EAD for wife who is a Canadian citizen

[test1234_test1234]

Hi ,

I am currently waiting for my priority date to become current I have a priority date of Jan 28 2012 ... Question I had is I am going to get married to a canadian citizen and she will be moving to the states and from what I was told she doesnt have to go to the US consulate just has to take our marriage certificate and she can be processed at the airport for the H4 visa... I wanted to however check and see if she could potentially get a work visa given that she's a canadian citizen and can that be done at the airport too ? something like the TN visa ? Also in terms of us getting the EAD is it true that we have to wait for the priority date to become current before we apply for the EAD ? or can we apply for that the moment we get married ?

[JoeF]

If she has a job offer in one of the areas that the TN covers, she can indeed get a TN visa.

[catx]

As a Canadian citizen your (future) wife could potentially be eligible for a TN visa for working. However, it is important to note that a TN visa has several specific conditions / requirements ... the person is coming to the U.S. for a specific job (already been hired with a offer letter), the person has to have a Bachelors or higher degree and the job is that field, the visa is valid for 1 year and they have to get a new visa each year (not an extension), and the visa does not allow immigration intent (i.e. if you started your permanent residency (green card) process, then your wife would be denied a TN visa).

There are no special H-4 considerations / rules for Canadian citizens. There is no work authorization allowed on a H-4 visa.

[shandan]

However if your spouse if a Canadian "Born" citizen then you would be able to file for GC under the ROW quota, and get the GC a whole lot sooner.

[test1234_test1234]

She was born in Bahrain shes a naturalized citizen of canada not a citizen by birth

[JoeF]

She was born in Bahrain shes a naturalized citizen of canada not a citizen by birth

After marriage, you would still be able to use cross-chargeability, since her country of birth is in ROW.

[shandan]

As long as one of you were born in a non-capped country, you can file for the ROW qouta, and Bahrain happens to be an ROW country, so you are good.

[test1234_test1234]

Interesting , I have to research this more given that all the senior members on this forum are in agreement , would this be soemthing I take up with my lawyer ? Currently my paperwork is being worked on by my company lawyer.

Thank you for your responses on this topic , very informative and much appreciated.