outside the US (they have to prove that they will take up residence in the US). Since that isn't your case and you meet the income requirements and you have everything else ready to go, your fiance should be fine. The interview is one of the easiest parts of the process, trust me. :thumbs:

Good luck!

Edited by pocheros, 17 October 2012 - 07:58 PM.

pocherosFemaleCanada2012-10-17 19:58:00
CanadaCanadian passport and K1
Don't have advice for your situation specifically, but if you enter on a K1 visa you need marry within those 90 days. You can certainly marry and exit the US within those 90 days, and apply for a spousal visa later, but you don't want to overstay. If you entered and stayed longer than 90 days without marrying you would be out of status and you don't want to do that. :P
pocherosFemaleCanada2012-11-05 02:49:00
CanadaHow will I track if the HONGKONG POLICE CLEARANCE arrived in MONTREAL

Thank you! HK POlice will send directly to Montreal Embassy,they will not mail it directly to me. That is why I wanna know how to track the documents.


Oh okay, I didn't know that. I don't have any other advice but I hope it works out alright!
pocherosFemaleCanada2012-11-06 06:32:00
CanadaHow will I track if the HONGKONG POLICE CLEARANCE arrived in MONTREAL
Since you're a K1 the police certificate is supposed to be given to you directly, then you bring it with you on the day of your interview. Dunno if you can fix that now though :/
pocherosFemaleCanada2012-11-06 06:23:00
CanadaCanadian citizen, US boyfriend

Fiancee visa interviews are held in Montreal for anyone living east of Manitoba, and in Vancouver for anyone living west of Manitoba.


Excuse me for hijacking this thread, but I've been wondering... is eastern considered Manitoba and everything east of it, or just Ontario and everything east of it? I could never figure out if Manitoba was considered eastern or western for the immigration process, though I suspect it's considered western. :P
pocherosFemaleCanada2012-10-19 00:43:00
CanadaCanadian citizen, US boyfriend
You should check out the guides here: http://www.visajourn.../content/guides Your options are either a K1 (fiance) or CR1 (spousal) visa. Marriage is in your future, right? Because in either process you end up married :)

Also, you're asking about a Canadian moving to America, right? If so visa journey is the site for you. If the American is moving to Canada, though, you should check out Road to Canada: http://www.roadtocan...orums/index.php

Edited by pocheros, 18 October 2012 - 06:48 PM.

pocherosFemaleCanada2012-10-18 18:45:00
CanadaCanadian Taxes

Flames9_R,
thanks for your hint on the taxes, but I havent worked till NOW, and my husband will declare me joint with him when he does his. Do I still have to report RRSP's?

What is RRSP's??? Forgive my ignorance :bonk:

Thanks


RRSP's are Registered Retirement Savings Plans for Canada. IIRC you were only a PR in Canada for a short while right? So your taxes are probably gonna be straightforward.
pocherosFemaleCanada2012-11-07 12:43:00
CanadaCredit Card?
TD let me keep my credit card. I even went in person and told the lady at the bank that I was immigrating to the USA and that I needed to update my address, etc. and then she printed off a paper listing charges that might be applied when using my credit card in the US. I have heard of other TD users being told they can't use their credit card if they're not residents, they seem to be inconsistent with it though. I wonder what their official policy is because I've been using mine here for over a year, but it expires soon and I'll have to replace it...

If it is against federal government rules, I wonder if I'll be penalized? Because the bank didn't say anything and I was completely upfront about it :S

Edited by pocheros, 28 October 2012 - 02:16 PM.

pocherosFemaleCanada2012-10-28 14:11:00
Canadahow do you know if you passed the medicals?

Can they mail this stuff to you?
I didn't realize we'd have to make 2 trips to toronto.


You should be able to get it mailed for a fee. At Dr. Seiden's it's $50 to have it mailed if I recall correctly. I might be wrong though, plus it's been awhile since I was there. You could email or call them and ask.

Edit: Here's the information from the official website: http://www.panelphys...ppointments.htm

If you do not wish to return to pick up your documents, which will normally be available in 48 hours, you may have them sent to you by courier. The cost of the courier is $50.00 anywhere in Ontario and $125.00 outside of Ontario and anywhere in the United States. You may elect to come back and pick the documents up on the day they are ready (two days after the medical) or any day after that is more convenient for you. You may also have another person pick them up for you, if you indicate so on the day of your medical.


Edited by pocheros, 07 November 2012 - 12:04 PM.

pocherosFemaleCanada2012-11-07 12:01:00
Canadahow do you know if you passed the medicals?
They will give you ONE envelope, for the consulate only, which you cannot open, and they should also give you a single sheet of paper with your vaccination history on it. Keep this sheet of paper in a safe place, you'll need it for AOS if you're a K1.

You know you passed the exam because they don't put the envelope together unless you've passed. If something came up they would've said so at the medical and requested you to take care of your medical problems before proceeding. So you have nothing to worry about, you're good to go. :)
pocherosFemaleCanada2012-11-07 03:58:00
CanadaEvidence of relationship for CR-1 interview
Montreal didn't ask for evidence of a relationship (they rarely do since Canada isn't a high-fraud country) but I brought this along anyways:

4 photos of us from throughout our relationship
boarding passes and tickets
credit card statements that showed I was in the US
flight/travel itineraries
western union receipts from when we sent money to each other

If you're thinking of e-mails or chat logs, just pick a few from various times throughout your relationship. Like maybe one for every 3 months or so. Emails and chat logs aren't very strong evidence, btw, but they certainly can supplement other evidence.

Phone bills is another idea.

Any photos of your wedding, honeymoon, etc.

Since you're married, anything that shows co-mingling of your assets would be great.

Edited by pocheros, 09 November 2012 - 10:39 PM.

pocherosFemaleCanada2012-11-09 22:39:00
CanadaFinally mailed off AOS!
Thank you for the wishes everyone :star:

Elsinha, moemac: it's been awhile since we caught up. How are things now that you're in the US? :D

Edited by pocheros, 22 October 2012 - 04:16 PM.

pocherosFemaleCanada2012-10-22 16:12:00
CanadaFinally mailed off AOS!
Well, it's been a bit of a rough year. I POE'd in September 2011, got married, and then on the day we were originally going to mail off my AOS- in December- my husband got laid off. After applying for hundreds of jobs he finally got hired 6 months later. We moved in with hub's mother and her husband, where MIL's husband treated us like absolute #######. Then as we were about to move out we got hit with a huge bill from the hospital when I had to go the ER. We managed to scrape together enough to move into our own apartment and finally to pay the AOS filing fee. I spent the last three days putting the AOS package together and mailed it off today.

I am SO ready to work after spending an entire year unemployed. It's been difficult but perhaps it was good to go through some rough times together in the first year of marriage. We have been through so much together, spending the first 3 years in a long-distance relationship where we saw each other only every 3 or 4 months, and then spending about half of this year unemployed together.

I cannot wait to get a job, to be active again, and to make some friends. I am so sick of being confined to our tiny apartment. I am going to DANCE when my green card finally arrives in the mail :dance:

Thank you all so much for answering my questions and helping me get through the process (L) VJ has been invaluable.

Edited by pocheros, 20 October 2012 - 08:39 PM.

pocherosFemaleCanada2012-10-20 20:37:00
CanadaGetting Ready for Interview...Do I Have Everything I Need?
Regarding my earlier post: not to discount that it might be useful for both the beneficiary and the petitioner to have a letter of intent, though. It's really quick to put one together, so you don't lose anything by bringing both.
pocherosFemaleCanada2012-11-11 19:52:00
CanadaGetting Ready for Interview...Do I Have Everything I Need?
At my interview in Montreal they only asked for the USC letter of intent.
pocherosFemaleCanada2012-11-11 13:28:00
CanadaGetting Ready for Interview...Do I Have Everything I Need?
I was using my phone earlier so I wasn't able to fetch a link, but here is the official Montreal checklist: http://travel.state....L-0011-1207.pdf Page 6 has the checklist for K1s; do not mix this up with the CR1/IR1 checklist on page 5. Note that some of the items on the checklist may not apply to you.

The bolded/red text is mine.

a. Ticket with your number (will be given at the Consulate)
b. Valid Passport and photocopy of the biographic page. IF not Canadian citizen, also original and photocopy of the Canada LPR card, study/work permit, refugee documents.
c. Medical Examination in a sealed envelope (X-ray is not required, unless there is TB)
d. 2 color passport size pictures (5cm x 5cm or 2 inch x 2inch)
e. Form DS-230 part I or Confirmation Page of the electronic Form DS-260
f. 2 copies of Form DS-156 completed online and printed with barcode
g. Form DS-156K (do not sign)
h. Confirmation page of the online form DS-160
i. Statement of intent to marry from the U.S. petitioner (signed within last 30 days)
j. Birth Certificate, English translation and a photocopy
k. Marriage Certificate, English translation and a photocopy If applicable
l. Divorce Certificate, English translation and a photocopy If applicable
m. Custody documents, English translation and photocopy If applicable
n. Police Certificates from Canada and other countries of previous residence
o. Court / Criminal records and photocopy If applicable
p. Military records and photocopy If applicable
q. Proof of Financial Support (Form I-134) and photocopy of supporting documents (IRS transcript or photocopy of the most recent Federal income tax return, bank statements, employment pay slips, etc.)
r. Copy of the U.S. petitioner status in the USA Copy of either USC birth certificate or passport bio page
s. Copies of documents proving petitioner?s U.S. domicile If applicable- only if the USC does not currently live in the USA


Edited by pocheros, 10 November 2012 - 05:05 PM.

pocherosFemaleCanada2012-11-10 16:58:00
CanadaGetting Ready for Interview...Do I Have Everything I Need?
2 years is fine if it's what you have. W2s are not needed if you have transcripts.

You should be good to go.
pocherosFemaleCanada2012-11-10 12:27:00
CanadaGetting Ready for Interview...Do I Have Everything I Need?
The letter of intent must be from the USC, not the Canadian. (Not sure which you are) and you need the last three year's tax returns (including W-2s) or tax transcripts or thed I-134 is useless :P (technically you only need the most recent year's but the last three is highly recommended).

Also the Canadian needs to bring two passport style photos. Also only original police certificates are accepted.

And the medical exam in the sealed envelope- very important!
pocherosFemaleCanada2012-11-10 12:09:00
CanadaMedical Exams US vs Canada
Not sure if additional photos from the USC are required in the CR1/IR1 route after the petition but be careful that the photos are taken within the correct time frame. There are a few steps in the immigration process where the photos must be within 30 days, 6 months, etc. (though I think the 30 day one is just with the initial petition.) Anyways you don't want them to be too old. You cna also try taking them yourself using e passport photo: http://www.epassportphoto.com/

Edited by pocheros, 11 November 2012 - 01:49 PM.

pocherosFemaleCanada2012-11-11 13:48:00
CanadaMedical Exams US vs Canada
You have to use a physician in Canada.
pocherosFemaleCanada2012-11-08 16:38:00
CanadaGetting ready for pkg 3

Hello All,

We are currently waiting for our initial I-129 approval, hopefully any day now and I've started re-going over things that I need for my end of this process.

When looking at the pkg 3 doc on the montreal website, it has the list of forms I need to fill out, as of right now I have no questions about those, but when it gets to the check list, that's where the questions begin.


The check list is basically a notification to them that I have our stuff ready to show them at the interview right? Yes. You bring the originals + a copy of those documents with you on the day of the interview. The checklist just shows you understand what you're supposed to bring.

And the one question I have regarding the check list is where it mentions wedding/divorce certificates.... I've never been married, but he has.... Am I to show his marriage certificate? We have the divorce cert, but that's all...

It also has the courier service ref number..... i thought we needed to register for that just before the interview...... and is DHL the ONLY courier we can use? DHL/Loomis (they merged recently) is the only courier that Montreal uses. You can mail packet 3 with any mailing service (I recommend xpresspost) but you MUST sign up with DHL/Loomis to receive your visa since that's the courier Montreal uses to send its mail. I am not sure about the courier reference number since that's a newer thing and it's been over a year since I mailed out packet 3.

pocherosFemaleCanada2012-11-15 18:44:00
CanadaProving Support

No I saw canadians mention it, that's why I was like O_O


LOL, then why did you ask? If there's only one answer you'll take...

Edited by pocheros, 17 November 2012 - 01:33 PM.

pocherosFemaleCanada2012-11-17 13:32:00
CanadaProving Support
Well, you asked if it's required, and it's not, as it states in the instructions. Honestly I wouldn't be too worried. But if you're not satisfied with that then get a letter from the bank.

They want to see that you make 125% of the poverty guidelines for your household size. So long as you meet that requirement as demonstrated through your tax returns you should be fine. Also keep in mind that Canadians tend to get it easier when it comes to immigrating- if you were looking at threads started by people of other nationalities (which you didn't say but may have been the case) the horror stories can be misleading since we don't get it that hard.

Edited by pocheros, 16 November 2012 - 10:52 PM.

pocherosFemaleCanada2012-11-16 22:46:00
CanadaProving Support

Is providing something from my bank required? I was under the impression I'd could just provide 3 years of returns and my current stubs. =\


As always one should refer to the official instructions. Here are the instructions for the I-864 from the USCIS website: http://www.uscis.gov.../i-864instr.pdf Refer to page 11; a letter from the bank is not required. All that is absolutely required is a copy of your tax return or a tax transcript for the most recent tax year. If you don't want to get a letter from your bank but still want to include supplemental evidence you can go with pay stubs or a letter from your employer, although these aren't required either.

Short answer: 3 years of returns and pay stubs should be fine. I don't have experience with the IR1/CR1 route though and I only recently filed my AOS so take my advice with a grain of salt. With my I864 I included 7 pay stubs and three years' worth of tax returns, but that was just recently so I don't know if that'll be a problem. I doubt it though.

Edited by pocheros, 16 November 2012 - 09:18 PM.

pocherosFemaleCanada2012-11-16 21:13:00
CanadaProving Support
It shouldn't be a problem. My husband got a letter from the bank that just stated how much money had been deposited in there over the whole year, so even though his balance was low most of the time from paying bills it reflected his annual income. The most important part of the affidavit of support is the tax returns/transcripts, so long as you are above the poverty line you should be totally okay.
pocherosFemaleCanada2012-11-16 19:46:00
Canadapacket 3 forms
They won't get automatically forwarded, but it's probably best that you wait until DoS says packet 3 has been logged or at the very least you receive your MTL case number from NVC. There's always the possibility you'll receive an RFE. Also, some of the packet 3 forms ask about your most recent dates of travel- if you plan on traveling anytime soon you should hold off on filling out the forms until then.

Packet 3 is pretty quick and easy to fill out. In the meantime, start gathering your immunization records and any relevant medical information for your medical exam. If you have any documents that aren't in English you could look into having them translated now too. Good luck.

Edit: Also, there's one form (I forget which) which you fill out online and gets sent to a database of sorts. The other forms are pdfs. Wait till packet 3 is logged before filling out the online one.

Edited by pocheros, 19 November 2012 - 02:04 AM.

pocherosFemaleCanada2012-11-19 02:00:00
CanadaCriminal Record Check
So long as it indicates that you were searched in the national records repository or had a CPIC check with your name and date of birth you should be fine.
pocherosFemaleCanada2012-11-16 21:29:00
CanadaWondering... I have appointments for me & my daughter to get Flu shots for Immigration BUT....
Flu shots are required during flu season. Not sure how you'd go about getting an exemption.
pocherosFemaleCanada2012-11-17 03:31:00
CanadaSSN
Echoing what others have said, fairly sure that once you've been assigned an SSN that is your SSN for life.
pocherosFemaleCanada2012-11-19 19:25:00
CanadaMontreal Interview--APPROVED! K1
Congratulations!
pocherosFemaleCanada2012-11-19 13:04:00
CanadaIs the Hepatitus A & Rotavirus Vaccine a requirement for the medical?
Neither is required, you will get blanket waivers for those vaccines. Rotavirus is only for babies. Here is a list of required immunizations for 18-64 year olds: http://www.panelphys.../Pages/Age6.htm You might want to get an MMR booster since immunity to rubella fades and it's one of the big ones that USCIS looks for when you AOS.

Edit: Saylin beat me to it :)

Edited by pocheros, 22 November 2012 - 07:45 PM.

pocherosFemaleCanada2012-11-22 19:44:00
CanadaPreparing documents and evidence of relationship for Interview! How much is too much??
Evidence of a relationship is rarely asked for but it's always good to bring! If you already have extra evidence handy it doesn't hurt to bring it along, all you lose is some space in the folder/bag you're carrying it in. What I did was put my strongest evidence in one slot of an accordion folder and the rest of the evidence in another slot, so if they requested to see it I could produce it easily, and if they still weren't satisfied I had back up. Then I put the mandatory documents (birth cert, police cert, etc.) in another slot. They didn't ask for it though.
pocherosFemaleCanada2012-11-21 22:06:00
CanadaCan anyone help me navigate this nightmare? SSA vs Immigration records
Ugh, what a nightmare. Sorry you have to put up with all this BS. What is it with SSA offices and incompetence? Seriously, they seem to screw up constantly.
pocherosFemaleCanada2012-11-15 15:31:00
CanadaURGENT!! DHL opened DO NOT OPEN envelope with VISA information
I know that Montreal stopped answering its phones but on the website they list and emergency contact number: http://montreal.usco...formation2.html Perhaps you might have some success with that?
pocherosFemaleCanada2012-11-21 14:58:00
CanadaURGENT!! DHL opened DO NOT OPEN envelope with VISA information
I'm so sorry this happened to you! Ugh, that's awful. This has happened before though, I'll see if I can dig up the other VJ thread. I think she had to return it to Montreal where they resealed it :/

I had a friend who worked for Canada Post and he said he heard a lot of stories about DHL's security being pretty crappy :/
pocherosFemaleCanada2012-11-21 13:57:00
CanadaWhat do you miss most about Canada
Another thing I miss: I'm not gonna pretend Canada is perfect or doesn't discriminate ever, but in general Canadians, at least the ones in certain areas, tend to have a more liberal attitude than Americans. I went to the bank the other day to get some joint bank account statements for my AOS package and explained that is was for immigration. The teller was a nice young man and he told me about how crazy immigration was and how his best friend, who is Canadian, has some issues with it... And then I realized that his best friend was probably his boyfriend, but the teller couldn't say that. I might just have been imagining it but that's the sense I got- and it's really sad the teller just couldn't say it outright.

That's not to say someone in Canada might not feel the same pressure to hide themselves, though. But at least same sex marriage is legal...

Edited by pocheros, 22 October 2012 - 04:03 PM.

pocherosFemaleCanada2012-10-22 15:59:00
CanadaWhat do you miss most about Canada

Oh yes, how did I forget about the health care?!

Let's see,

...visiting a clinic in Quebec to get a prescription for birth control: $0
...visiting a clinic in South Dakota to get a prescription for birth control: over $100

Hmmmm....


That's awful. Have you tried Planned Parenthood? They gave me a 1-year prescription for free, and they charge $26/pack for all birth control pills (at least they do in Las Vegas.) Problem was they don't accept insurance, so when i finally did get insurance they told me they have to fax the prescription to another pharmacy, but after calling a bunch of pharmacies they said they won't accept prescriptions from planned parenthood because they weren't written by a doctor. #######! The system is needlessly bureaucratic, but I also suspect there were some biased pharmacists who don't like planned parenthood...

Edited by pocheros, 22 October 2012 - 03:48 PM.

pocherosFemaleCanada2012-10-22 15:48:00