My fiancee is a Korean National who has gotten a job in Manhattan working at an investment bank. They’re obviously taking care of all her visa and work permit needs etc.
The problem is, how do I go with her? Being a Canadian, I know I can pretty much spend an unlimited time in the US (they still don’t stamp Canadian passports) but how do I legally make a living? I have a University Degree but its an Arts degree, so no real specialized field or anything.
Is my only option applying for a green card? In which case I believe the waiting list is something like 5 years or more?
There are many different visa* classifications that let Canadians live, and possibly work, in the US.
Ideally, your fiancee’s employer will take care of getting you a visa (ask, and ye may receive). Otherwise, you’ll have to apply on your own, and decide what you want-- fiancee visa, spouse visa, student visa, etc…
It’s a thorny, complicated issue that I will let Eve handle, since she does this daily, I believe.
*Because you’re Canadian, US authorities will use the term ‘permit’ instead of ‘visa.’ Otherwise everything is identical.
If you’re getting married anyway, the simplest thing would be to do so before she comes to the U.S. Then you can be classified as a dependent on whatever her work authorization category is. (I’m guessing her employer will get her an H-1B, but the quota for those has run out until Oct. 1.) However, this will not allow you to work legally; you’d still need your own work authorization sponsorship from a U.S. employer.
If she is working for a non-U.S. affiliate of the same company, they may get her an L-1 visa, in which case you’re in luck: if you are married, and you accompany her to the U.S., you would be able to apply for employment authorization in L-2 dependent status, without needing any independent employer sponsorship.
There are also provisions for extended visitor visa status being given in 6-month increments to unmarried partners, but those usually only work in situations of a very long-term partnership (the last one I did involved 10+ years together and 2 kids) or same-sex relationships, where currently legal marriage is not an option for immigration purposes.
Oh, and believe me, if you haven’t crossed the U.S./Canada border lately, they are stamping passports much more regularly these days than they used to.
All in all, your fiancee should talk to her new employer and make them aware of the situation, and most likely they will present you with all your options in great detail as a courtesy. There are a lot of hypotheticals here, and a lot of information not provided in your OP.
Eva Luna, Immigration Paralegal
P.S. Fiance visas are only for fiances of U.S. citizens.
P.P.S. What’s with the immigration questions today? I must have answered 5 in the past 24 hours.
You might qualify for a TN Visa, if you can find a job that fits into one of the listed categories and you meet the requirements of the category. A TN-1 is a tempoary work visa, for a term of no more than a year, but it is renewable (or you could get a different job and a different TN-1).
A TN-1 is similar to a H-1, but without the hassle. You can pick up a TN-1 in 15 minutes at any Canada/US border crossing (air, land, sea), assuming you have all your paperwork in order. And I do mean any: I got one about 10 years ago at Pigeon River (go look it up!).
Here’s more info from an immigration law firm in Buffalo that specializes in Canadian to US immigration.