Immigrating to Canada and working for American Organization

[geoffrey]

I have two questions:

(1) I am planning to marry a Canadian woman, with the vision of moving to Canada in 2016. What visa do I need to apply for? I will not be studying, nor will I be working for a Canadian business/organization.

(2) If I'm able to move to Canada, but I retain a job where I work remotely for a company in the US, what sort of visa is required? Do I need to apply for a work visa/permit?

Thanks!

 

[Riley Haas]

Hi,
Let me try to answer your questions:
[list type=decimal]
[*]As an American, you do not need a visa to travel to Canada. (I assume you are an American citizen. Please correct me if I'm wrong.) You are usually granted a entry period of six months at the border (that can be shorter). You are not allowed to work or study, though, which seems to be your intention. Now, some of this depends upon where the sponsorship application is submitted. Because if you are coming here, and then your spouse is submitting the application, all is good. But if the application is being submitted while you are still in the US, then you will have to prove to the Canadian border officials that you are returning to the States at the end of 6 months. (Processing takes a long, long time.)
[*]However, if you work for your American company, that changes things. I think you would be looking for what is colloquially known as a NAFTA visa http://www.immigroup.com/nafta-north-american-free-trade-agreement (please note that this page may be out of date). However, I don't know how often, if ever, they are approved for remote work.[/list]

I hope this helps.
[/list]

 

[geoffrey]

Thanks for this Riley! More questions if that's ok...let's ignore the working abroad bit...

So, if I understand, a way forward to get PR might be to:

(a)Come to Canada and request an entry period of six months at the border
(b)While in Canada during this time, have my spouse submit a sponsorship application for permanent residency.

(1)Are these processing times for a PR card still accurate: http://www.cic.gc.ca/english/information/times/perm-card.asp?

(2)Does the country in which we get married (say either US or Canada) affect the process at all?

(3)And so if I get a PR card during this time, still for the duration of the 6 month entry period, I can't work or study?

 

[Riley Haas]

Hi again,
You are correct that you can enter Canada and have the sponsorship application submitted then. If you did want to work (for a Canadian employer) you could submit a work permit application at the same time. This is called "inland."

Now, to your questions:
[list type=decimal]
[*]I'm sorry to say that those are processing times for a PR Card. PR Cards are granted once you attain permanent resident status and then every five years, when you renew. What you are applying for is permanent resident status, through spousal sponsorship, and that is not the same thing. Unfortunately, "inland" sponsorship processing times are awful; currently 26 months. The card would then be 42 days on top of that.
[*]The country you get married in only affects the process if that your marriage certificate is not in English or French. However, if you marry in Canada or the US, this is not the problem. What does affect the process is where you submit the application. Like I said, in Canada it is 26 months. In the US, it's

• LA: 29 months
• New York: 41 months
• Ottawa (not sure who lucks out and gets processed here): 19 months

Sorry for the bad news.
[*]Once you get a PR Card, you can work or study like any Canadian. There are certain things you can't do (vote, run in elections, work in certain government jobs) but otherwise you can do most other things. But that is a long way away.
[/list]
Again, sorry to be the bearer of bad news.