Canadian wanting information on moving to the USA

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shellyandrews
Posts: 4
Joined: Tue Apr 24, 2007 3:32 pm

Canadian wanting information on moving to the USA

Post by shellyandrews »

My husband and I are currently researching moving to Dallas Texas from BC, we are planning on buying, fixing up and then selling houses for at least 6 months out of the year.

Do we need to get a visa to be able to do this? Technically we will not be working in the USA.

What else would you suggest that we do before we go to make sure that everything is in order and legal?

Thanks for your help!
nelsona
Posts: 18311
Joined: Wed Oct 27, 2004 2:33 pm
Location: Nowhere, man

Post by nelsona »

I see you were thinking about immig issues too.

You would be working in US. Also, you would have to maintain a Cdn home at all times. Even hiring mexicans is considered managing a business, which is not allowed as a tourist.

So, at most, you would be visiting Dallas. you could hire a contractor to oversee the work, I guess, but that is about all.
nelsona non grata. Non pro. Please Search previous posts, no situation is unique as you might think. Happy Browsing :D
shellyandrews
Posts: 4
Joined: Tue Apr 24, 2007 3:32 pm

Post by shellyandrews »

Thanks for the quick reply to both of my posts.

So even if we were planning on doing all of the renovations ourselves we would still be classified as working? Do you know what kind of visa we should apply for and how long it would take?

If we are going to contact a lawyer do you think that we should contact a lawyer here in Canada or in the USA?

Thanks again for your help
nelsona
Posts: 18311
Joined: Wed Oct 27, 2004 2:33 pm
Location: Nowhere, man

Post by nelsona »

You need a US immigration lawyer.

As I said in another post, fixing the toilet in your condo is one thing. Gutting a house and refurbishing it is another. This is work.

Obviously there is no visa for this work, otherwise 12,000,000 mexican day-labourers would have one.
nelsona non grata. Non pro. Please Search previous posts, no situation is unique as you might think. Happy Browsing :D
shellyandrews
Posts: 4
Joined: Tue Apr 24, 2007 3:32 pm

Post by shellyandrews »

Thanks Again for the reply!

My husband currently owns a contracting business in Canada, do you know if it is possible to move this business to the States?

Since there are no visa's for this, what would you suggest our next step is? Is this even going to be possible? We can't be the only canadians interested in doing this!
nelsona
Posts: 18311
Joined: Wed Oct 27, 2004 2:33 pm
Location: Nowhere, man

Post by nelsona »

Did I mention contacting a US immigration lawyer?

I think so....
nelsona non grata. Non pro. Please Search previous posts, no situation is unique as you might think. Happy Browsing :D
Bill_S
Posts: 25
Joined: Fri Feb 16, 2007 10:53 am
Location: Ohio

Post by Bill_S »

It might be possible for you to establish a business in the USA; E2 is one of the visa categories for this. However, this route is not easy or fast. To echo Nelson's responses: there's no way this is a DIY project; you need a good lawyer with E2 experience; you can't operate your renovation/resale business while "visiting".
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